I recieved this updated information from Litchfield Imports:

"It's coming!!!

We had one of the first EVO VII's in the country in March 2001 and we kept it for a fun packed 8 months. I'm in the fortunate permission of being able to drive some of the most exciting cars available and I still rate the EVO VII as the best all round car I have ever driven. Since I had the call form Japan to confirm the EVO VIII I can't wait!

The EVO VIII has been confirmed for production and the first cars are likely to be delivered in February 2003. For the first time ever Mitsubishi's flagship model is going to be sold officially in the American Market and there are rumours that the car will make its debut at the Detroit Motor Show (Jan 5th) and not in Japan

Mitsubishi Japan is working on some fairly major mechanical changes. Chief amongst these is a new six-speed gearbox mated to a revised four-wheel-drive system that retains the fantastic ACD and AYC chassis systems. There will also be improvements to the already impressive Brembo brakes.

There were early reports that the car might feature Mitsubishi's advanced GDI technology for the engine but it would seem they will stick with the superb 4G63 engine. The engine output will still be limited to the 280ps Japanese "agreement" but it is likely to be revised with more torque and flexibility.

The exterior is also rumoured to come in for a slight redesign with the possible fitment of aggressive looking front fog lamps and clear rear lights similar to those found on the Evo VII GT-A.

Once new information or pictures come out we will forward the details to you immediately.

In the meantime if you can't wait until February next year we would happy to send you all of the prices and details for the EVO VII range we can supply.

If you have any further questions or fancy chatting about all things EVO please feel free to contact us at anytime.

Speak to you soon

Regards

Iain Litchfield

Director
Litchfield Imports Ltd"

 

276hp + ACD/AYC + 6 speed + more torque = . Hopefully its all true!

 

More stuff that we've talked about numerous times already in this forum...

 

I pray that its true... BECAUSE I WANT A EVO

 

Clear... Rear... Tail.. Lights... EWWWWWWWW

 

Hrm i guess "Rear Tail" is a bit redundant.. oh well.. YOU GET THE POINT.

 

These are the clear tail lights mentioned above...





IMO, I think they look pretty nice, especially with black or blue.

At least they don't look as cheap as Altezza's...!

 

It may have been talked about before, but there's a difference when news comes from car specialists such as Litchfield Imports, and a dealership. Most of the stuff we have heard either sounds bizzare, or just misinformed information from a dealership. Plus, questions are always being brought up about the ACD and AYC chassis systems, brembo brakes, horsepower, transmission, etc. Information such as this gives you a better idea of what to expect.

If you ask me, this information sounds very reasonable and very accurate! But, that's just my opinion.

P.S. RAX, instead of leaving a negative comment, you could just not bother in the first place if the information doesn't interest you. No one is forcing you to read this post! I'm just trying to provide the fellow Lancer enthusiasts with whatever information I am given that sounds accurate.

 

1) I was referring to the fact that the subject of this thread says NEW info. There is nothing new here.

2) This information was sent out to everyone who signed up for email updates from them. Why not post this in the thread you already started regarding this?

3) They are importers for the UK, not the US. So no it doesn't give us a better idea of what to expect.

 

"For the first time ever Mitsubishi's flagship model is going to be sold officially in the American Market and there are rumours that the car will make its debut at the Detroit Motor Show (Jan 5th) and not in Japan."

Keywords there: American Market

The information given in this article refers to the upcoming US Evolution VIII!

From this article, we have a confirmation of:
1)Mitsubishi Japan working on some fairly major mechanical changes.
2)A new six-speed gearbox mated to a revised four-wheel-drive system that retains the fantastic ACD and AYC chassis systems.
3)Improvements to the already impressive Brembo brakes.
4)Clear Tail Lights.

The information might have been sent out to everyone who signed up, but there were also those people who didn't sign up. There are well over 4000 members on this forum, and less than 300 visited my recent thread. So, I figured the other 3700+ members could use this info as well!

The other posts only took a guess at what to expect, not based on actual articles. That's why every other day, there would be a new question about the brembo brakes, the ACD/AYC, and if they would be available or not. Therefore, this information does give us a better idea of what to expect, now that we heard it from a known, and probably reliable source.

As for posting this up in my recent thread, I would have done that but then not as many people would have seen the post. Plus, this kind of thing seemed like it should have it's own, seperate thread!

 

If those features DO end up being with the production EVO 8, I'd say the STI is going to have a tough time competing with Mitsubishi. Especially with added low-end power that we've all come to love, Scoobies better watch out...

 

No, it really doesn't confirm anything, other than that they will be importing Evo VIIIs into the UK. It's the same as hearing it from a dealership. As I said earlier, more of the same rumors that we've heard before.

 

I see what you mean by your stetament.

 

I couldn't have said it better...!

 

Very nice post...

If you have a problem with me then you need to take it to PMs.