Hey!
I have pretty much settled on buying a 2010 Lancer Sportback

It will replace a Mazda Protege5 - sexy/practical sportwagon with great handling and the ability to temporarily mount kayaks, mountain bikes, etc... Sound Familiar?

'Veronica' (yes, she already has a name*) will probably be a black Ralliart, but i drove the GTS w/5spd because the salesman scratched his head and said he never heard of a 'ralliart sportback'... For 2010? huh? Uhm, yeah....

So anyway - my impressions:
+ Great handling and highway manners
+ I liked seats and creature comforts
+ Road noise was pretty quiet (but the motor 'droned' at higher RPMs and really intrudes in the cabin (but not in a sweet 350Z-kinda' way))
+ Clutch is light - but first mod would be a short shifter!

- Kinda' pointless 'keyless ignition' - why not a 'start button' like everyone else? The only difference is 'i don't have to take the extra nanosecond to actually insert a key in the ignition. Not a big deal, just ... pointless.

- Engine noise and the gapping power 'hole' until you hit 4K RPMs

Twice, i would downshift (on the highway at 60MPH) from 5th to 4th and floor it. The engine would bog until 4K RPM and then 'it raced to redline' (with no increase in power) - does the clutch slip this much? On a new car? Or is it just an anomaly with the car i test drove?




*all proper cars have a name. Why Veronica? Think Archies comics. Veronica is dark haired, sleek and beautiful -but mean.

 

The transmission between the ralliart sportback and the 2010 gts is totally different. The ralliart sportback does not come in a traditional 5spd manual transmission its more of an automatic transmission with manual shift capabilities...more info can be found of it online.

also the ralliart is turbo charged awd so you wont have any problems with power loss or bog...

theres about 4-6500 price difference between the gts and ralliart (depending on packages)

in short you test drove a totally different car than you intend to buy...although they share alot of similarities there are also alot of differences.

 

Understood.

However, if i decide not to get the RA, i would only consider a MT GTS. So - was my experience with the 'clutch slippage' indicative of all MT GTS or just a problem with the test car? It would affect my decision...

Thanks for any help!

 

I know the evo x clutch is known to be weak, typically the first th ing to go besides the stock tires.

you can always get the clutch in the lancer upgraded it may have just been the test car you drove try test driving another one

 

i've had my sportback since mid october.. i can't say that i've had any clutch slippage issues but at the same time, i'm not really mashing on the gas (most of the time).

i love the mt and overall, i'm still happy with the purchase...

VIP pricing helps too. without it, i don't know if it would be as attractive.

 

Thanks for the input!

 

im selling my ralliart for 22k!

 

i've had my sportback for half a year and no slippage at all. not a single problem with the car.

I actually have the TWM short shifter - you MUST get the short shifter, this is what the car needs!