1997 Pajero Evolution (Old Betsy VII)

PajEvo

JDM Journeys
Awesome Pajero Evo! Are these turbocharged or NA?

This is my '98 Lancer Evo V.

Sweet! I had a FOUR for a few years. Missed it a lot after selling, until I got this.

Naturally aspirated. 3500 MIVEC, a one off for this series, only 2500 made. Makes around 300hp or so, if you believe my butt (dyno). Officially 276. But the suspension is where the magic happens. And the diffs. And the trans. Hell, the whole thing is a hoot. :)
 

PajEvo

JDM Journeys
Time for a non-update on the Pajevo. After last summer's trip to California, this summer she got a bit of a break. The past spring I bought a new daily driver, a 99 gen3 shorty diesel, so I've been spending time getting that rig maintained, and driving it a fair bit, so the pajevo mostly sat this summer. I did build an addition onto my garage so she could stay inside all year around.
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Up to now she sat in the yard all winter with a cover over her. Now my 2 car garage is an L-shape, and has a Pajevo sized extension on it.

This is not to say I didn't drive her - she still got out on occasion, and had some fun!

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PajEvo

JDM Journeys
Also took her to a car show in Southern Alberta's Waterton Lakes National Park, where she held her own among the classics...

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Pretty soon I'll be doing some maintenance, including plugs, fuel filter, and cleaning the intake etc. But she's essentially put away now until the weather improves next spring, since the roads already have snow, sand and salt on them.
 

Toasty

Looking for that thing i just had in my hand...
Can you send me a hi res version of the Evo with the other cars? ?
 

PajEvo

JDM Journeys
So as is my usual, this is the poorest build thread ever... Meanwhile, the last few years Pajevo has been watching the revolving daily drivers move in and out of the garage. First my wife sold her gen3 (North American) Montero in favour of a third gen JDM Pajero with the 4m41. Then I sold the Lancer Sportback to get a Strada 4 door pickcup (L200). This got replaced by a SWB third gen direct injection diesel. Then wifey got a 100 Series, and shortly thereafter, I got a 90 Series of my own. (Haven't sold the SWB gen3 yet, but I guess I need to get on that?)

Just been the last few years trying to figure out what would suit my DD and adventure vehicle needs best. I think the Land Cruiser J90/PajEvo combo may be it.

The Pajevo continues to watch the shenanigans, while she gets out now and then for an epic drive somewhere or other. I do have some great shots of her from here and there, just for fun!IMG_1473.jpg

pajevo4.jpg


And I did put a new Kenwood DDX in, with tilting face. Gen2 head unit is so low down in the dash that its kind of a waste, but it looks cool?

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Future plans? Drive and enjoy her, and perhaps some tires in the spring? Hopefully not as long until the next update. :sneaky:
 

plh

Explorer
So as is my usual, this is the poorest build thread ever... Meanwhile, the last few years Pajevo has been watching the revolving daily drivers move in and out of the garage. First my wife sold her gen3 (North American) Montero in favour of a third gen JDM Pajero with the 4m41. Then I sold the Lancer Sportback to get a Strada 4 door pickcup (L200). This got replaced by a SWB third gen direct injection diesel. Then wifey got a 100 Series, and shortly thereafter, I got a 90 Series of my own. (Haven't sold the SWB gen3 yet, but I guess I need to get on that?)

Just been the last few years trying to figure out what would suit my DD and adventure vehicle needs best. I think the Land Cruiser J90/PajEvo combo may be it.

The Pajevo continues to watch the shenanigans, while she gets out now and then for an epic drive somewhere or other. I do have some great shots of her from here and there, just for fun!View attachment 556873




And I did put a new Kenwood DDX in, with tilting face. Gen2 head unit is so low down in the dash that its kind of a waste, but it looks cool?



Future plans? Drive and enjoy her, and perhaps some tires in the spring? Hopefully not as long until the next update. :sneaky:

Seeing that EVO out in the snow makes me cringe. Assume you guys up north don't get the road salt like we do in Wisconsin.
 

PajEvo

JDM Journeys
Seeing that EVO out in the snow makes me cringe. Assume you guys up north don't get the road salt like we do in Wisconsin.

Paul, we get the snow, and depending on where you go, some of the salt too. I generally stay out of the city in the winter, and on the rare occasion when she gets to stretch her winter legs, I go straight to the car wash before putting her back to bed.

No mods to add to the build thread here, since I've been busy with my newest JDM, (see signature), but the PajEvo did get to go out again in the snow. Mercedes Lilienthal wrote a story for the New York Times, featuring RHD vehicles, so of course she reached out to see if I'd like to be part of it. Couldn't say no to my home girl, and so the NYT sent out a photographer with us for the day and we got to play around in the mountains near Banff, Alberta.

Here's the story, if you haven't seen it.

There are a few shots of a certain PajEvo, and some others of some Toyos that nobody in my circles seems to want to acknowledge. LOL

Here's a sneak peek:
(First pic is property of NYT. All three trucks are property of yours truly.)
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PajEvo

JDM Journeys
Depending on the weather, she may be out of winter storage. With fuel prices at historical lows, even burning premium, my (1 day per week) commute is fairly thrifty right now, so why not give her the nod?
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Right after this pic I rolled up 160000 kms, or just shy of 100k miles.

Next week she's getting some new tires, as long as tire shops continue to be open.
 

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