ein Tuner vergleicht den Evo mit dem STI (englisch)

JörgH-67

und er hat Recht!

Zitat:

Paul Yim, owner of the Santa Clarita-based Subie dojo Yimisport, has his own opinions on the matter. He's owned and tuned EVOs and STIs alike, and the Laguna Seca Blue STI laid out on the pages in front of you has served as his company's test bed since it was purchased new in November of '07-meaning it, and its 536 whp have stood at the forefront of STI tuning technology. "If you're looking to drop $30K on a solid, fast, practical street car out of the box, the Subie's perfect-loads of torque, it's comfortable . . . and have you seen the EVO's trunk space? It's a joke." He continues, "But if you want to tune your car a little, make more power and beat everyone at the track on the weekends without worrying that it's going to blow up, you probably want the EVO." He reconsiders, "Then again, if you're loaded and your only goal is to build an all-out track monster . . . they're pretty much the same." Yim points to two fundamental differences with each car. "The EVO's engine has always been bulletproof. Even the new 4B11 has proven its stock block can take some serious abuse. If the U.S. STI's EJ25 came with forged pistons and a better head design like the 4G/4B-like the JDM STI engine-they'd be every bit as strong." He continues, "And the EVO chassis just feels more responsive on the track; twitchy, almost. It responds to every steering and braking input, which is good, but also makes the STI way more comfortable on bumpy, unpredictable roads, like the ones most of us drive everyday." A product of their extensive rally heritage, we suspect, where competition-built Subarus outnumber, and outright own their EVO rivals.

STIs have a proven overheating problem when driven hard-especially the '08+ cars, which are equipped with radiators half as thick as in previous years. For emissions' sake, they also run a factory-preset closed-loop 14.7:1 air/fuel tune until 4,000 rpm, which severely limits timing advance and power output. And then there's the problem of them blowing up. "There are certain steps you should take when building an STI," explains Paul Leung, Yimisport's lead tuner, "First, get an Accessport and have it tuned the day you buy your car. Then buy bolt-ons, a good suspension and lower the car a little, do your alignment, and have fun." But he cautions, "Make sure to upgrade the oil pan, intercooler and radiator, and add an oil cooler before you go racing. And if you upgrade the turbo and injectors, build the block. Replace the pistons at the very least-stock ones don't usually last long." Typically, cylinder four leans out and detonates due to excess back-pressure that builds at its near-90-degree exhaust port, keeping the proper amount of fuel from entering combustion. "A good turbo manifold and some mild porting will take care of this," Leung advises.

Modifying an EVO is a slightly different story. Super Lap Battle's 2008 Street AWD and 2009 Limited AWD class-winning car, Ryan Gates' AMS-powered EVO X, has raced two entire seasons on a stock-block, 500+whp 4B11 engine without a hitch. Elliott's car has managed to run faster than most with comparatively little added to it-even 1.081 seconds faster than Yim's STI at our STI vs. EVO Shootout (though in Yim's defense, he was testing a larger turbo on the car, the powerband of which was too "peaky" for his driver's liking on street tires-a more fitting turbo replaces it now). Still, they aren't without their hiccups: "The MR's twin-clutch SST transmissions are known to overheat on the track," explains Elliott, "but it's not much of a problem with an aftermarket transmission cooler. And all EVO Xs experience fuel starvation during hard cornering when the gas tank is less than half full." He continues, "Those are the only two drawbacks I know of." Flexing an off-the-shelf Tein/Hotchkis suspension, a slight APM/AMS/Project Mu brake upgrade and making a fat 391 whp, his car is on the verge of sub-two-minute passes at Buttonwillow. "It might've been able to break two minutes-the driver didn't get a lot of seat time with it this year. But with the Voltex aero it has now, it shouldn't have a problem," he claims. To put this in perspective, a stock Z06 'Vette and Porsche 911 Turbo (997) won't run better than a 2:02. A stock EVO X GSR will do about a 2:05.

It's often said that the EVO will turn a novice driver into a pro behind the wheel. This is largely thanks to the car's Super All Wheel Control (S-AWC) system that reads information supplied by on-board accelerometers, throttle-position and ABS sensors, and electronically engages differentials to deliver the best possible traction under any circumstance. It's been a hit since the EVO IV and the current system has been in play since the EVO VIII. "It wasn't as good with the VIII's open diff," comments Elliott, "but on the IX and X it's often called the 'magic diff'." The STI doesn't have this reputation.

No holds barred, the stacks are just about equal. In Second Place of SLB's all-time fastest list is the Cusco/Tomei/Voltex/Team Tarzan '07 Impreza WRX, less than a second off the HKS time. In Fourth is another first-year competition car: Crawford's '08 STI, and it's currently ahead of AMS' EVO X in SLB rankings and within just two seconds of HKS. And let's not forget Atlanta's Top Speed GC8 that owns Southeastern time-attack record books, or the U.K.'s Zen Performance or Roger Clark Motorsports Imprezas that consistently beat out FD-, Elise-, and EVO-badged competitors. "The low-profile design of Subaru's flat-four gives the cars a better weight distribution than the EVO," states Yim, "Sometimes I think the reason STIs aren't winning as much is just because there are less of them out there."

The STI/EVO racing rivalry that led to the potent streetcars we enjoy today is very much a double-edged sword; competition to build a faster homologated racecar also means competition to "grow" a brand into a more viable showroom car, which usually means (in the case of the Galant/Legacy) one that's larger, more comfortable, and less of a performer. Could this already be happening with the STI and EVO? "Both cars are larger and 'fatter' in their newer generations, but the chasses are more rigid, and they still make the power they always did, explains Yim, "Still, a lot of racers prefer the older cars." Ryan Gates isn't one of them: "I sold my EVO IX to buy a X, and can honestly say the X is better in every way," he testifies. Subaru's newly released '10 STI SE brings further performance enhancements to the showroom (sway bars, springs and suspension bushings from the JDM STI Spec C; reduced weight; etc.), but the EVO has apparently stopped evolving; the X brings no major performance changes for '10, in what should be its first year as an EVO XI. The rumors we hear include direct-injection or diesel 4B11 variants, or Ralliart Sportbacks-both seemingly geared more toward fuel economy and utility than performance. Now that both manufacturers have pulled out of the WRC, will more comfortable interiors, better fuel economy, decreased NVH, and greater storage capacity see the same heated competition once fought over acceleration, braking and handling improvements? "The Impreza engine is ready to be replaced," explains Leung, of Subaru's venerable EJ-series engine which comes of drinking age this year, "and it seems like everyone is moving more toward fuel economy than performance. Still, we never got the good version-the JDM EJ207-so I can't imagine a new engine being anything but better."

No matter the fate each car's manufacturer has in store for it, competition among tuners and enthusiasts like Paul and Elliott will keep performance evolving. Twenty-one years after the introduction of the first-gen Eclipse, turbo/AWD DSMs continue to upset their competitors on the time-attack circuit, and push further into the 7s down the 1320 in near-street trim. And if long-held records set by performance giants like the GT-R, NSX and Fairlady being taken out so easily by EVOs and STIs tells us anything, it's that the future is bright for both cars. "I originally bought my STI to be a 300whp daily driver while I raced the EVO," says Yim with a laugh, "But after we got past the small hurdles, I liked it so much I sold the EVO. I probably won't stop until it's running in the Unlimited class." Elliott's view is different. "My EVO is done. I'm going to take it to the track more, run under two minutes at next year's Super Lap Battle, and just enjoy it. It's faster than most cars on the street and as long as it stays that way, that's good enough for me."

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