The Lancer Evo has had a grand total of only one generation. This car first cut its teeth in 2008 and has been basically unchanged the entirety of its lifespan which unfortunately will end with this model year. Whether the Evo did not last because Mitsubishi didn’t believe in it enough or it simply was not the car it should be is hard to tell, but it’s pretty obvious this car has not been invested in for this final model year, but does that make it a bad car or a drive that can’t give you what you want? Not at all.
Although the car has been virtually unchanged Mitsubishi did go so far as to add some features that have made it better over the years. First of all the seven-inch touchscreen has been added along with some great leather seats when the Touring package is chosen, but most of the interior features remain the same as the original.
Once on the road though, the Evo shows off a bit as it shows us a quieter interior that is not subject to a massive amount of road noise, a near certainty in the older model. The 2.0-liter turbocharged engine is able to hum along as the sound deadening features that are installed as part of the Touring Package do their job and make sure the car will remain quiet and give you a great place to enjoy your ride.
The ride of the Lancer Evo has never been one on the smoother end of things and driving in this car will give you the feel of the road, every part of the road you cover. Even though the ride is a bit rough, which really should be expected from this car, the power is enjoyable at 291 horsepower and 300 lb.-ft. of torque that can rocket this beauty down the road quickly and easily. Why this car that seems to have forgotten it was a car in many ways has such a powerful engine is beyond me, but there is really no reason to complain when power is something everyone seems to want in their car. The run to sixty mph in the Evo only takes 5.1 seconds, very fast for a car that is made to be a great commuter car.
Even from the beginning the Evo offered a capable and compliant ride with plenty of power. It’s really too bad Mitsubishi has chosen to remove this car from the lineup. What will replace the Lancer Evo is still a mystery as of now, but if you have loved the Lancer Evo before it might be time to get another one and celebrate this final year of this interesting model. As a complete enigma of design and engineering the Evo has given us seven amazing years and as it finally drives off into the sunset I can only wonder what would have been had Mitsubishi had the profitable experience it wanted from this and the rest of its lineup for the time the car was on the market.
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