Italiano
Inglese
Evo-Fine
by Andrea Balti
And so we come to the end of a myth. There will be no more, at least for the near future, Lancer Evolution. The Japanese sports car that for years has fought the hearts of rally fans also with their road counterparts in a grueling fight with the Subaru Impreza, thus leaves the road, presenting a commemorative limited edition, with the intent to seal the tenth models which wrote the story.
Lancer Evolution Final Edition, here’s how this last and special model will be called and produced in only 1,600 units, spread between Japan and North America. After that, the evo guys will only have to wait, hoping that a new model will come back in the future. The fantastic and pure Evo V and Evo VI, the more modern VII, VIII and IX will continue to walk the streets, I agree, but finding less and less stock models and taking into account the continuous progress of engineering, it will be difficult to keep up with times and meet the demand of those clients, left orphan. The Evo X has divided purists by those who have welcomed the automatic transmission as the opportunity to use the sports notchback five-seater with a greater frequency. Both size and weight were affected by an extremely valid design, but that wanted to go more towards a comfortable sedan segment, rather than the classic four doors always ready to be shot between the bends or on some unpaved country road. The Final Edition is special not only for its name but for the fact of being the heir of such an important motorsport’s icon, it will also be produced with a 5-speed manual transmission and a few more horsepower. Yes, you read that right: manual transmission!
The 2.0cc 4 cylinders earns a handful of horses, reaching 303, with an equally increased torque that goes up to 420 Nm, a focal point of this final edition. The Japanese engineers have stated that the ultimate target for this model has always been to maintain top level performance and the honour of being able to take part in such a project finds its result in this special series, which will be characterized even more than before by a delicious and total driving involvement, combined with exhilarating figures. The weight, which is around the classic 1420 kg, includes an effective and balanced chassis, several aluminum panels (such as the roof and the front hood), a comfortable interior for five people, navigation system and all the gadgets that you can expect from a 2015 car. A little weight saving happens thanks to the use of a good old manual transmission, but in acceleration, the lack of the double clutch could make you lose a few tenth of a second. Never mind, a manual transmission always gives strong emotions. Traction is obviously on four wheels, the S-AWC (Super All Wheel Drive Control) distributes power on both axles equally. There are four colours available to choose from (white, blue, red and gray) and some badges scattered inside and outside to remind that you have decided to be part of a very special celebration. Enough with these boring numbers and with the sterile description: a self-respecting Japanese sports car should make noise and go fast! This is the point.
Something that certainly is not lacking here, as it is in every way blood sister of the Evo X we know and you know well. There are not upheavals of any kind and the price has been set at about 37 thousand dollars. It will not be so easy being able to get your hands on one of these models, but it is equally important to think and hope that everything really does not come to an end. While Subaru has already planned the next generation of WRX STI (to me, the loss of the name Impreza with the current model has to share something with a loss of the brutality that characterized these cars until about ten years ago), Mitsubishi puts an end to the dear Evo. Is it a right choice? Do you really have to stop before risking to lose completely the identity, producing models that are increasingly distant from what once it was? Maybe yes. But this Final Edition establishes the mourning of one of those cars that have made our hearts beat, and we do not want to greet it with a “goodbye”.
So it will be a more optimistic “see you soon”. I really hope this.
MITSUBISHI LANCER EVO X FINAL EDITION (2015)
Layout – front engined – all wheel drive
Engine – 4 cylinder 2.000cc – turbo
Transmission – 5-speed manual gearbox
Power – 303 hp @ 6500 rpm
420 Nm @ 4000 rpm
Weight – 1420 kg ca.
Acceleration – 5,2 sec. ca.
Top Speed – 245 kph ca.
Price – from $ 37,995
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