A sneak peek (and drive) of Mitsu's next all-wheel-drive super-bargain
By Peter Lyon Email


Date posted: 04-10-2006

You've got to love 'em: this bunch of mech-heads at Mitsubishi whose sole purpose in life is to make the world's best-handling all-wheel-drive car. They started out in 1992 with the first Lancer Evolution, and after nine generations, they have proved the theory of evolution. No four-door sedan can devour corners faster than the Evo. For the money, only the WRX STI comes close. In just one decade, the Evo has etched its way into international cult folklore and inspired a generation of Gran Turismo gamers.

So where do you go from there? How do you better the best? "That's simple," said Mitsubishi AWD guru Kaoru Sawase. "You build the Evo X."

The latest evolution of the Evo
We had been invited to test an experimental Evo X mule on snow at the company's proving ground in northern Japan. The carmaker wanted to show us what "taking it to the next level" meant. Now it's not every day that you can get inside secret facilities to test technology that won't see a showroom for at least 18 months.

The thing is this. Mitsubishi is feeling good about itself. Having clawed its way out of a very costly recall fiasco and back into the black, thanks to strong domestic sales of the new Outlander and 660cc "i" minicar, Mitsubishi wants to show off the latest refinements on its AWD tour-de-force road-going rocket. The radical, mean-looking Evo X concept met with rave reviews at last year's Tokyo Motor Show, and Mitsubishi aims to complement that response with an Evo X production package that's second to none.

But before it let us loose in the test mule, Sawase explained what we were driving. It looked like last year's model Evo — a Trojan horse ploy, perhaps. Manufacturers often camouflage their latest experimental technologies under one- or two-year-old cars. And this yellow Evo VIII was just that.

"This car has the Evo VIII's turbocharged 2.0-liter," chirped Sawase, "not even the current model's MIVEC engine. So you're not here to test acceleration or torque response. We want you to test the upgraded S-AWC [Super All Wheel Control] system." And on this car that means an improved Active Yaw Control (AYC) and an all-new four-wheel independent active-braking system.

A hotter platform for hotter shoes
Just to recap the basics here, the current model's incredible grip comes from its Super AWC system that combines electronically controlled all-wheel drive, Active Stability Control, AYC and an Active Center Differential (ACD) that distributes torque between the front and rear wheels. The ACD works in conjunction with the AYC, which splits torque optimally between the rear wheels, thus enhancing grip and steering response.

With the Evo X, Mitsubishi has further optimized response time of the AYC unit and fitted a new active-braking system that automatically takes over when the AYC/ACD's grip levels have been compromised, supplying braking force independently to all four wheels and restricting slide and sideways movement.

At the track, this clever marriage of stronger AYC and independent four-wheel braking combined superbly to deliver just the right amounts of power and steering response, leading us to quicker times through the slippery slalom course. The car's rear end was more composed as it tucked in, cleanly following the line traced by the front wheels. The amount of steering input required was reduced as well, turning in sharper and more precisely than any Evo before it. The system does not and cannot, however, totally restrict slides. Sure, the tail will go when provoked, but the new braking system will engage only when you've exhausted the S-AWC's ability to maintain four-wheel grip.

Freaky-good control
If you want to throw the car around, you can, and the feel of the steering is as natural and progressive as the current model's. But when you want to bring the car back into line, the task is made that much easier by the revisions. And what of those revisions? Sawase says he's not finished yet. His team wants to further fine-tune the new S-AWC by incorporating steering and suspension upgrades that all work in unison with the central AWD-AYC-ACD-brake package. This will propel the Evo X in the fall of 2007 to the next dimension in cornering potential, a dimension that, well, doesn't exist yet.