Sharper Lancer delivers Evo-lite

This is the car that has the WRX running scared... And after driving it, Subaru's right to be spooked.

The Carsales Network drove Mitsubishi's turbocharged Ralliart Lancer at last week's local launch and while we can report it doesn't have the Subie's new-found power, the Ralliart matches even the powered-up new WRX for torque and offers one unrivalled benefit – Mitsu's TC-SST transmission.

In other words, what the Ralliart lacks for in ultimate power is more than offset by the rapid-fire gear changes (and auto-style convenience) of the dual-clutch sequential transmission. Add to that the undeniably stylish (and uncontroversial) looks of the Mitsubishi in both sedan and Sportback versions and there's a very strong prospect that demand for the new car will exceed the 150-unit per month forecast Mitsubishi has made.

According to Mitsubishi, that 150 unit total is approximately 30 units per month ahead of the current sales rate for WRX. The target doesn't take into account Subaru's launch of the WRX in sedan form, nor the power advantage the flat-four all-wheel drive will have when the latest version goes on sale next month (more here).

The Ralliart basically bridges the gap between the front-wheel-drive, naturally-aspirated ('sporty') Lancer VRX and the four-wheel-drive turbocharged ('performance') Lancer Evolution. As such, the Ralliart is an amalgam of good bits from the Evo, more mundane parts from the VRX and a few unique components of its own.

It is a model that matches the WRX's spot within the Impreza range to a tee. And one Mitsubishi has hankered for almost since day one of the WRX long model history.

The Ralliart uses the same 4B11 turbomotor as the Evo, but with a single-scroll turbocharger in lieu of the twin-scroll blower of the ‘race' model. Wheels, on the other hand, are 18-inch diameter alloys shared with the VRX. Brakes and springs are exclusively the preserve of the Ralliart model. You can read more about the Ralliart from our earlier articles here, here and here.

Available in both sedan and (new) Sportback variants, and featuring the TC-SST as standard, the Lancer Ralliart will sell for $42,490. This is just $2500 more than the five-speed manual WRX.

Based on a couple of hundred kilometres through the Blue Mountains west of Sydney late last week, it's apparent that the new car is going to be very competitive with the WRX. The ride was naturally firmer than the Lancer VRX models driven the day before, but proved quite compliant in isolation, and given the car's performance potential. At no point did it skip over mid-corner bumps, for example.

Handling was benign and even through off-camber corners, with the suspension extended, there were no qualms about the car's cornering competence.

Leave the All-Wheel Control system set to 'Gravel' once the road turns back to 'Tarmac' and the primary handling characteristic changes from neutral to oversteer. Like the $60K Evo, these two modes are also complemented by a 'Snow' setting.

The SST can be flawlessly smooth when the drive system is left in 'normal' mode, but change to the 'sport' setting and the gear changes are more aggressive and the system will hold lower gears much longer. In other words, the system works the way it should and gives you 'track' and 'road' settings on demand.

But we're getting ahead of ourselves, here... You'll have to wait to read our launch review for more.

In the meantime, we'll let Mitsubishi boss Rob McEniry have the last word.

"There is no doubt in my mind that the power and dynamic ability of these vehicles will put some common household name competitors completely in the shade."

Looks like the start of a new horsepower war...

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