After picking up some parts for my 90 AWD the other day I saw one of the new yellow Lancers sitting on the lot. Curious as to how the Lancer differs from the EVO VII, I walked over and poked my head under the rear uni-body. First thing I noticed was the typical Mitsu Engineering and construction about two to three levels below Honda and Toyota. As a long time DSM owner and tuner I feel I am qualified to say that here
The rear sway bar was not much bigger than my pinky and was held by already deforming black rubber. I guess I was hoping to see a EVO VII uni-body hiding under there with similar rear suspension minus the aluminum control arms. Moving on to the front I found a single lower control arm setup far removed from anything that is found on the EVO VII. I assume this has been re-hashed many times over but the uni-body will be completely different from the two models. Does the Lancer share the same interior, doors, trunk, seats etc? I assume that a big engineering cost is the interior as well as exterior body panels. Will both models share everything above the uni-body? Will the wheelbase and track be the same between the two models?
For those few who have not seen the suspension in detail from an EVO VII, check out this collection of pics from RRE's site.
http://www.roadraceengineering.com/rreimages/evo7/
The suspension on this car is so beautiful! Wouldn’t it be a shame if the US EVO VII came here with stamped steel suspension pieces replacing the aluminum ones?
That being said, I fully understand that a car is a compromise between cost and performance. The Lancer is a Economy car, the EVO on the other end of the spectrum. I am a Mitsu fan as much as anyone here, although I feel that my 90 AWD does have many engineering flaws. I find it interesting how many of the EVO I - EVO III changes made their way onto the various versions of AWD DSM through the years.
One last note for those that have not yet heard:
"Yesterday Glazar ran a 8.87 @ 153 with a 1.39 60 foot
and backed it up with a 8.90. Congratulations to the
first import unibody to run 8s. It's a DSM!!"
Regards,
Matt Bailey
