The one thing I like about Singapore and it's tuning scene is that Singapore has some pretty ridiculous restrictions when it comes to owning a car. From the COE regulations where you are only entitled to own a car for 10 years and other modification restrictions, it will cause a person to really question if they want to really run a Singapore and turn it into a hobby. In a way, it filters out those who are not totally willing to commit to the responsibility. From there, for those who actually burn their hard earn money to run a performance car, they know with the limited time they have with the car, they make sure their rides don't end up being halfway projects.
During a recent run to the island city, I was invited by Elvin Chua to take a look at his Mitsubishi Evo CZ4A. Elvin runs a shop up in Woodlands at the north side of Singapore which specialize on exterior parts. At ECS Garage, they mainly distribute, install and repair aerokits and carbon fiber parts. If you take a look at a lot of cars running on the street in Singapore that has carbon fiber parts on them, you would realize that a lot of them comes from ECS Garage including Elvin's Evo.
Prior to owning the Evo, Elvin once owned a street tuned Nissan Silvia S15 for two years. The S15 had quite a few decent parts from a HKS exhaust to Greddy turbo support parts and even an ARC intercooler which ran up north of 300 horsepower at 1.1 bars of boost. That was the car that made him fall in love with turbocharged cars. After the S15 was sold off, he decided that he wanted to try out a 4WD layout as his next project. So a little bit over a year ago, he got himself this 2009 Mitsubishi Evo CZ4A as his next project car.
Under the hood, Elvin kept the setup of his 4B11 inline-4 motor simple and highly streetable. For starters, he kept the bottom end internals entirely stock. However, he replaced the turbocharger with a Garrett GTX3071R turbine in the stock position. In the cylinder heads, the stock cams were replaced with a pair of GSC S1 264 camshafts with 10.2mm intake and 10mm exhaust lift. The 4B11 motor is dialed in and tuned with a Motec M800 ECU and running an estimated 470 horsepower at 1.8 bars of boost.
The CZ4A is known to be a very comfortable car compared to their predecessors with such spacious interior and smoother ride. This was known to be Mitsubishi's approach to make the Evo CZ4A to be more appealing and less intimidating to the average consumer. In Elvin's case, he finds the car to be highly reliable and livable as a car he drives everyday to and from work. It is also easy for him to bring the car up the Sepang circuit, have fun at the track and drive it back. While being a very comfortable car to live with, it is still a car that has the sharp handling that the previous Evos are known to have.
As I look back at the car that was brought out, when someone sees it from a distance, it's not exactly the car that will stand out immediately. The colour looks pretty close to stock and there isn't any eye catching styling cues like a ridiculously big wing. But when I look at the Evo closely, that's when I can appreciate the details of the car. The car is painted a very sexy candy red where the hue is very similar to the factory colour. It's just that this colour looks more alive. Not to forget the aggressive Varis aerokit that compliments the existing lines of the CZ4A. As a whole, the car is a simple yet complete street tuned package which keeps its level just right. Thus making this CZ4A right at home in Singapore's urban environment.
TUNING MENU
Owner: Elvin Chua
Model: 2009 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution GSR CZ4A
Location: Woodlands, Singapore.
ENGINE:
2.0L 4B11 Inline-4,
GSC S1 Camshafts,
Blitz Intake,
Blitz Intercooler,
Blitz Blow Off Valve,
Cosworth Fuel Rail,
Sard Fuel Regulator,
Gram Performance Fuel Pump,
Steel Braided Fuel Hoses,
Oil Catch Tank,
Fujitsubo Exhaust,
Garrett GTX3071R Turbo,
Motec M800 ECU,
DRIVETRAIN:
5 speed manual,
Steel Braided Clutch Hose,
SUSPENSION, CHASSIS AND BRAKES:
Quantum Racing 2 Way Adjustable Coilovers,
Cusco Anti Roll Bars (F & R),
Cusco Room Bar,
Beatrush Engine Mounts,
DBA T3 Brake Rotors,
Brembo Brake Calipers,
WHEELS AND TIRES:
Enkei RPF1 18 x 9.5 Offset +15
Yokohama Advan AD08R 265/35/18 (all round),
EXTERIOR:
Varis '14 Version Ultimate Aerokit,
Varis Carbon Fiber Hood,
Varis Carbon Fiber Pillar Cover,
INTERIOR:
Bride Low Max Gias Full Bucket Seat,
Takata 4-Point Harness,
Zoom Carbon Fiber Rear View Mirror,
ARC Titanium Gear Knob,
Blitz Gauges,
Blitz Carbon Gauge Pod,
Blitz SBC i-D Boost Controller,
SPECIAL THANKS TO:
ECS Garage, Singapore.
BONUS IMAGES
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