evo---
in straight line, the evo is quick until about 85 ish or somewhere in that territory.. so if it's a rolling start from anywhere in that range, the evo is easier to beat than what most people think.. so if you hear some turbo accord saying they beat an evo on the freeway, it's possibly true.

handling.. evo rolls like a boat, but it holds.. and it holds well.. making transitions during s' or slolams is easy as well. i couldn't really find any bad about it's handling characteristics. you can even make it drift with confidence..

acceleration.. off the start, unless you launch at 5k or above, the damn thing sucks.. turbo lag is a killer.. for about 2 sec. the car starts slower than a minivan.. if you're coming out of a corner and don't have enough rpm up around the 4k range, you'll be waiting for the turbo to kick in.. so you'll either need to keep in proper gear or learn to left-foot brake through a turn..

sti---
straight line... hauls ass.. i didn't have a chance to take it above 80, but it didnt' have a problem pulling until then..

handling.. it corners well through sweepers, but it feels like it fights a little when you go through side-to-side transitions quickly.. it also didn't like trail braking into turns.. if you wanted to do any form of lift or braking to rotate the car, you needed to turn the wheel first..

acceleration.. the power felt very linear.. feels more like a na car.. when you punch it, it goes.

my own conclusion.. sti will beat evo in straight line.. but the evo will out handle the sti.. for an overall street car, i would choose sti over evo.. better looking, better fit & finish, performance where you need it.. straight.. for pure performance, i'd definately go with evo..