Trackside - Lancer Evo returns to rallying
18 December 2006 The Mitsubishi Lancer Evo won a raft of rally championships in the ‘90s, And an army of passionate followers snapped up the aggressive, exotic road cars. Trackside’s Keith Collantine traces the rise and fall of the mighty Lancer – and looks forward to its racing return. The Mitsubishi Lancer was an unremarkable, average car from an unremarkable, average manufacturer. But the Japanese marque radically changed their image with the Evolution version – one of the most successful rally cars of all time. Mitsubishi had the good fortune to introduce the Lancer Evo as the World Rally Championship rode a wave of popularity in the mid-‘90s.
Not to mention its outrageous performances on the rough stuff. The Evo claimed the Group N Production Car championship for seven consecutive years from 1995-2001. Rally legend Tommi Makinen won four consecutive drivers’ championships from 1996-9 at the wheel of an Evo. Mitsubishi commemorated Makinen’s achievement with a limited edition version of the Evo VI named after him. Boasting a 310hp 2.0-litre turbo engine and the aggressive RalliArt body kit, for many it was the definitive edition of the ‘classic’ Evo. It marked a turning point for Lancer as the Evo VII model brought a revised look and a completely new rally car.
Happily, Mitsubishi are now set to return once more in 2007. The have said they will use 2005-spec cars to begin with before the new model is introduced. With a radical new rally car based on the stunning new ‘Prototype X’ Mitsubishi are set to show off in Detroit next year (above), a return to the Evo’s glory days could be just around the corner. Got something to say? Let us know what you think of the return of the Lancer. ----- Clay Regazzoni, 1939-2006 Former Ferrari F1 racer Clay Regazzoni died on Friday in a road traffic accident near Parma, Italy. Regazzoni won the Italian Grand Prix for Ferrari in 1970 and later gave the British Williams team its first Grand Prix win in Silverstone in 1979. But he was paralysed in an accident during a Grand Prix at Long Beach the following year. Following his accident he continued to compete in specially-adapted cars in events such as the Paris-Dakar Rally. He described his appeal to F1 fans when he said of himself, "If I have a big fault, it's that I am not ambitious enough. I drive for me, sure, but also for the team and the public." He leaves a wife and three children. ----- Auto Trader links Win Autocourse 2007 Grand Prix calendars |
The Evo’s dramatic, rally-derived styling cues made it an instant hit with a generation of Max Power readers and Gran Turismo players. 
Although the Evo maintained its appeal among buyers the rally team struggled. After a difficult 2002 they withdrew in 2003. A brief return led only to a second withdrawal in 2005.Page 1
