The EVO rides off into the sunset. (Photo: Mitsubishi) This needs to be said to Mitsubishi right up front: don't kill the EVO. Unfortunately, that's exactly what the company plans to do with the Lancer Evolution, a solid brick of a rally car, after the 2015 model year. The company has even gone so far as to publish the latest press photos in a funereal black-and-white, which is perhaps appropriate since many already see Mitsubishi's U.S. vehicle sales as being on life support.
However, a Mitsubishi spokesperson -- fairly new to the job -- says the company is in the U.S. to stay, with a revitalized model lineup that could feature a new Galant, as well as much more concentration on the SUV-crossover genres. More resources, he said, will also be put into design (thank God). While lamenting the loss of the EVO even with its dated look, he didn't rule out the injection of some EVO genes into other models down the line, so it's possible we could see Mitsu field a lower-priced challenger to the Porsche Cayenne or Macan.
But in the meantime, we think the EVO must stay. We have always been impressed with it and we recently had a chance to drive the hot MR version on the track, nearly back-to-back with Subaru's WRX STI. Both are superb rides, but we felt that the EVO was even more planted in the turns, the steering was far more direct and it had that carved-from-a-single-block-of-steel feeling to it that even the excellent STI still can't duplicate. Why any company would take such a phenomenal car off the market is beyond us.
However, a Mitsubishi spokesperson -- fairly new to the job -- says the company is in the U.S. to stay, with a revitalized model lineup that could feature a new Galant, as well as much more concentration on the SUV-crossover genres. More resources, he said, will also be put into design (thank God). While lamenting the loss of the EVO even with its dated look, he didn't rule out the injection of some EVO genes into other models down the line, so it's possible we could see Mitsu field a lower-priced challenger to the Porsche Cayenne or Macan.
But in the meantime, we think the EVO must stay. We have always been impressed with it and we recently had a chance to drive the hot MR version on the track, nearly back-to-back with Subaru's WRX STI. Both are superb rides, but we felt that the EVO was even more planted in the turns, the steering was far more direct and it had that carved-from-a-single-block-of-steel feeling to it that even the excellent STI still can't duplicate. Why any company would take such a phenomenal car off the market is beyond us.
Note to manufacturers: Both the EVO and STI need to lose the boy racer spoilers at the rear. A Subaru spokesman told us the STI's wing is there for aerodynamic purposes, although he admitted that Canadian versions can be bought without it and U.S. owners -- if they want to bear the cost -- could always swap out trunk lids with the regular WRX.
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