Dan Neil, Contributor 
THE 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution MR is the fastest ugly car in the world. I mean that in the nicest possible way.
After all, making ugly fast is no small feat. Fast cars are typically low-slung, wide and rakish, aerodynamically optimised in the wind tunnel for high speeds and stability.
Our innate sense of aesthetics responds to this kind of sleek-ifying in the same way we recognise a cheetah, a porpoise or a peregrine falcon as beautiful.
SPEED
The stubby and thick Evo MR, on the other hand, is more like a rocket-powered groundhog, or a baby hippo fired out of a cannon. Fast. Ugly.
In 2003, encouraged by the success of Subaru's Impreza WRX STi, Mitsubishi began importing the eighth generation of the Evo, known to praetorians as the Evo VIII.
It's fast. Unnaturally, unhealthily, hail-Mary-full-of-torque fast. These glorified beaters routinely outpace Porsches and Ferraris. With their wormhole acceleration, telepathic steering, fantastic grip and rib-bruising brakes, Evos are the cars to drive if, say, it absolutely, positively has to get to LAX in 15 minutes.
Mitsu makes two lines of Lancers. The lower-level cars (US$14,599-US$18,999) are the ES and the OZ Rally, both powered by a 2.0liter, 120-hp four cylinder; and the Ralliart, which gets a huevos upgrade in the form of a 2.4-litre, 162-hp inline four with variable-valve timing.
BUILD
The Evolution electronically balances torque split between the front and rear axles. Reflecting the car's rally-racing heritage, the centre diff also has a three-way switch to adjust the computer's logic to account for tarmac, gravel and snow. The Evo employs a front helical and rear clutch-type limited-slip differential.
On dry pavement, they allow drivers to put more power down while manoeuvring say, accelerating harder at the apex of a corner (or if an apex is not available, a mailbox).
The car is nearly always completely, utterly hooked up and locked down, its high-grip Yokohamas clawing at the pavement at cornering forces that would leave other cars sliding for the weeds.
PERFORMANCE
The best way to get around a corner in the Evo is as follows: lay off the throttle and turn the wheel at the same time, forcing the car to over-rotate slightly, which being an inherently front-drive car it doesn't like much.
Then lay on the gas. The car will assume a neutral four-wheel drift, tighten its line and go pretty much wherever you point it. My, that's fun.
The MR, our test car, is at the top of the Evolution-ary food chain and comes with all the best performance parts standard: a close-ratio six-speed manual transmission (the other models are five-speeders); light weight, one-piece BBS wheels; Bilstein shocks; a front strut tower brace; suede Recaro racing seats; and lots of chrome and carbon-fibre frippery on the pedals, dash, shifter and e-brake handle.
On the outside, the Evo MR looks like it went into a performance parts store and got dressed in the dark.
New for this model is the inch-deep chin spoiler under the front air dam and the oval ports letting air flow around the intercooler's inlet and outlet pipes.
In addition to the aluminium fender panels bulging like a can of bad Spam, the car sports a carbon-fibre rear spoiler complete with a small vertical 'wickerbill' on the trailing edge.
Most curious, though, is the 'Vortex Generator', a row of small fins on the roof that create turbulence in the airstream over the spoiler, for an extra soupçon of downforce. Some guys have a comb-over. This car has an
over-comb.
ACCELERATION
Once the rpms pass 3,000 and all 20 PSI of turbo boost come online, in the immortal words of Keith Jackson ... whoa, Nelly.
The acceleration feels like someone has rolled a grenade under your cot. In a blink a sudden, urgent blurt of what-hit-me velocity the MR tosses your tongue down your neck.
In two gears and four Mississippis, you are exceeding interstate speed. The pitch coming from the 4-inch tailpipe goes high and metallic and the turbo intake sings with a caustic vortical howl. If Harry Potter rode a leaf blower instead of a broom this is the sound he would hear.
Few cars and nothing in this price range have the kind of heart-hammering, middle-gear thrust that the Evo offers.
It will surprise no one, the steering is phenomenal. This car has one of the quickest steering ratios this side of Laguna Seca providing powerful sweeps of angular momentum with slightest inputs off centre. And yet, on the freeway, the car tracks like an arrow.
Source: www.latimes.com
