As the rally-bred Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution continues to evolve, with escalating levels of power and technology (not to mention base price), it leaves its economy-car origins in the dirt. As the Evo moved up in performance and price, it created a hole in the Lancer lineup, one filled nicely by Subaru's Impreza WRX. In the interest of gaining back lost ground, Mitsubishi recently introduced the Lancer Ralliart, a turbocharged, all-wheel-drive sedan that bridges the gap between the Lancer GTS and Evolution X models.
That gap is rather large both in terms of performance and price. Consider that two-wheel-drive Lancers start at $14,665 for a DE model, with the sportier GTS topping the lower portion of the range at a base price of $18,915. With high-performance Evolution starting at $33,665 for a manual-equipped GSR (a fully optioned MR model costs nearly 50 grand!), it's easy to see why Mitsubishi chose to inject some affordable performance into the middle of the Lancer range.
How'd they do it? With some careful corporate parts-bin shopping. The Ralliart takes only what it needs from its fellow Lancers.
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