http://www.mitsubishicars.com/lancer...ion/index.html


In a Nutshell: Speed, Agility, Noise, and Harshness....not the car for everyone.


I had planned this weekend to review the entry-level Honda Fit ( several people I know are interested in one ) but they are simply too hard to find..almost every one is coming into dealerships pre-sold. Even some old friends of mine in the Honda sales buisness couldn't locate one for a test-drive, so as I looked down the street to the Mitsubishi shop, ( my home town is FULL of dealerships ) I though to myself.......Well, Mitsubishi may not hang around here in the U.S. market much longer ( Right, Mike...1SICKLEX? )
Some people, especially young single ones, drool over the Evo ( though it is not a car for the masses, as we will shortly see ), and even if Mitsubishi does not decide to pack up and leave, the Evo's days in the U.S may be numbered.....right now a 2008 model is not guaranteed, but as of today a 2007 model will be offered at least part of the year.... that decision is still open to change.
So I figured I'd better check out the latest version ( the Evo IX ) while we still had the chance. So...a few minutes later I had my Subaru parked and was going over a row of new Evos ( surprisingly the dealer had 6 or 7 of them in stock ). They were reluctant to let the top-line Evo MR's out on test-drives but, after routinely Xeroxing my drivers' license, happily tossed me the keys to a new Phoenix Red Evo IX with only 70 miles on it. Of course, being a brand-new car, I did not push it to its amazingly high limits...this car is so extreme a sports sedan that, in this traffic-congested region, you can't really drive it safely or realistically at its limits anyway...though I did find some nice sharp curves to really test the handling.
This is a CLASSIC high-performance pocket-rocket sedan that is at its best only under very limited circumstcnces , such as rallying, empty curvy roads, or autocrossing. It is not, IMO, a vehicle well-suited for daily driving, cruising, long trips, rough roads, or ( especially ) immature and impulsive drivers, and the lack of an automatic transmission in any of the Evo models only further limits its usefulness well.

Mitsubishi, after a long run overseas, and particularly in the home Japanese market, introduced the AWD Lancer Evolution VIII into the American market in response to the explosive popularity of the 227 HP Subaru WRX sedans and later the 300 HP Sti. These were the first attempts by both automakers to sell Rally or near-Rally-capable stock production cars in the American market, and the Evo and Sti soon became limited-production arch-rivals along the same lines as the Mustang GT / Cobra - Camaro SS / Z28 and BMW M - Audi S rivalries. The present-generation Evo IX model replaces the last-generation Evo VIII, but two other trim levels are offered in the American market....the RS model without a spoiler and the top-line MR.
So......as I said, I wound up with a new red IX to review and test-drive, so let's get on with it.....


Model Tested: 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX
Base Price: $31,399
Major Options: None
Freight $595
Sticker Price: $31,994

Exterior color: Phoenix Red
Interior: Black leather / Alcantra with Recaro front seats
Drivetrain: 2.0L 16-valve twin-scroll turbo / intercooled inline-4 with MIVEC valve timing, 5-speed close-ratio manual transmission, All-Wheel-Drive with helical front differential, Active Driver-controlled center differential, and mechanical limited-slip rear differential.

( Folks, needless to say, this is NOT a cheap or simple drivetrain, especially, unlike the Subaru STi's, with the need for even more hardware and bevel gears to hook up the AWD to the front transverse-mounted engine )


PLUSSES:

Amazing, Rally-car agility at a reasonable price

Extremely quick steering response.

Slingshot acceleration when turbo boost kicks in ( up to 20 PSI )

Tenacious tire grip in corners

Seamless, driver-controlled AWD

Easy-to-use clutch and lower gears in transmission.

Engine components accessible from above without an annoying plastic engine cover.

Phoenix Red and Electric Blue Pearl welcome exceptions to the usual funeral-home colors

Momo steering wheel provides a good grip.

Superb Recaro front seats.

Brembo brake package front and rear gives right-now response.

Super-long 10 / 100 and 5 / 60 warranties rival those of Korean makes.

Well-designed dash and gauges with simple no-nonsense controls and switches.



MINUSES:

Not a car for immature or careless drivers.

High insurance rates

Somewhat tinny sheet metal

Extremely harsh ride

Lack of sound insulation means high wind and road noise.

Turbo intercooler low under front bumper exposed to damage from debris despite the protective screen.

OK but unexceptional stereo...a better one is available as an option.

Difficult to keep engine RPM's down during break-in.



The first impression you get of the Evo, as you walk up to it, depends on which model you are looking at. The RS model, without the high spoiler-wing on the trunk, is that not much different from an ordinary ho-hum econobox Mitsubishi Lancer or the Lancer Ralliart...an intermediate Lancer model betwen the two extremes. The main differences are the Evo's red Brembo brake calipers, power hood bulge, fog lights, turbo intercooler grille, and the more aggressive wheels and tires. The Evo IX and MR models, of course, have the classic boy-racer wing high over the trunk that not only screams " look at me " but also blocks some of the visibility out the rear window, which is significant, because most of the cars you share the road with in an Evo are going to end up right there...in your rear mirror.
In the spoiler's defense, however, it is only fair to say two things. First, once you see it close-up, it does have a classy look and feel with its carbon-fiber wing, and Second, as a licensed pilot, I noticed that it has the shape of an upside-down airplane wing, so it is not just there for show...it is apparantly capable of creating down-force.
Except as already noted, the Evo's exterior, particularly the RS, is similiar to the Lancer's. Paint quality, never a Mitsubishi strong point, is OK but quite a way from Lexus or Acura standards. There is a notable lack of exterior trim except for the 8 vortex generators on the back of the roof that feed air to the spoiler. The exterior sheetmetal is a little on the tinny side, and the 4 doors do not shut with exactly Mercedes G-Wagon solidness. There is a notable lack of sound insulation around the doors, in the fender wells, and in the engine compartment......probably in an attempt to keep the weight down more for performance than to keep costs down. ( more on this later ).
OK......get inside, shut the somewhat tinny doors, adjust the superb ( and I mean SUPERB ) Recaro seats, get belted in, adjust the mirrors, and you're ready to go. I can't praise the Recaro eats enough.....they are truly excellent. Although you feel the high side bolsters a little getting in and out, once you're in and seated, those Recaros fit even my oversized torso, rump, and legs like a custom-tailored suit. Many side bolstered seats in sporty cars tend to be too narrow and uncomfortable for me. Not these. In fact, if it wasn't for this car's harsh ride, high noise level, and tendency to dart all over the road ( more on this later ) you could ride all day long in these seats and not be fatigued or have a backache.....they cradle your lower back smoother than a politician's double-talk. Much has been written in the auto press about the excellence of Recaro seats. Believe it.
As for the rest of the interior, it can best be described as basic, unpretentious, and functional. Headroom, legroom, and shoulder room in front are all fine. Ditto in back, except that legroom, as usual, is tighter, but still not unreasonable for a small car. And most of the people who end up buying this car, of course, are young singles who don't often carry people in back anyway.
It is also quite obvious from the design of this car's interior that it a NO-nonsense driver's car.
While the basics in comfort and convienence are there, like power windows / mirrors / door locks, A / C, and intermittent wipers, you will NOT fine a bunch of electronic toys and jimcrackery like NAV screens, automatic climate control, trip computers, or computerized joy sticks between the seats like on the so-called " Ultimate Driving Machines " from BMW and Audi. The dash is plain, simple, basic, and functional, with a strip of attractive carbon-fiber trim running the whole width of the dash. A large, clear tachometer occupies the space right behind the steering wheel, with the speedometer and auxulliary gauges on either side of it. A push-switch to the left sets up the All-Wheel-drive in one of three modes...TARMAC for dry pavement, GRAVEL for non-paved surfaces, or SNOW for slick surfaces, each mode with a different mix of torque-split through the center differential front-to-rear. Of course, even with the SNOW setting, the dry-weather, high-performance tires are not particularly suited to rain or snow anyway.

OK, time to drive....this car's real forte. Twist the key ( no start button ) and the in-line four fires up with somewhat less-than-Lexus-style smoothness and quietness.....not surprising with the lack of underhood sound insulation. A few seconds to get the oil pressure up, push in the easy-to-use clutch, slip the 5-speed into first and off you go. The lack of insulation. the ultra-stiff suspension, and aggressive tires all combine to assault your ears and kidneys with a go-kart ride that is very harsh and uncomfortable...one of the worst I have seen on a modern car, and roughly comparable to a 70's-vintage Japanese compact picup truck. This is NOT a vehicle for rough or bumpy roads.......you will feel a cigarette butt if you drive over one. Every irregularity, bump, or road imprefection comes crashing through the chassis and the otherwise nice Momo steering wheel like it was on a telephone line. On the torn-up streets of Washington, DC, Manhattan, or the Snow Belt this car would be cruel and unusual punishment. ( some guys I know would give their mother-in-law a ride in an Evo just for this very reason....and the car's high noise level would drown out her complaining ).
However, putting the shoe on the other foot, the rock-hard chassis and tires give this car the agility of Michael Schumacher's F1 Ferrari. The handling and response of this car, especially for a 4-door sedan, is nothing short of astounding. This car reacts like a scared cat in a room full of bulldogs. One small flick of the wrist on the steering wheel will throw this car around 90-degree curves, Esses, and hairpins like they didn't even exist. The AWD helps out here, too, by distributing torque to all four wheels so each tire can do its share of the cornering load as well.
I've driven a lot of sports sedans in my lifetime, including some BMW M's and Audi S'es.....this car, on a winding road, IMO, trumps them all....at the cost of a great deal of ride comfort, of course. But IMO it sets the standard for sports-sedan agility, espcecially for cars anywhere near its price range. But to be honest, though, BMW still wins out for steering feel.....NOBODY makes a steering system like a Bimmer. for road feel.
Unfortunately, as soon as the curves unwind and the road straightens out, that lightning-quick response so nice in the twisties becomes a real liability. Even with the positive effects of AWD and the gyroscope stabilizing effect of the 4 spinning driveshafts, this car is so sensitive to steering input that I found it difficult to keep it in a straight line. This car simply doesn't WANT to go in a straight line......it LIVES for cornering. A straight road is as alien to its personality as putting Bill Clinton in a convent full of nuns. The tiniest twitch of the wheel can send you drifting toward the next lane, and correcting sends you back toward the other one. You have to DRIVE this car every second. Take your eyes off the road for a couple of seconds or get distracted by something and you could get a nasty surprise. It is obvious why the engineers who designed this interior made it so simple and functional, and with easy-to-use controls....that was not a co-incidence. With the stiff, noisy ride and constant drifting, a long trip in this car on the Interstate would drive you nuts after about an hour or so., despite the superb Recaro seats.
Under the hood, of course, is another one of the car's noted features. The turbo, intercooled, 16-valve, in-line 4 with variable valve timing produces 286 HP @ 6500 RPM and 289 ft.-lbs. of torque at a fairly low 3500 RPM, which, trust me, is a LOT of spunk for a car of this size and class, even filtered through the weight and drag of AWD. Once again, the efforts in this car to keep weight down and power up have paid off. Give the oil a few minutes to warm up, look for a break in traffic and MAKE SURE there are no cars in front of you, ( or you will run right up their tail ) let the clutch out in first, nail the aluminum gas pedal, and after a second or so of the inevitable turbo lag, you are off like you are shot out of a cannon. The torque hammers you back into the Recaros with some real G-force. You have to watch the road in front with one eye and the tach with the other, because this engine winds up SO quick that you are at break-in RPM before you know it...and I didn't want to overrev a brand-new engine by redlining it. Bring the crisp lever back to second and you shoot forward almost as fast. You have to be careful not to get too close to the guy in front of you and think in advance. If you don't pay diligent attention to what you are doing this car can bite. Stepping up from an ordinary 120 HP Mitsubishi Lancer...or even a Ralliart.......into this car is like jumping from a basic training plane into an F-18 Hornet.
In fact, the salespeople told me they took one Evo in trade after only 6 months because its owner simply could not avoid tickets and almost lost his insurance and his license.
The transmission and clutch are fine in the lower gears but 3rd, 4th, and 5th are a little vague, so you have to be careful you don't misjudge a downshift and go 5-2 instead of 5-4 or 4-1 instead of 4-3. I still don't understand why automakers don't put a simple light on the dash with manual transmissions that tells you what gear you're in like they do with automatics and automanuals. It would save a LOT of guessing and torn-up transmissions and clutches.
As one would guess, the standard-equipmant 4-wheel Brembo brake package with its distinctive red calipers hauls the car down from speed as fast as the turbo four can haul it up there. The pedal is firm, as expected, and has good, linear response, and while I did not brake hard repeatedly as these were brand-new brakes, Brembo packages are rarely known to fade even with hard use.

So....the verdict? This car, IMO, is a benchmark for sports sedan agility and handling, even compared to some cars costing much more. Under the right conditions it is an absolute blast to drive on UNCONGESTED winding roads and sharp turns...but is tiring and skittish on straight ones. The ride, at best, is quite noisy and harsh. In a pinch, it will carry 4 people, unlike many pure sports cars and 2-seaters, and the IX model I drove was reasonably priced at 32K. More expensive MR models generally run 36-37K on dealer lots...still not unreasonable, IMO, for the performance level. In the twisties the Evo will outrun anything in its class and then some...and on the drag strip it will give the 300 HP STi a run for its money. In fact, the Evo I drove, at least in the lower gears, felt as fast as the 400 HP Corvette C6 I revieved last December, although at higher speeds the Corvette's massive torque then made itself known.
So the Evo is most at home in the twisties, in Rally and autocross conditions, and sometimes on the drag strip as well......it did not get its reputation as one of the world's best rally cars for nothing. It is NOT a car for rough roads, Interstate driving, long trips, congested areas, and most importantly, it is NOT a car for unskilled, immature, inexperienced, or otherwise irresponsible drivers. It is a true driver's car for mature and reponsible people....as witnessed in its insurance rates. In the right environment it will richly reward like no other car in its class.....but it can also bite if driven carelessly.




Next planned review ( when possible )........2006 Honda Fit.

 

What dealer was this was it in Virginia.

 

Yes...Northern VA in the DC suburbs.

 

LOL - great line.

 

Maybe a great line but the truth...even with the recommended tire PSI. This car is STIFF.

 

Now you should go drive a STi and do a mmarshall comparison between the two.

 

Enough magazines have already done that.

 

Again awesome review and write up.
I look forward to the Fit review.

 

Thanks, Milla...I look forward to just FINDING one that can be reviewed. Every one coming in is pre-sold and goes directly to the wash and clean-up shop for delivery.

I looked at and sat in 3 of them at the DC Auto Show in January on opening day but the next morning the Honda people locked all the doors and did not open them up again for the rest of the show.
The Fit, despite the fact that it is new to the U.S. but not overseas, IMO, from what I have already seen of it, is superior to the Toyota Yaris in several ways, but it may be priced a little high for an entry-level car. I'll save the rest of the comments for a formal review.