2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X - first steer
A supercar for the masses – well with Mitsubishi’s Lancer Evolution X it comes about as close to that as you are ever likely to get – this is one brilliant motor car that we believe excites from the moment you clap eyes on it. From the purposeful stance to the throaty note when you fire the engine, the Evo X – Mitsubishi’s 10th iteration of its rally-bred performance car – is something special.Not that its humbler origins aren’t apparent in the neatly designed but still a bit too plastic interior that cannot be disguised by the leather and cloth Recaro seats.
But let’s cut to the chase, fire the 2.0-litre, twin cam, four-cylinder engine with its twin-scroll turbocharger that generates an impressive 217kW of power at 6500rpm and 366Nm of torque at 3500rpm, slip the gear lever into first and if you’re lucky enough to have the all-new Twin Clutch Sport Shift Transmission (official acronym TC-SST) at your disposal, simply nail the throttle pedal and hang on – because all hell is about to break loose.
With everything in the right setting performance is quite literally shattering, Mitsubishi is coy about 0-100km/h times but we believe they’ve recorded something close to 5.6 seconds and we also believe that under optimum conditions this car could go close to or under the 5.0sec mark.
Stopping is equally improved with huge Brembo brakes front and rear. Both the Lancer Evolution and MR models employ the same size rotors (350mm diameter in front and 330mm diameter in the rear), and the MR uses new two-piece rotor construction to reduce weight. Both use four-piston callipers in front and two-piston callipers in the rear. There is so much in this car that is new, innovative or just a little bit exotic – like the aluminium roof, bonnet and front guards - that it’s hard to know where to start.
Something that’s immediately apparent is the change in the ride and handling, not in any bad way, the car rides firmly but with a civilised degree of control that means you can cruise around town without needing to see a chiropractor when you step out of the car.
The Evolution X has impressive brake, razor sharp steering and the rework of the suspension has made a hard riding performance car into a rocket quick performance car that now offers a new-found level of ride, handling and comfort – while sacrificing nothing of what it had before.
There just remains one final question – is it better than its nemesis the Subaru WRX STi?
Well, you can bet that we will be putting them together to answer the challenge, but the Evolution X runs rings around the WRX STi – not just because of the twin clutch gearbox but it handles and rides better – and it looks better too. Evolution X will be on sale at the end of this month through Mitsubishi’s 80 Ralliart dealers.
© Source: caradvice
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