New Car!!

well, i guess it's our new car to be more accurate...being that wifey negociated one hell of a deal and will be driving it the majority of the time.
2009 Lancer Ralliart in Wicked White! AWD and turbo...the way ALL mitsus should be :D
http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee190/blinkra182/My%20Car/Picture053.jpg
http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee190/blinkra182/My%20Car/Picture063.jpg
http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee190/blinkra182/My%20Car/Picture054.jpg
http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee190/blinkra182/My%20Car/Picture056.jpg

Very nice man! Almost looks like an Evo.

doesnt the ralliart lance have the same engine as the evo?

Minus a turbo.

i thought the ralli was turbo'd just not as much as the evo.

Well, you must be right unless that's a factory interfooler.

Yeah, I think it is turbo'd. Congrats Autostrada! Give us details! How fast is it? etc...

They are turbo'd, but are based on the regular lancer body/suspension. They make less power, but that should be easy to change.

Congratulations on the new car it looks very nice. It's turbo'd right any ways its still one beautiful car

yea it's turbo...same 4B11 2.0L engine as the evo...not built nearly as much though. and smaller turbo (13T i think...still trying to find out for sure).
it's got the AWD system of the Evo IX...has the tarmac/gravel/snow setting for the center diff but doesn't have the active yaw control that the Evo X has.
It's got the twin clutch TC-SST clutchless manual like in the Evo X MR, but only has Normal and Sport mode...no Super Sport mode like in the MR.
Dont know details on the suspension...seems pretty firm, but not annoyingly so. The brakes are from one of Mitsu's SUVs.
Strait line speed...it would be close i think, because of the instant shifts, but i'll wait to see until it's all broken in properly. Handling-wise i dont think it can hold a candle to my VR4. It could really do with some wider tires...the stocks are only 215s :\

Very nice bro...CONGRATS!

Nice ride. Set you back much?

24900. It was the negative equity of our trade in that kinda boned us...tacked another $3k on. out the door, tax, title, all that good stuff it was 28XXX @ 3.9% financing.

well that aint bad at all

Alright, she rolled over the 600mi mark last week so i gave it a proper shakedown today. Still have yet to do the first oil change to Mobil 1, so there was no revlimiter bouncing, but i made it show me it's credentials so to speak.
Strait-line it's quick. I dont think i would give the VR-4 too much of a problem, but I will definitely have to take it seriously and hit the shifts when we do go head to head. I think it's quickness off the line and instant shifts will make it a respectable race.
The turbo starts to spool around 3k, and at 4k it really kicks you in the ass...but below that it's hopelessly slow.
The TC-SST transmission in kind of a catch-22. If you're driving in automatic mode in stop and go traffic or a parking lot, it's aweful. It's jerky and awkward becasue it doesn't want to shift below 3k (even in auto "Normal" mode!). However, a quick flick of the paddleshifter puts it in Manual mode and solves that problem. The biggest issue i've found with the trans is the gear ratios. 6th gear, 75mph, 3k! If they would have just made 6th a bit taller i'm sure they could have pushed the highway mileage up another 5 MPG of so without effecting performance too much.
But anyways, that's a small trade-off to make for the way it shifts when you're on it. I'd recommend using the Manual mode for spirited driving, for which you can either shift with the "flappy paddles" or by pushing back and forwards on the shifter, 'race transmission' style. I prefer the latter...just feels more natural after driving stick so long.
If you prefer to let the computer do the shifting, you'd better put it in auto "Sport" mode, which, under full throttle, will take the needle right to redline before a nice, crisp, instantly-fast upshift. In auto "Normal" mode it will shift by 4500 or so, no matter how hard you're on it. Downshifts in Manual mode are equally crisp, but stay on the gas or else it will bog a bit. Normal daily driving it shifts as smoothly as a conventional automatic.
Handling.
I was a bit apprehensive at first. The tires are only 215s, and coming from a 3/s, that's pizza cutter thin. Now, i didnt get to go too in-depth here, since it was all public roads, but i hit a few 90* and a few cloverleaf-style freeway ramps. Couldn't find a good place to do some real direction changing. The results were interesting. I'll let you make of them what you will.
I hit the first 25mph offramp at about 45, with the stability control ON, and goosed it on the entry. Got moderate oversteer before the ASC put it strait. Felt very fun, safe, and in control.
Hit the next 25mph offramp at about 45-50mph, ASC OFF, just tried to hold my line nice and tight on the inside at about 45, got some moderate understeer.
Hit a 90* turn at a large, 2-lane intersection and about 35mph, ASC ON. Hit a mid corner dip which caused some scary understeer and made me lift off the gas.
Hit a sweeping ~90* bend at ~25-30mph, ASC OFF, goosed it just after entry. Got moderate oversteer. Did this one a few times. it would kick the tail out a bit, but even with the stability control off it wouldn't go out much more than a foot or so out of line. Just lacks the power to really break the wheels loose.
My conclusion: The 215 tires make the car more fun to drive by making it more lively and fun to throw around. Wider tires would i'm sure take away some of the bad characteristics, like the understeer, and probably make the car faster for any track purposes, but i think that would make the car less fun on the daily commute. So unless you're upping the power or using it as a track car, the tires are fine.
Other than that, handling was fine. It's stable at speed, seems to corner with little body roll, and the ride is firm but acceptable for daily life. Also it tracks nice and strait on the highway...nice compared to my VR-4 which will change lanes on you if you're not actively paying attention. Steering feel is good as well.
Brakes...were a bit of a weak spot. Maybe i'm just used to driving the VR-4 with upgraded brakes, but they seems a bit outpowered even though they're from the larger Outlander SUV. Slowing from highway speed, like for stopped traffic, I just expected more from them. Other situations they seem fine, but i dont know if i'd be comfortable with them in a panic-stop situation. Some stainless braided lines and upgraded pads are definitely in my future.
So final conclusions...
Power/Speed: 8/10. MORE than adequate for the daily commute, and you wont have a problem putting most challengers in their place...which is a good thing becasue EVERYONE want's to race this thing. I've had more people try to 'start shit' with me in this car in the handfull of days i've driven it than in my VR-4 for the 4 years i've owned it. Must be the color...?
Handling: 7/10. Still kinda up in the air on this one...i'll have to explore it's limits a bit more, but for the time being, it seems very fun, safe, and maybe a little lacking in grip. but again, MORE than adequate for normal daily life.
Brakes: 6/10. Could/should be a bit better.
Interior: 6/10. Kind of econo-box. Lots of hard plastic. Should have went with the Recaro seat package :(. the driving position seems a bit uncomfortable...but the wife likes it so maybe it's just me.
Exterior Styling: 9/10. Best looking 4-door on the market besides it's older sibling, the Evo X.
Would I buy it again or recommend it to family/friends? I would absolutely buy it again. Fantastic car for the price, however i would only recommend it to someone who is at least kind of an auto enthusiest, as it does have some quirks that i can see alot of mainstream buyers being put-off or confused by, namely the low speed transmission awkwardness.

well if you ever wanted to track it(i assume you mean road coarse) you could always buy evo wheels and put some competition tires on em.

sounds like a fun car. hope you and the misses enjoy it