Mitsubishi EVO - Last year: 2015

[bill25]

So Mitsubishi decided to kill the only car I would even acknowledge so they can focus on eco hybrids.

http://blog.caranddriver.com/mitsubishi ... -in-style/


At least it sounds like they are going to give it a good sending away before they go out of business.

[kevm14]

You know that really sucks. Because I really respected that car, as opposed to the WRX, which I never did. The EVO had real performance cred. The WRX never matched it, in any trim. The EVO is basically a real sports car.

I think Mitsubishi Motors is in a bit of trouble. The parent company is fine, I presume, like any good Japanese conglomerate. Hell, they're still a top tier turbo supplier. Turbines, and really every mechanical pump you can imagine:

MHI is currently providing a broad range of products and services to a wide diversity of turbo machinery applications: gas turbines, steam turbines, water jets, compressors and turbochargers.

They just suck at making and selling the whole car.

PS: the wiki is very sad. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitsubishi_Motors

A bunch of depressing pictures followed by a long section on historical troubles (the sad cars were evidently the highlight).

[kevm14]

This guy gets it:

I wonder who in the company, or who they paid to consult for them, suggested that becoming an electric "appliance" vehicle manufacturer was going to keep Mitsu going, let alone save them. The mass consumer population wants products that they can aspire to own.

Mitsubishi, in eliminating about the only product they had that elicits any emotion (other than hate or disgust) and is one of a handful of similar cars that one segment of the population aspires to own, leaves them with nothing that anyone can get excited about. What they should have done, if they could have found the money to do it, is to take the learnings they had from the Evo and push those things down and up the line. Adding power or handling to smaller, less expensive cars would have been a good thing, as would doing the same to the midsize or small suv categories.

[Bob]

One of my good friends from childhood recently bought a 2010 Evo GSR for his daily driver to replace his aging Mazda 626. I got to drive it a few weeks ago and I must say the car is a legitimate performance car. I felt like the chassis was very well sorted and the brakes, steering, shifter, etc all worked well in unison. In short, it had all the intangibles that I enjoy. The power from the turbo engine was respectable and with the close ratio, short gearing, the car feels very quick.

[bill25]

Name one other Mitsubishi car made today that you can say that about.

Also, I owned a 98 Mazda 626, 6 cylinder (sea foam green, very exciting). That car was way more fun to drive than it looked. I got it for like 8K with low miles on it (used). I couldn't have touched an Accord or Camry 6 cylinder for that money, and the 626 was a way better/more fun ride. Towards the end of owning that car, I may or may not have seen 100 every time I got in it.