The Mitsubishi Evo will live on
There have been a lot of rumours doing the rounds that Mitsubishi has no plans for a new generation Lancer Evolution or put the Mitsubishi for sale. These rumours were further reinforced when Mitsubishi’s global product director, Gayu Eusegi, revealed to Autocar at the recent Geneva show that although there was still a demand for the Evo, “we must stop” as there had been a “policy change” towards EV technology.
Much was made of Eusegi’s comment both online and offline, Mitusbishi received a lot of negative publicity and some went as far as created online petitions to save the Lancer Evolution. Osamu Masuko the president and CEO of Mitsubishi Motor Company had to step in, he announced, “Production of the current Lancer Evolution X continues as planned. As for its successor, regulations and market feedback will dictate its engineering package and architecture. MMC has kept the Lancer Evolution sedan evolving as the brand’s highest performing model in the global market.
He added, “However, as the markets needs and demands change, MMC is considering not advancing the Lancer Evolution concept in the same way as before, but to find a different direction for the Lancer Evolution model to evolve. The new direction, the technologies involved, and corresponding products will be disclosed in due course.”
According to Autocar the next generation Evo, the Evo XI will switch to a diesel-electric hybrid power train, designed to save the car from tightening economy and emissions regulations, while preserving its trademark mid-range shove. The mix of clean-diesel torque and electric motor assistance will allow the Evo XI to deliver a 0-62mph time of less than five seconds, yet cut CO2 emissions to well below 200g/km.
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