Mitsubishi Lancer reviews

2006 Mitsubishi Lancer Driving Impressions

The Mitsubishi Lancer feels substantial when it's underway. It's tight but easy to drive, and quite capable of transforming lumpy pavement into a blender smoothie. Mitsubishi builds the Lancer on a rigid unibody platform with a fully independent suspension.

The Lancer ES we drove rode very smoothly and handled well. The steering felt responsive though there was a little play in the steering, a lack of on-center feel, in other words.

The Lancer O-Z Rally we drove glided over bumpy tar seams. We noticed it was so quiet in the cabin that two passengers could converse sotto voce, despite our position in the middle lane squeezed between big-rig freight trucks. We pushed the O-Z Rally Lancer around narrow blacktop roads and it romped around the curves with the body remaining relatively flat. A wide-track stance and front suspension with low longitudinal roll center contribute predictable stability to the car in corners, as the multi-link arrangement in back keeps rear wheels under control while damping road bumps. The rack-and-pinion steering worked precisely yet lacked firmness in the center spot.

The Ralliart models have a firmer ride with their sport-tuned suspensions. The shocks have significantly higher damping rates and the front springs and anti-roll bars have higher rates as well, all of which means less body lean in corners and less dive and squat under braking and acceleration. Indeed, the Ralliart leans very little in corners. Bumps are heard and felt and the whole affair feels stiffer, but it's not harsh.

With 120 horsepower, the 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that comes on ES and O-Z Rally models is by no means the strongest in its class, but Mitsubishi has tuned it to generate more muscle at low- and mid-range engine speeds. Specifically, it develops 130 pound-feet of torque at 4250 rpm. With this engine, the Lancer feels zippy around town, leaps off the line, and feels downright aggressive when running though second and third gears. It cruises comfortably at high speeds and there's still power left for passing. And it gets good fuel economy, earning an EPA City/Highway estimate of 28/35 mpg.

The manual transmission has a short stick and shifts quickly. It feels tight and precise, even sporty. The available four-speed automatic transmission uses electronic controls and adapts shift points to the individual style of the driver. We drove it and were impressed by the smooth and quiet shift work, but noticed the automatic dampened Lancer's spirit, as automatics tend to do with four-cylinder engines. Also, the automatic drops the fuel economy to an EPA-estimated 25/31 mpg.

The 2.4-liter engine that comes in the Ralliart model has lots of low-rpm power, generating 162 pound-feet of torque at 4000 rpm. With its strong torque, the 2.4-liter engine works very well with the automatic, making for a responsive combination. When cruising in traffic, it quickly yet unobtrusively downshifts with a touch of the throttle. It's very responsive around town and generates 162 horsepower.

The Lancer Evolution is very fast. We've driven Evos on roads and on racing circuits. The steering is super quick. The Evo turns in very quickly and eagerly takes a set going into corners. The suspension is very tight, very well controlled. The car is stable and fast going through the corners with excellent grip from the Yokohama A-046 tires. It feels stuck, planted to the pavement. Its incredible grip allows hard acceleration when charging out of corners. The brakes are excellent. Its all-wheel drive is a huge advantage whenever grip is even slightly compromised: bumpy pavement, wet pavement, snow, ice. A second set of tires is recommended for winter use (and we'd recommend a second set of wheels to go with them). Also, putting grippy tires on a four-wheel-drive rally car means buying tires a bit more often.

The new Evolution MR edition uses a close-ratio six-speed manual transmission, which makes it