Yesterday, our long-term 2008 Evo GSR reached 25,000 miles. This is a car that's been modified, dyno tuned, track tested, modified some more, and always ridden hard and put away wet. Despite this rough treatment, it hasn't blown up yet or, come to think of it, experienced a mechanical failure of any kind. This is a tough car.
If you've been paying attention, then this post has other significance too--it means Project Evo X is back on the road again. Road Race Engineering in Santa Fe Springs, CA, has been busy with it, installing and tuning a Garrett GT30R turbo and Injector Dynamics injectors, plus replacing our worn-out stock clutch with an ACT clutch and flywheel to handle the load. The car also received a few other goodies that I haven't mentioned yet.
In all, I've got tuning notes, dyno results, driving impressions and track testing results that I'm sifting through and will be posting up as time allows.
Jason Kavanagh, Engineering Editor @ 25,000 miles.
eville_stu says:
11:39 AM, 09/16/09
I'm dying to hear the results of the latest mods... dyno and driving impressions... is this beast still usable on the street... I hope you can keep it for a few more months so we can see its reliability with all these mods.
dragonflight says:
11:58 AM, 09/16/09
Feels like you guys are really holding back on a lot of this info, especially considering the GT-R was supposed to be leaving the fleet not too long ago (but obviously didn't).
Jason Kavanagh replied to comment from dragonflight
12:17 PM, 09/16/09
Just been busy juggling between other cars. There's no conspiracy, but I love me some kooky theories.
dragonflight says:
12:21 PM, 09/16/09
J to the K has actually been holding the GSR prisoner in his basement for months, slowly mutilating it into a....*dum dum dum* RICER! Head for the hills!
kungfudevil says:
12:22 PM, 09/16/09
Glad to hear the car is bulletproof. Aside from nagging rattling my GSR has not let me down so far either.....in fact it has only gotten stronger the harder I drive it. Looking forward to seeing the thing on the street (seen it twice already) and hearing about how it matches up with the GTR!
hybris says:
12:34 PM, 09/16/09
Honestly I think that IL needs to start modding the GTR if Nissan can't build it right then you can make it right and make it better too the Evo seems to show this.
fstclyz says:
01:31 PM, 09/16/09
I think you guys might be the only ones with the new Garrett on your car. Please give us some details and feedback. Regarding the reliability, I too have had very good luck with my GSR built for Time Trials, although my 3rd gear synchro is out. The car produces 350whp with minor mods and just continues to sing. It's a great car for the money.
wobbly_ears says:
01:37 PM, 09/16/09
@hybris,
They would try to mod the GT-R, but they're afraid it would breakdown before it gets to the garage.
I thought we all agreed that GT-R is as reliable as Ford Pinto?
dragonflight says:
01:42 PM, 09/16/09
@wobbly and @hybris
I'm pretty sure the GSR was a Mitsu loan with the explicit intention of modding it, whereas LTRTB has to worry about selling their GT-R afterwards. I mean, I don't want a modded GT-R, and I DEFINITELY don't want a modded GT-R with their service records!
thegrocer says:
02:00 PM, 09/16/09
No, a Pinto was more reliable than a GT-R...now, the Chevy Vega...that would be a more apt comparison...
hybris says:
05:30 PM, 09/16/09
I guess if you wanted a reliably modded GTR it would have to be the old R34 Skyline GT-R.
redwoodaggie says:
08:46 AM, 09/17/09
I've been extremely impressed with the durability of the Evo X between yours and my friend's. Their Evo X is heavily modded (suspension, exhaust, engine tuning) and after a full day of giving 9-10/10ths rides around a track, there wasn't a single hiccup. On the opposite end, my friend's modded STI has blown up many times (I doubt Subaru will warranty it this time...they've shown him race results that show he's racing it). I also heard the '08 STI at SCCA solo nationals broke as well. I'm kinda surprised, to be honest.