I decided to burn a few hours this Friday morning to take our 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution MR out for some exercise. It was a nice escape, of course, as well as informative. As capable as our Evo is, there's one quality about it that left me a little disappointed.
First, let me say that the Evo is simply heroic. I was driving at a pretty fast clip on Trimmer Springs road (Google Maps link here), a fun road that I'm pretty familiar with, and even then the Evo had a lot more in reserve. It's incredibly capable thanks to the sticky summer tires, sophisticated all-wheel drive, communicative steering, Brembo brakes and well-sorted suspension tuning.
Heck, you don't even need to shift as the MR version comes with the TC-SST sequential-shift manual transmission. If you're driving hard on a curvy road, all you need to do is leave it in Drive and select the "Super Sport" mode. In this mode, it's like having Sebastien Loeb along doing the gearchanges for you. "Super Sport" upshifts higher in the revband, holds a gear if you back off the throttle and even downshifts during braking so that you're in the proper gear when it's time to blast out of a corner.
Of course, those downshifts are perfectly rev-matched every time.
There is a downside to this techno-fabuloso, however. At times, the Lancer Evo X just seems a bit too digitized. TC-SST is the main culprit here. Without a clutch pedal and shifter, a certain connection with the car is lost. Meanwhile, AWD sees to it that you do no wrong, and the sounds coming from the engine and exhaust are as boring as Senate discussions on farm subsidy reform.
Our 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo MR is definitely one of the more capable cars I've driven recently. But if I was buying an Evo, I'd opt for the five-speed manual transmission and then go for some aftermarket engine/exhaust pieces straightaway.
Brent Romans, Senior Automotive Editor
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Mitsubishi made a mistake tying the other MR upgrades to the TC-SST. They did it with the Ralliart too, forcing the base price too high. Hopefully they'll come to their senses and offer a stick on all models next year. I've also heard the manual needs a 6th gear for highway cruising, so hopefully that's coming soon too.
Why you can't have a standard manual and an optional flappy-paddle in the Ralliart, GSR, and MR all at the same time is beyond me...by removing the third pedal from 2/3rds of their lineup, they've left a significant chunk of their buying public left with only one option.
Also, at least in the case of the Ralliart, leaving the TC-SST on the option's list would only help it compare price-wise against the 2009 WRX, which is poised to clean Mitsu's clock in the mid-$20k sport compact competition.
they should tune the engine/exhaust to make the sound of a V8
Clark, exactly on the Ralliart. I was poised to trade in my SRT-4 for one this year in black with a five speed. I still think the WRX is pretty ugly, but the fact that the Ralliart is without a third pedal is a killer for me. So count me into that significant chunk of their buying public.
"they should tune the engine/exhaust to make the sound of a V8"
Good luck with that.
Just don't break the gas pedal, Brent! :o)
http://www.autoblog.com/2008/05/06/you-know-youve-pushed-your-car-too-hard-when/
"Just don't break the gas pedal, Brent! :o)"
I refuse to believe that the gas pedal is made out of plastic!!!!
on a 40K car at that?
subytrojan,
this is freakin scary, what if the brake pedal is plastic too!!!!, then it will brake when you really need it !
shit
Brake pedals are not made of plastic.
Look at your $50000 BMW. Most gas pedals are plastic now. Let's get over it and move on to other sources of internet hysteria.
Did you know cell phones cause brain cancer?
I've been expecting this post. There's a fine line between "intuitive" or "telepathic" and "too easy". Mitsu seems to have crossed it. I understand having the "best" i.e. fastest transmission in the top line Evo, I guess. But surely the Ralliart should have had a manual, at least as an option.