Company Car
Giving new meaning to the 30 minutes-or-less promise
By Dan Frio
Photography By Devin LeFevere
If things don't work out for Edward Pagan at his family's pizza business, he'll probably have a bright future in marketing. Or as a political spin doctor. Either way, using his 2003 Evo VIII as a means to promote the shop is a brilliant allocation of resources. We can only imagine how he convinced a skeptical Mrs Pagan.
"My family and I own a local pizzeria, so I had the crazy idea to build a daily delivery sport compact car that will help us bring business into the shop," Pagan explains. "The car brought so much attention that people come to the restaurant to take pictures and say hello, and they become new customers."
This is a guy who has also owned a Buick Grand National and Chevy Impala SS, and grown accustomed to mild violence when mashing an accelerator. He says he did much of the engine work himself, helped by Rolo at Central Florida Turbo in Orlando, Buddy at Florida Performance Machine for engine assembly, and most recently Titan Motorsports, the Supra tuning legends.
"Nero [Deliwala, Titan Motorsports owner] told me, `I need a champion Evo.' So this is their Evo shop car now," says Pagan.
It was Titan tech Geo Castillo who first explained to Pagan the importance of matching cams to head flow, directing him to a custom-spec Cosworth valvetrain. His 4G63 also gets Ross pistons, Crower rods and a .20 overbore. A Precision GT-4067R turbo kit, mated with a Gato Performance intercooler kit and a 50-shot of Nytrex nitrous, help Pagan net 744 wheel-hp and 565lb-ft on the dyno.
It also helped his friend, driver Oscar Robles, nail a claimed 9.2 seconds at 153mph at the drag strip recently. His goal is to equal or better that run this year on the record at an NHRA or NOPI event. Did he really say he uses this to move pies around town? "It's still a daily driven street car. I even have to deliver pizzas when I have a driver call in or not come to work."
How cool would it be to ride along with Pagan as he brings hunger relief to Orlando's gamers and stoners with nearly 800 horsepower transmitted through the Tilton twin-disc clutch, Ralliart diff, Gator Performance axles, and 245/45R18 BFG Drag Radials? The mozzarella is most likely still melting by the time Pagan pulls up for the delivery.
Helping plant the Evo in corners are A'PEXi N1 coilovers, which anchor an otherwise stock suspension. An AMS/Wilwood brake package also helps keep the car on the road, no matter how determined Pagan seems to make it take flight. He sees 900hp as a reasonable goal, especially given his connection with Titan.
"We'll probably change compression, and definitely change the gearing to something from ShepTrans," says Pagan. He's also awaiting a new 4202 turbo from Force Performance and TiAl that reportedly flows up to 110 pounds per minute--well up from the 80 pounds the Precision unit currently flows.How does the Evo compare to his muscle car past? Pagan describes its handling as "unbelievable." Even among a crew of friends who drive domestic muscle, the Evo is respected. "It's a four-cylinder muscle car. All you need is a downpipe, test pipe, [ECU] flash, boost controller and wastegate, and you've got a 12-second car right there