Having seen some reviews on these, the major downpoint (besides the lack of a flat 4 rumble!!!) is the 'bumpy' clutch. Just how bad is this - could you drive this car in traffic once used to it?

 

Dont know but i wouldn't mind finding out

 

Lag tastic!

 

It's very difficult to drive in traffic as the clutch has a habit of overheating and sticking ... which then translates into you going nowhere with a horrible burning smell in the car.

You do get used to it because at the end of the day the FQ400 is not an everyday run-around type of car. The performance is so extreme that it's just not suited for say a daily commute into London so you'd be a fool to try and use it like that.

I drive one on a regular basis and it is a massive chore when sitting in heavy traffic ... but if you don't sit in stop start traffic that often then don't worry too much about it.

 

A common misconception!

the lag is not that bad at all ... top gear did the car a massive injustice with that ridiculous test vs a focus or stilo or whatever it was.

There is a tiny amound of lag before the turbo kicks in and then whatever car moved in front of you during that few seconds of lag then becomes a tiny spec in your rear view mirror.

People bang on about these spec C's and Type 25s being quick but the FQ400 makes them both look like morris minors.

 

My STi8 has 330 bhp - in real terms, how much faster would the MRFQ 400 feel? Do they have any notorious bad points?

 

the cars a dog to drive on the road but once the turbo is spinning its like a fighter plane on accelaration

 

Ooh Thats fighting talk



Saw a 400 outside Sainsburys last week actually in black with some fancy wheelage on it

 

im sure in real terms its 70bhp faster... ANY 400bhp car will be quick.......

 

Yes i remember that test. Evo in 5th gear at 30mph....if your wanting acceleration anyone with half a brain would put it in the correct gear so all in all a pretty pointless test.

 

What I am basically getting at is I reckon I could sell my Scoob for £14k ish. I see the FQ400's are coming in at about £23k ish. I may fancy a change if it is worth it..

 

lol ... I'm not being funny and don't mean this in a bad way but it would make a 330bhp STi look very very slow. I had a 350bhp+ WR1 and the FQ400 that I refer to in my posts above made that look very ordinary indeed. The performance actually hurts you whilst you are driving and the way with which the car accelerates is just mind bending. You need to come to a essex scooby posers cruise in the next few months and I'll get the FQ400 owner to bring it out and show you what I mean when I say the performance is mind bending.

Notorious bad point would be the upkeep. Not so much the servicing which is not expensive but the tyres (replaced after 5000 miles) the clutch (6000 miles) and the general wear and tear which would now be approaching the out of warranty scenario. The fuel isn't that bad because it's not very often you can drive it at full chat because you simply run out of road.

 

The engine is raced tuned and runs a Motec M800 with Antilag as standard. In real terms its a hell of a lot faster because any idiot with a screwdriver can bolt on a massive turbo and gain 70bhp but to maintain 400bhp through every gear change and every push of the pedal takes a lot more.

The car is the pinnacle of Japanese automotive design and modification and that is simply that. Nobody can say anything to the contrary!!

Neils 400 made that Spec C of yours look like it was going backwards so you know first hand how fast they are!

 

It's well worth it but definitely look for a car with minimal mileage. That might mean you pay a lot more than 23k but for piece of mind it's worth it when looking at buying a car such as an FQ400. If you can stomach 7-10k of upkeep a year then go for it buddy. You won't regret it.

 

is the antilag switchable?

 

7-10k of upkeep per year
Any chance of a breakdown as that is unreal!
Nik

 

yes they are quick compared to a 350 bhp car.... so for it to go past mine is NO mean feat..... BUT saying that. we have ALL made PPL look silly at some point.... TUSCAN springs to mind with a WR1......

 

Yes ... you can have the car set up in a number of different ways and although they don't recommend running the anti-lag programme all the time the engine is built and mapped to run it. I suppose you can look at it like that new M5. so so so so so many gear box setting options however most of the time the owners will only use the standard out of the box setting. Only a few owners will want to fully personalise and explore the ins and outs of the change ratios etc etc etc etc. Same scenario with the FQ400.

 

With all due respect Gangsta Smurf, Extreme are knocking out Evos with over 400bhp and 400lb ft torque. These are more usable and easier to drive than FQ400 with performance at the very least matching it. Great car that the FQ400 is, it is very flawed and those vortex generator thingys are just plain daft. Oh and Extreme sells them a lot cheaper too.

 

Nova/Twin engined golf/mini with nos/205 Gti thingy (Gary) ... lots of cars made the WR1 look silly. But the driver wasn't a prat who thought it was the fastest car in the world to start with so it didn't bother him!

 

as has a pug 205 with a WR1

 

MODIFIED CAR MODIFIED CAR MODIFIED CAR MODIFIED CAR

Where is the warranty, where is the fail safe??

We are talking about the Mitis approved road car here not a modified car with absolutely no come back to the manufacturer.

Did I mention you can extend the warranty to five years for an extra £700 per year??

Extreme may well be putting out much more usuable cars with 400bhp but I guarantee you will have less issues in a factory approved FQ400.

 

see post above

 

Spot on. I test drove one when i bought my Tommi Mak, i wasn`t impressed at all, the clutch didn`t really bother me having had one in my cossie, i just couldn`t see where my 30k was going, an FQ320 for 20k with 3k spent on it would be up it`s rear end.

Yes it`s going to be a collectrs car cus of what it is, but imo i`d buy a 9 now, get it Ecuteked and you`ll have money in the bank left over with a BIG smile on your face...

 

I beg to differ. Extreme are not a backstreet fly by night operation. Their work is of the highest quality and they are highly regarded within the Evo fraternity. Besides who is to say the 400 itself is not a MODIFIED car albeit a flawed one.

 

The new litchfield type 25 knocks out more than 400 and for the same money i know what id rather have and it isnt an evo

 

Herein lies it's Achilles heel Staffi. You can spec a 'lower' model FQ up to the same power and have oodles of cash to spare. I think Mitsubishi were being a little cynical in charging so much for it.

 

Tyres every 5000 miles or so. £250 per corner+ (Yokohama semi slick racing tyre.)
Clutch including labour etc. £2,000+
Petrol.
Insurance
Maintenance and servicing
Brakes. £2000. Alcon everything - uber expensive

Of course a lot depends on how much you use the car. I'm going from the angle that you are going to use it for between 10-20,000 miles per year.

If you are going to use it less than that they go buy a skoda because you are sad and should stop polishing and start driving!

Oh and I'm also assuming that you have all the parts fitted by the mitsi dealer and use the exact parts the car came with. Yoko tyres, alcon clutch/brakes. If you aren't going to do it that way then you can't afford the car because you can't buy a car like this and then add cheaper parts to it - because they just don't work. The car is built to do 400bhp and Mitsi spent millions developing it. They use Alcon brakes and Yoko tyres etc for a reason so people are fools to think they can make the car better by adding halfords parts.

 

lol.

So you are telling me you can take an FQ300 or other model up to a 400bhp threshold with complete build quality and total reliability for less than the FQ400 base price. Please do explain.

So I take it you are going to do more than just bolt on a massive turbo and take it to somebody for a remap!!

I'm talking. Alcon brakes, clutch, forged pistions, Motec M800 Eco mapped to use antilag and will full failsafe and air/fuel mixtures at optimal running levels, diffs, tyres, suspension and then a warranty, turbo and turbo extras.

Oh and all this without one single engine failure in three years or else a full no quibble re-build at the expense of the tuning shop??

Good luck!!

 

Once again with all due respect I have to disagree with much of your reasoning. Your analogies are a little flawed if I may say so. Why should we be forced to pay dealer prices when we can have work done cheaper and to a HIGHER standard by specialists. There are brakes on the market which are as good as the Alcons and are much cheaper (K Spot), and the upside is the discs are much cheaper to replace. Tyres is a subjective choice at best Yokos are good but if they only last 5000 miles then they're not that good. My point is people should not be held to ransom by dealers just because they want a little exclusivity.