2012 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X

   Well I made a promise last post to review the current car that I've been drooling over and now that the time comes to start writing I find myself rather nervous. Not so much that I don't know what to write about, but that I won't do this amazing machine proper justice. I've always been a huge car fan, I like the stylish cars, the interesting cars, technology that goes into the driveability, luxuries etc. Mostly though I've always enjoyed getting behind the wheel of a serious driving machine. I've always admired Mitsubishi as a company because they capture most of these traits. Over the years they've made some incredible machines that have changed the whole industry. The Evolution is one of those cars, so iconic and impressive, that I could probably have avoided posting any pictures of it and you'd all know exactly what I was referring to.

   As always I have to start with styling. Being spawned in the world of rally racing, a lot of the Evolution's styling features were not intentional. Loosely based on the Lancer sedan, we find a general body shape from a midsized economy car, but the panels themselves have been altered to accommodate the performance upgrades needed to create a rally racing champion. Up front we find that the body has been lowered and the wheel arches widened to provide aerodynamics with the widened wheels, the same thing happens in the rear with the addition of a diffuser to reduce drag and a spoiler to provide down force. The hood has scoops cut into it that feed cold air directly onto the body of the turbo, a feature that is purely functional but again adds to the overall styling of the car. In short they took a lancer, a good looking economy car to begin with, and made it look absolutely incredible and aggressive.

  The interior is more of the same. Being based on the Lancer it already looked pretty good, but with their functional upgrades it looks and feels amazing. The racing style steering wheel looks very cool and still has space for an airbag, the Recaro brand seats are full buckets with hip and shoulder hugging sides, but they still are comfortable and recline. Everything else is what you'd expect from a Lancer. You have climate control, cruise control, power doors, mirrors and windows, and the one that I drove was equipped with satellite navigation, leather and heated seating surfaces. Let's not forget, however, that this is a driver's car.

   The initial expectation is for a thunderous roar when you start up the engine, but it's actually quite restrained and more of a quiet purr. It's the same feeling as you set off down the low speed limit roads. The ride is smooth, the interior's comfortable, and it drives nicely. As soon as I hit the on ramp, the pedal went straight to the floor and the car immediately transformed. As the twin scroll turbo started hissing I was pressed back into my seat and the engine's RPMs shot up. Being still on the cloverleaf, I was able to get an idea of how sharp the handling was. Accelerating up to highway speeds was a very quick process, and as I settled into a cruise I was amazed to find that the ferocity went back into dormancy and was replaced, again, by the comfortable cruiser. After doing some more handling maneuvers I drove back and found myself lusting after the car all the more than I had before.

   As I said yesterday, this is the current dream car. You may think that there are other cars out there that are much more impressive, powerful and exotic. While that may be true, this is a machine that will hold it's own with a lot of super cars and yet it's a pleasure to drive daily, and it's something that's, not only affordable, but something that you wouldn't be afraid to drive at it's limits, and also doubles as a family sedan when you need it to. I hope you enjoyed this posting, and be sure to join me again tonight for another here in The Fast Lane.