EVO covered the Spec C awhile back... i think its the current production car record holder for the nurburgring...

 

I think the best suggestion would be drive one in your area and see if it's right for you.

 

A friend has a stock EVO and he tossed me the keys today. I love my MINI and I think it is pretty quick , and so do a lot of car owners that have tried to catch or lose me but.....I got to tell you if I had to choose one to get away from the bad guys on any course (except the stairs at a train station) I would grab the EVO keys. It is a hell of a lot quicker than my modded MINI and don't point where you don't want to go because it is already there. Not particularly good looking and I prefer the drivability of my MINI but the EVO is the monster that people say it is and the MINI is no match IMO......at least mine isn't......and mine can probably give yours a hard time.

That being said. The engine is very peaky and has a couple of resonances in its power band. I did not like the clutch......gear box was OK. My Mini is so much more fun to drive and the supercharger and exhaust sounds are much cooler.......Hey El.....you probably eat them up with your power.

 

the funny thing is the EVO feels quicker cause of the violent head snap that comes with a turbo...the super charger has a more linier aceleration so it doesn't snap your head...the 310 hp evo felt faster than the 205 HP MCS but when we raced they were dead even...maybe a 6 inch difference by 120 mph...

 

what kind of race? straight, tight turns, skill of of both drivers equal?

 

The first year of the Dragon there was an EVO club there. No one was racing on the twisty Hwy 129 but the EVO’s were holding our four MCS’s from the obtaining the proper cruising speed we wanted to drive the road. They soon got the idea to pull to the side of the road and let us by.

Some time later we were talking to them at the Tabcat bridge turn-out. Nice guys and not bad cars, but all that HP doesn’t mean squat if you can’t use it because of 180 degree turns that come once every 200 feet.

When we all started back, they let us go first.

 

Feels quicker? It is quicker. Here are the numbers. EvO Works and MCS

From Sport Compact Car:
Quarter Mile:
EVO 13.4 103 MPH
Works 15.2 92.4MPH
MCS 15.4 90.4 MPH

Accelleration


0-30--------0-60----30-50----50-70
E 1.7 ---------5.3----- 2.1 -------2.9

W 3.0----------7.1------2.5-------3.6

M 2.9----------7.4------2.6-------3.9






Not denying your story but the numbers show it could have been different.



Paul

 

The problem with a question like "Evo vs. MCS" is that it is not a question with a correct answer.

somewhat like asking:

Who is the best skater on ice?

a) Eric Heiden (5 gold medals for speed skating in a single winter olympics)

b) Michelle Kwan (the most decorated US figure skater in history)

c) Wayne Gretsky (arguably the best hockey player of all time)

Eric Heiden is certainly the fastest, Michelle Kwan has the best handling, but Wayne Gretsky would smash both of them into the boards so hard they would never skate again. . .

 

Exactly. But when it comes to speed EVO, slalom EVO, 1/4 mile EVO...etc.
The measurables the EVo wins. The intangibles thats a different story.


Paul

 

Michelle Kwan is certainly cuter than an Evo!

 

But she's no Katrina Witt.




But we digress..


Paul

 

But how does SHE handle?

 

Hmm, has any one actually ever seen Wayner hit anybody?

 

Seriously now . . . is there anything better than gently steering a thread towards the "Under Review" forum without actually violating site guidelines myself???

 

HailUnc33,
Your original question-
"I was really wondering if anybody new if a Mini could outhandle an Evo in everyday driving, not on a controlled track with predictable turns and no traffic."

Everyday driving for me is in traffic with 25 mph speed limits on almost all roads and 50-60 mph speed limit on all highways, sometimes as low as 45. Not gridlock traffic but some areas it is heavy with many stop lights.

I think the reality is that all performance cars are going to suffer in almost all everyday driving situations if one lives in an urban area, with suburban being sometimes a bit better but not always and rural being less cluttered with traffic.

Road quality is probably worst in heavy traffic, urban and highway areas and best in suburban areas.

To answer the question- All MINIs can handle very very well in everyday driving. A suspension modded MINI can hold it's own in everyday driving.
This means "keeping up" and not getting "left in the dust" like my family minivan. I'd expect that a stock MC can keep up with a modded MCS in urban areas with moderate traffic on any given day in any given city- mostly the faster car is limited by traffic flow and speed limits. In no traffic, it depends on the roads. With many turns, stops, and little straights, the MINI would do well. For comfort, the stock MINI does very well but it depends on suspension options and tires used.

So, how can we really know what each car can do? Simple, get on the track, go to the autocross, put a highly skilled driver in the MINI and step back. There are no "speed limits" at the track short of loosing control. The autocross is designed to limit speeds to 60 or less with many turns so that becomes a limitation for powerful cars and favors those that have a balance of handling and enough power.

Where I live there is no location to hit top speed in a MINI. It doesn't exist. Our track is a 1.3 mile loop with not enough straightaway but we get a glimpse of the performance possible.

A simple self test would be to take an EVO out for a test drive on the road and in 5 minutes you will have your answer.

 

Put the same highly-skilled driver (no, not me ) in the MCS (JCW if you like) and then in a stock Evo on virtually any "track" and I know where I'd put my money....but then again, I'm not a gambling man

 

Roll on drag race, yes both drivers were of equal skill...the drifting of the evo I did later..LOL..and that's just fun not fast ...LOL

 

this is not the case...the turbo has a neck snaping effect that a super charger does not...

more over it's not the case cause we proved it wrong...the violence of the snap made us say hmmn this is going to be good...but in the end it was dead even


if I take the super charger off my mini and use a turbo it will feel the same...the #'s you posted are stock to stock...I care not about that...also racing a FWD or RWD to an AWD from the line is just plain silly....you cannot compare...but doing rollons from 30 mph...things change...power to wieght...

 

Thanks for all the answers. I guess it was a bad comparison, but I think I'll stick with the Mini, just because it is so unique and fun to drive. The Evo is just fast, that's really it, not much fun unless you live in a rural town with a nearby track. Otherwise you really don't need all the power of the Evo. but the Mini is still fun to drive with or without traffic. I'm not really sure what it is about the Mini maybe because of how short the wheelbase is or the size of the car, but something makes it so much fun to drive, whereas the Evo is a little bit boring in the interior. I guess the Evo is just made to race and not to look good or be fun to drive, like the Mini.

 

OK, this has to stop before my husband starts thinking he has to bring the Evo to Dragon instead of the MINI to give some folks rides. While I love my MINI, whenever he gives rides to people in the Evo on one of the twisty roads near our house they come back with their eyes popping out their heads.

 

Now, now...you have to keep the Evo so it can surprise a few unsuspecting people.

 

LOL! Funny thread... But Heiden went on to be a professional bicyle racer - specializing in sprints... those guys are MEAN> Heiden vs. Gretsky? Hmmm... I gotta go with Heiden....

 

Did you miss the roll on acceleration times?

30-50, and 50-70? Evo quicker through out.



Paul

 

Wayne Gretsky is probably the weakest hockey player ever. He had to have people keep the opposing defenders from hitting him, he was really good and fast, but not that strong for a hockey player.

 

did you miss my post...we are not copmparing #s out of some magazine..we are comparing a 310 WHP evo and a 205 WHP mini...HP to wieght they were dead even

we were not talking about some guy who says hey I have a JCW kit so I have 210 HP or some guy who says hey I did x, y and z to me evo so I have X hp...we are talkin a obut two cars that wre Dynoed then raced with equal driver skill

more over if you wanna compare them all around...the evo is unstedy and sloppy...also the intierior is cery plasticy...the gear box is absolutly horrid as it's a slush box like I have never before expirenced....and if it was a 16 k like it should be it would be one of the greatest cars ever....but at 30 k + ...it is an absolute joke...not that is isn't fun...but if you are compareing them all around...the ONLY thing the evo has over the mini is AWD and the ability to be 600 hp...WOOOOPIE!!!

Oh yeah and the EVO raced was on Pure 110 octane...and the Mini Pump gas...since we have electronic timeing...had the Mini been on 101 and not 91 I think it might have made things different...