Mitsubishi Evolution 2009

[Latisha Gervase]

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The 2003 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution sedan might not be the right car for you. It was never designed to excel as the next great idea for shuttling kids to the mall, carrying loads of groceries or lumber, towing jet skis, or navigating grid-locked traffic. Though the Lancer Evolution series of compact high-performance sedans has proven capable of executing such routine tasks, this entire family of highly developed sedans exists for the sole purpose of domination in competition as Group A and Group N rally cars. It is a thoroughbred performance car that challenges enthusiast and race drivers to go faster, compete harder and find fulfillment behind the wheel.

Each installment of the Lancer Evolution sedans have incorporated design improvements, competition reinforcement, and increased capability over the previous generation car. In their domestic market, the later versions of Lancer Evolution sedans were not only noted for their ability to go faster, but also the increased refinement and drivability that made them superior overall designs. With the eighth edition of the vehicle, perhaps the greatest evolutionary change incorporated into the design has been its global reach. Previously, the Lancer Evolution fruit was a treat that only consumers in Japan or Europe were lucky enough to experience.

Lancer Evolution sedans are a species of super cars that beg for long expanses of uncongested, curvaceous roads and drivers willing to conquer such asphalt. Yet the vehicle also offers the practical capacity to carry four adults. Lancer Evolution is a car that goes, turns and stops unlike anything else in the current North American class of compact, turbocharged, all-wheel-drive sedan class. It is a vehicle in a class all its own.

Every other vehicle in the Mitsubishi product arsenal is developed, in part, through a consumer-driven process that reviews competitive vehicle set data, consumer reaction or feedback, and plots preference for features or product virtues deemed valuable by car buyers. The Lancer Evolution series is the result of a development effort that de-prioritizes broad consumer appeal. The Lancer Evolution relies on a near zero-compromise approach to build a limited-production performance sedan that satisfies homologation rules for top-tier rally classes, and the desires of an obsessive enthusiast set who will accept no substitute for performance.

The eighth edition Lancer Evolution sedan is the latest in the decade-old line of Mitsubishi's competition-oriented sedans designed for the conquest of the FIA's Group A and Group N rally divisions. With the creation of such an undiluted, uncompromised performance vehicle -- borne from a corporate desire for conquest in motor sports -- the Lancer Evolution family has succeeded in being perhaps the most spirited of all Mitsubishi vehicles. The uniquely exciting and purposeful character of these specialty vehicles makes a bold statement about Mitsubishi Motors Corporation, and best represents the essence of the company's commitment to producing spirited cars for spirited people.

The definition of the Lancer Evolution's sales demographic is simple: enthusiast drivers of all ages. The Lancer Evolution driver will be a person knowledgeable of the vehicle's history in motor sports, including the four driver's championships from 1996 to 1999 and manufacturers' title in 1998. The typical Lancer Evolution enthusiast driver pool is expected to be 90 percent male, mostly married between their late 30s and early 50s with a median household income above $90,000. The Lancer Evolution driver will primarily be enthusiasts who crave a second or third car that is distinct, very capable and a thrilling drive.

An expected first-year volume of 6,500 units will help satisfy the needs of this passionate enthusiast audience. The excitement and performance-engineering image created by the Lancer Evolution sedan is expected to act as a brand-enhancing agent that will help stimulate interest and sales in other Mitsubishi products, especially the Lancer sedan upon which Lancer Evolution is based. The Lancer Evolution is a vehicle that offers similar capability, performance and behind-the-wheel excitement of vehicles such as the BMW M3, Mercedes C-class AMG, and Audi S4 at a fraction of the price. Arriving to market at under $30,000, the Lancer Evolution is far more than a "best bang for the buck" performance car. It is an enthusiast driver's dream: a competition-validated high-performance phenom, a cult-vehicle that has carved out a unique identity that enjoys a highly developed aftermarket eager to further expand the Lancer Evolution's performance envelope with a plethora of performance parts.

The vehicle's fairly unique mechanical specification (turbocharged all-wheel-drive) has endowed vehicles in the Lancer Evolution series with superb dynamic capability and an ease that engages seasoned drivers and novices alike. The Lancer Evolution combines surreal road holding, shocking acceleration, purposeful styling, seemingly telepathic responses and a sense of control found in few other vehicles. Lancer Evolution makes the strongest statement yet about the Mitsubishi brand with its excitement, technology and astonishing capability that stems from strong, competition-focused engineering.

This latest Lancer Evolution model is developed upon the Lancer sedan chassis that was introduced to the U.S. market in the fall of 2001. Every Lancer Evolution unibody begins life on the same assembly line as the economy - minded Lancer sedans. The Lancer chassis has served as the basis of the Lancer Evolution family of vehicles since 1992; its chassis and four-wheel independent suspension readily accepting the modifications that slowly evolved this vehicle toward super car status. The modifications implemented on the previous seven versions of the Lancer Evolution sedan represent the lessons learned by Mitsubishi through competition on the World Rally circuit. For the urban driver, who will never see organized competition, the Lancer Evolution vehicles represent a very capable, highly maneuverable, distinct, cutting-edge interpretation of the modern sports car theme and challenge the notion of just how fast and how far the performance envelope of a small compact sedan can be. Without the impulse of the vehicle's presence in rally racing, and Mitsubishi's corporate commitment to compete effectively at the highest level of competition, one wonders whether or not the sedan would ever have come into existence. It is the very specific competition nature, and the lack of compromise to many marketing considerations, that make this amazing car so appealing to enthusiast drivers.

The eighth version of the vehicle arrives to the largest, most important single car market on the planet, the U.S., as a bonafide performance car phenomenon whose reputation has grown primarily through word-of-mouth and video game exposure. The eighth installment in the Lancer Evolution story is designed to satisfy stringent bumper, safety, and emissions requirements and equipment packaging needs.

Many of the details involved in the Lancer Evolution's mechanical design are guided by a prioritization of function, durability and capability of each component or system in a competitive setting. The Lancer Evolution builds upon a rigid, steel Lancer unibody as a starting point, and adds welded seams, thicker, reinforced suspension mounting points, and body member connections that improve flexural rigidity by 1.6 times while doubling torsional rigidity. The more rigid the unibody, the more effective the suspension becomes at handling a wide range of road conditions and maintaining the most precise geometry. The additional rigidity helps to offer the benefit of strength and occupant protection in the event of a collision.

The Lancer Evolution's sense of purpose is apparent in the vehicle's exterior design, which makes a loud statement its performance capability. Blistered, lightweight aluminum fenders, widened to accommodate the vehicle's increased track, offer weight savings over comparable steel units and immediately serve notice that this is no ordinary Lancer sedan. The blistered fenders protrude gently from the sides of the vehicle to help improve aerodynamics. A lightweight aluminum hood with a large vent opening helps evacuate engine heat and also helps reduce the vehicle's overall weight. A new front air dam design integrates an undercover that improves aerodynamics, as it directs air towards the brakes and transfer differential, there by helping to reduce lift and improve high-speed handling.

The front bumper has been enlarged and suitably reinforced to satisfy mandated U.S. requirements with an additional beam that increases the strength of the bumper support structure. Atop this new bumper structure is a split-grille design front fascia that features large efficient inlets that improve cooling, intercooler efficiency, and add to the vehicle's aggressive competition-minded appeal. The fascia also includes a pair of new four-bulb headlights with HID composite low beams that are matched to the wide body of the Lancer Evolution and offer improved nighttime visibility. Projector-type lamps supply high beam illumination. The rear lamps are designed to match the wider Lancer Evolution fenders and utilize a clear lens that has become popular among the tuner culture.

The Lancer Evolution is the first vehicle in the series to use a rear wing made entirely of carbon fiber reinforced plastic. By making one of the optional rear spoilers from carbon fiber, the properties of this aerospace-grade material have helped increase the wing's rigidity and performance. This carbon fiber airfoil is also relocated 58 mm further to the rear of the vehicle versus previous designs to help improve downforce. The non-adjustable airfoil as well as in the supportive inner and outer fins are made entirely of lightweight, carbon fiber. The Lancer Evolution's rear spoiler is two kgs lighter than and twice as strong as the plastic design used on the Lancer Evolution VII. The high strength to weight ratio of the carbon fiber material has allowed the airfoil to be reshaped, streamlined and optimized to provide greater down force with less mass and reduced drag.

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