Feature: The Quest for Perfection

The Mitsubishi Evolution is a downright amazing machine. Having owned one myself, I can attest to its no-frills performance, its amazing handling, and its undeniable need for modifications. It practically begs for them. Kelvin Hsiu can attest to that as well, because this Evo your currently reading about is his second, and 1 of 2 in the U.S. to rock an authentic Do-Luck widebody aero kit. Matter of fact, the only 2 factory body panels left on the car are the 2 front doors, and the roof. Kelvin's first Evo was a yellow 03 Evo 8, which he left mostly stock for awhile. Then in 09, a drunk driver stole his beloved Evo from him. Kelvin was on a quest to find another Evo, but not just any Evo. The perfect Evo.

Sometimes fate acts in mysterious ways, in this case it was a close friend of Kelvin's named Tom. Tom was building an Evo, this Evo actually, and had completed the Do-Luck kit, and the flat black paint. But the modding came to a halt, and that was when the deal was made and the Evo exchanged hands between friends. Kelvin took it upon himself to perfect his newly acquired Evo with the complete ARC catalog. Being a fan of rare, authentic JDM parts, Kelvin accented his car with only the best of the best. "The outside holds sentimental value" says Kelvin, and it shows.

"I actually got into cars back in 03" says ejbgj. "I saw 2 Fast 2 Furious and knew I had to have an Evo" laughs Kelvin. "I didn't mod the Evo for almost 5 years" explains Kelvin (I don't know how he could resist!). "But then I went to a Hot Import Nights event where I met a few guys, and the modifications took off!" The execution of this Evo, from its exterior, to its choice of parts resemble somebody whose been modding for a decade, Kelvin's only been doing it for 3 years!

The outside of a car is always the first thing you see, so why not make it stand out? Stand out it does, with its aggressive flat black paint, and 1 of only 2 Do-Luck kits stateside, this Evo is as unique as they get. "I originally wanted a Voltex widebody kit" explains Kelvin, but as fate would have it, he got his hands on 50% of all stateside Do-Luck Kits available, and with a $15k price tag, I can understand why. This $15k price tag not only puts you in a class of extreme exclusivity, but also includes Do-Luck front bumper, front carbon fiber canards, front wide fenders, side skirts, carbon fiber side skirt splitters, wide quarter panels, rear bumper splitters, GT T-2 wing, and duckbill trunk. The front area is fitted with a C-West Carbon Fiber Hood, Craft Square carbon fiber polarized mirrors, ARC Windmaster fender liner vents, as well as JDM Evo 8 MR headlights to make the front end pop. The rear was accented with JDM 8 MR taillights and his favorite piece, a custom ARC exhaust that ARC made specifically for Kelvin after it was discontinued. Continuing with his quest for highly sought after parts, Kelvin managed to get his hands on a set of Top Secret Gold Volk TE37's, sized in an 18x10.5 +15 all around, wrapped in Toyo Proxes R888 285/30/18 to get his stance to match his aggressive aero. So rare were his Volks that he had to order a bronze TE37 as a spare! Hiding behind the Volks lies another rare treasure, an Alcon 6 pot big brake setup resting on Alcon 355mm rotors.

Keeping the car poised is a set of Apex'i N1 Robispec tuned coilovers, which compliment the ARC titanium trunk bar, titanium front strut bar, titanium rear strut bar, and lastly a Progress rear sway bar. Ferodo DS3000 brake pads all around compliment the Goodridge stainless lines, and help stop this Evo as fast as it gets up and goes. And to finish off his footwork for a set of polished nuts, Kelvin turned to Go Tuning for there titanium lug nuts.

Moving to the engine bay, where ARC whored themselves out, you'll take notice of a massive ARC wide core intercooler, which feeds cold air to the ARC upper intercooler piping, past the HKS 280 cams, through the turbo covered by an ARC heatshield, and also fed by an ARC intake, to the Trust downpipe, and finally sent to its demise through the last-ever-made ARC full titanium exhaust. however the ARC slutiness doesnt stop there, an ARC radiator held in place by STM radiator brackets, topped off with an ARC radiator cap, ARC oil cap, and ARC titanium valve cover. Giving another company some spotlight, Forge alloy chimes in with their header tank, and power steering tank, while a Nisei mini battery tray supports an Odyssey mini battery. Kelvin wasn't kidding about having the entire ARC catalog.

On to the interior, equally as aggressive as its skin, Kelvin spends most of his time propped in his Bride Zeta III seats, adorned with equally as JDM Takata harnesses, resting behind his OMP limited Tommy Mäkinen Ralliart Championship steering wheel. A Top Secret quick release and Works Bell hub compliment the rare wheel. ARC found its way inside with there polished titanium shift knob. an Okuyama 6 point roll cage stiffens up the chassis, while Defi serves up with their BF line keeping Kelvin informed on his Oil temps, Oil pressure, and Boost. Zeitronix joins the fun with their wideband meter, and Blitz helps control the power with their electronic boost controller. cooling off the hot oil and keeping the turbo safe is an HKS turbo timer, while a Carbing rear seat delete panel keeps this 4 door a 2 seater. While the creature comforts are minute, an Alpine CDA-9856 head unit keeps the tunes flowing, and improves on the Mitsubishi factory sound system. Not their strong suit if my memory serves me correct.

Kelvin would like to thank the previous owner, and friend Tom Heady. "I couldn't go as far as i wanted without him, and he gave me a great head start with the work he did." Kelvin would also like to thank Bulletproof Automotive for their help with the wheels, rollcage, and answering all his questions. This car is still in progress and i can't wait to see how it ends up.

In his journeys, Kelvin has suffered some setbacks, but as fate would have it, he found himself owning 50% of all stateside Do-Luck kits, a rare set of wheels, including steering wheel, an entire ARC catalog, and easily one of the baddest Evo's on the street, all the while it was hiding under his nose. Kelvin Hsiu took 1 step back, and 2 steps forward, and that is usually the way it goes in the Quest for Perfection.

Also big thanks to sponsors Toyo, Forge motorsports, Stasis engineering.