We’ve reached the end of the road for the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution. Certainly, this is the last Evo as we know it—the tenacious, snarling rally car for the road. The two-litre, super-boosted petrol Evo will never return. Indeed, any Evo in the future is unlikely to look anything like this. Instead, Mitsubishi are indicating that a future Evo will be an SUV.
Being able to buy a new car that feels like a classic is a rare thing. That’s the case with the Evo, which harks back to the golden age of rallying. It brings the best dynamics of a rally car straight to the road. Insane levels of grip. A turbo four with loads of shove. And a simple, back to basics design missing from the Evo’s modern competitors. If that appeals, this is the last one you’ll be able to buy new.
So, our week with the Evolution Final Edition, as each of this last allotment of 150 cars is branded, was bittersweet. Where the Evo’s archrival, the Subaru WRX STI, pulled itself upmarket into plusher, more comfortable Volkswagen Golf R territory, the Evo will stay true until the last one is sold. The Evo lived and dies as a bloody harsh, utterly compromised, but truly epic sports sedan—and the last true homage to a golden era of motorsports: the 1990s fascination with rally stage racing.
