The main question that comes up when people chat about Evo’s are “How much does it cost to run?”
If you’re used to Fiat Punto levels of costs then you may be in for a shock. However if you compare the costs against running costs for cars with similar levels of performance, running an Evo is relatively cheap.
The main regular expenses are fuel and servicing. However as cars are getting older you may have turbo, actuator, gearbox, differential issues and it’s critical to find one that’s been correctly serviced. Sometimes the Active Yaw Control pumps can fail. These will set you back around £250 second hand. Beware of heavily tuned examples. Standard Evo V engines are known to handle 1.5 bar boost reliably, so beware of standard cars boosting more than this on standard engine internals.
Since the versions 5s have suffered the majority of depreciation already, what you save on purchase price compared with another car you can use on fuel and maintenance.
e.g. If you buy an Evo V for £5500 and spend £1500 a year keeping it running this can work out the same or less as buying a car that will depreciate by thousands of pounds every year. Insurance will be almost unattainable for those under 25 unless you have large amounts of No Claims Bonus, live in a good area and the car is garaged. For those in their late twenties, you’re looking at a minimum of £700 to insure the car, but often nearer £1000 a year. Obviously insurance costs come into play but as a petrolhead there is no question for me. It’s a performance bargain and such a capable car it raises a smile every single time i drive it.
Regular oil changes are a must every 4500 miles or 6 months. This is an easy job to do yourself, but make sure you use a high quality oil like Fuchs Silkolene
for example.
Active Yaw Control fluid changes are every 9000 miles or every year. Differential and transfer box oils should also be changed every year. This will be around £150 at an independent garage.
Evos go through consumables very quickly, expect to replace brake pads, discs and tyres regularly. However brake changes are easy to do yourself if youre handy with a spanner so you can save a few hundred on labour costs. Brake Pads vary from £100 to £300 depending on the specification. Brake Discs cost from £90 a pair upwards. Tyres are around £80 a corner from the likes of mytyres but will wear quickly – in as little as 6000 miles depending on use.
As you can see Evos take some looking after, but go into ownership with your eyes wide open and your car will reward you with a fantastic ownership experience and many happy motoring miles.
