Australian Car Advice | News Blog

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The research has revealed that 38 percent of Twin Clutch SST buyers have switched over from premium German brands such as BMW, Audi and Mercedes - with a further 31 percent defecting from competing Japanese brands such as Subaru.

Sales of the manual transmission however have been dominated by existing Evo owners, accounting for 40 percent of the total with a further 19 percent from German and 20 percent from Japanese manufacturers respectively.

“This shows that the new Evolution X is certainly attracting people out of German cars, especially into the SST, and that the manual gearbox car is not only attracting traditional Evo customers, but also customers of other Japanese marques.”Lance Bradley, Mitsubishi UK’s Sales and Marketing Director.

In an extraordinary case, a Ferrari F430 was traded in at a dealer for a brand new Lancer Evolution X FQ-300 SST along with a cheque for £90,000.

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The 5-door sport hatchback will address a big gap in the current Mitsubishi lineup. The Japanese giant says there will be three engine choices (Europe - Australian specifications are yet to be confirmed)

At the bottom is a 1.5-litre (~80kW) four-cylinder petrol, which sits below the 1.8-litre (~105kW) to round out the N/A engines. There will be a 2.0-litre (~103kW) turbo diesel engine available a well.

Mitsubishi has also released specifications for the Ralliart variants, with power output of 177 kW and 343 Nm of torque. As far as we can tell, the Ralliart versions will not be available in manual, instead both shapes will be driven via Mitsubishi’s Twin Clutch SST transmission with an Active Center Differential.

The AWD system is borrowed from the previous generation Lancer EVO IX and therefore provides extremely responsive steering and traction. Brakes are a tad ordinary with two-pots at the front (but with a larger brake master cylinder).

Another feature Mitsubishi is promoting is the “auto-folding function”. The system allows for an adjustable rear floor height and rear seatbacks that can be tipped forward via a lever located in the luggage compartment.

The diesel engine as well as the Sportback should arrive in Australia by mid-late 2009. The CarAdvice team will be in Paris (as par of our Full Throttle in Europe trip #2 - more on that soon) for the show, so expect full coverage.

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These two vehicles have been rated by ANCAP (Australian New Car Assessment Program) with Five Star Occupant Protection, in the Small Car Category.

With fuel prices going through the roof and household budgets under constant attack, more and more of us are heading to the small car category.

And why not. With talk of up to $2.00 a litre, by the end of the year, the small car market makes way too much sense.

But are they safe? Some, more than others. You need to look at what safety features are standard fitment, when shopping around.

Look at both ‘passive’ and ‘active’ safety features. Systems such as ABS brakes, Electronic Stability Control and Traction control are active safety weapons. Depending on how you drive, they may work all the time or, in many cases, rarely.

Airbags and things like head restraints, make up the passive defence force. Most drivers will never experience air bag deployment, but should you ever be involved in a side-on collision, you better pray you have Curtain Airbags on board.

I don’t need to sell you on this point, just have a look at the crash dummy in the recent “Pole Test” Car Advice witnessed at the RTA’s Crashlab facility in Sydney.

It’s not pretty. Without Curtain Airbags, as fitted as standard equipment to the Lancer VRX, it is highly unlikely that the driver of this vehicle would survive a real life impact, such as demonstrated by this simulated crash.

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Thankfully our friends over at Evolution OZ have got hold of all the specifications plus pricing for the new Evo range.

The range will start form $59,490 for the five-speed manual while the dual-clutch DSG like gearbox will set you back an extra $5,000 ($64,490). There is also an optional Performance Pack for $5,500.

The top it all off- the Lancer Evolution MR will retail for $71,690 - a good $7,200 more than the SST Evo X. However for that extra $7,000 you get Bilstein front and rear shock absorbers, Eibach front and rear springs, unique brembos for the front, BBS 18″ forged alloy wheels (standard Evos get ENKEI 18s), HID headlamps, scuff plates, leather seat trim and heated front seats.

Power is also above the previous report of 209kW. The Evo X Aussie spec will have 217 kW power @ 6500 rpm and 366 Nm torque @ 3500 rpm. This is in comparison to its Subaru nemesis which has 221kW and 407Nm of torque.

No performance figures have been published for the Mitsus yet.

Mitsubishi has undercut Subaru by $500 for the entry level Evo, however the STi gets a six-speed gearbox instead of the five-speed found in the Evo (although we love the five-speed in the Evo). The STi range tops at $64,990 for the Spec-R which receives unique wheels and recaro seats.

The selling point for the new EvoX will undoubtedly be the new SST gearbox as its direct competitor is only available as a manual.

5 Speed

• Excluding on roads $59,490
• Including on roads $64,305

TC SST

• Excluding on roads $64,490
• Including on roads $69,505

MR SST

• Excluding on roads $71,690
• Including on roads $76,990

Full specifications below:

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“What we are now seeing is the provision of the latest vehicle safety features in cars below $30,000 – which is great news for consumers,” ANCAP Chairman, Lauchlan McIntosh said.

In order to achieve a five-star safety rating in ANCAP, manufacturers must donate a car for a pole test, which has resulted in many manufacturers refusing to participate. Despite popular belief, ANCAP buys all vehicles from the manufacturer for other tests.

The Mitsubishi Lancer which received the five-star rating was the top of line VRX with head-protecting side curtain airbags and Electronic Stability Control (ESC) – both of which are prerequisites for a five-star rating under ANCAP’s rating methodology. Lancers without side protection scored four stars.

The Hyundai i30 was essentially the same with the top-spec, which included side curtain airbags and ESC, receiving five stars after Hyundai fixed an issue with the vehicle’s knee impact area. The lower spec i30 scored four stars.

The issue to tackle now is the inclusion of curtain airbags and ESC as standard equipment to all models. It would almost seem logical for the government to make these features mandatory on all new passenger cars.

At the same time EuroNCAP has rated the Renault Laguna III and Holden Astra – both with side curtains and ESC - five-stars while four-star went to the recently launched Kia Rondo with side curtains, and base-model Ford Focus with chest-protecting side airbags.

Furthermore, it would seem that manufacturers have been so obsessed with gaining a five-star safety rating that they have forgotten about pedestrians. The Lancer, i30, Laguna and Focus earned two stars out of four for pedestrian protection and the Rondo and Astra managed only one star.

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Then there are cars. There are some cars which although you’ve driven them and get a good feel for them, you’re still addicted. You just have to try them out over and over again. The combination of extreme grip, acceleration, and brilliant braking mean that some cars are just too much to leave at only one go. One such example is the Mitsubishi Evolution IX.

It’s been a while since we’ve driven the old girl. And with the new model looming, we thought it would be an idea to take the Evo IX for a spin once again. A simple phone-call was made to Mitsubishi, and soon there was a gleaming white rally/road car sitting in the CarAdvice garage.

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It’s certainly a nose-heavy look, and, in my eyes at least, it’s quite appealing. Actually, people give you a second glance. You can see their minds working away, thinking, “Is that the new Evo?….Nah….But is it?…” The whole shark-nose front end, combined with the subtle front lip, side skirts and big wheels give this little car an aggressive feel.

But really, this isn’t a little car. Step inside, and you realise what all the fuss is about. The interior room is deceptive. It’s called a Lancer, yet unlike its predecessors, it’s really a mid-sized car. The rear seats are about as roomy as you’ll get in the small-car category, and the fronts are ever so slightly bolstered to give you more side support.

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