2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution

The surgical steering is made for tight turns; its perfectly weighted feel allows you to be ultra precise when placing the front tires. Chassis balance is almost uncanny. The front end offers up so much grip and the rear, which gets Active Yaw Control, is so willing to rotate it feels like oversteer is the name of the game, but in reality, both ends are sticking like syrup and working together so beautifully that you can’t believe the car is devouring sweepers that effortlessly. Brakes? Awesome. Every turn you feel like you can dive deeper and deeper.

Thinner and harder, the Evo's tiller gives the impression that you're hardwired into the car; the action is light, accurate, and unnervingly fast at first. Once underway, the precision of the Evolution makes it easy to relax and focus on this technical track. It has a more planted feel, with less body roll, which means 115 mph entries into the double S-turns can be taken with a lot less pucker.

In fact, it's the all-wheel-drive Evo that has the problem of keeping its nose pointed in the right direction. But, oh, what a problem to have; at wide open in the MR, four-wheel drifts are an enviable distraction, but they're easy to control or simply avoid, once you learn to trust the car.

Though it's down 14 horsepower and weighs 190 pounds more than the STI, this is no wheezin' Butterbean; what the Evo lacks in power and displacement, it makes up in electronic trickery. At its core is a system called Super-All Wheel Control, a complex array of structural and dynamic improvements, most notably Active Yaw Control (AYC), that could very well be the Evo's secret brass knuckles.

The Evo's sharper steering and better turn-in are a product of the S-AC system, notably AYC, which actively splits torque between the rear wheels in hard cornering situations. AYC accelerates the outside rear wheel in tight corners, rotating the car faster and allowing for earlier throttle application.

When you're playing in snow, the car has some initial understeer, and a few staffers have complained that they can feel the torque transfer through the steering wheel. Still, no other Four Seasons car has an all-wheel-drive system this advanced, let alone a dual-clutch transmission.

We still love the Evo's steering feel, Recaro bucket seats, and thrust of the 2.0-liter turbocharged four, but the car's excessive fuel consumption, numerous squeaks and rattles, and stereo continue to draw complaints, especially when considering the $41,515 sticker price.

Nothing gets us going like taking an economy car and adding all the go-fast parts imaginable right from the factory. The all-wheel-drive system gives this Evo tons of grip and creates a direct link to the rally cars we love to watch.

Overall, I still prefer the Evo VIII and IX but the newest version is still a very fun car. It still feels like an Evo.

There are niggling faults, to be sure--the interior quality still isn't a patch on the stuff in Subaru's WRX, fifth gear is both entirely too tall and entirely too short (it's boomy at highway speeds and cranking a huge 4000 rpm, but the gap between fourth and fifth gear is still ridiculously huge), and the Evo X isn't quite as involving or communicative as the Evo VIII or IX. But in terms of steering feel, chassis balance, and sheer genius-making capability, it's got everything else at the price beat six ways from Sunday. What a hoot.

The latest Lancer Evolution represents a hefty break from tradition. The age-old, tacked-together Evo styling ethos has been replaced by a much more cohesive, ground-up approach. Gone, too, is the legendary iron-block, 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder that powered all nine previous Evos. An all-new, aluminum-block, 2.0-liter turbo four with 295 hp and 300 lb-ft of torque produces both more grunt and more power than its predecessor. For the first time ever on an Evolution, a two-pedal, twin-clutch automatic transmission is available. And, most important, the once rough-and-ready Evo appears plumped out, comfy, and option-laden at first sight--or, to the layman, a great deal more like a Real Car.

Certain Evo features are considered perennial. Aluminum fenders, hood, and roof panels are all stock (so long as you don't order a sunroof; that option requires a steel roof panel). Massive brakes--13.8- and 13.0-inch Brembo rotors in the front and the rear, respectively--are standard across the lineup. And sitting on the dash, right where you'd expect it to be, is a switch for the all-wheel-drive system's available traction modes (Snow, Gravel, and Tarmac, naturally).

"Strapped to a Mustang dyno, the stock Evo X put down a relatively low (but entirely predictable) 215 wheel-hp and 240lb-ft of torque while running California's 91-octane gruel.

Pathak maintains that more gains can be had, but the Evo X benefits from a sizable stock catalytic converter and a factory downpipe that isn't nearly as restrictive as the units fitted to the Evo X's predecessors, so those extra ponies won't be nearly as easy to extract.

While there's still the aggressive nature of past Evos, it doesn't have their slapped-together look. If you ask me if I can drive a car every day that looks like this, I would say yes. I think most adults will be fine driving this.

"Past Evos always felt like all-wheel-drive cars. However, this new one feels more like a front-engine, rear-wheel drive (FR)-like an FR you don't need to countersteer. The balance is amazing. After driving hard, if you look at the tires, you can tell by the wear that all four tires are working equally. The suspension has a nice, easy feel and it's firm enough to keep everything in balance. It still has the razor sharpness, but lacks the unrefined feel of a cheap tuner car."

With the arrival of the Evo X, the old and trustworthy 4G63 was sent off to retirement and replaced by the all-new, all-aluminum 4B11. The guys at Mitsubishi changed everything that could be changed, like the engine's position, which now not only sits marginally lower and rearward in the new stiffer chassis but was also rotated 180 degrees compared to the 4G63. This means that the hot side is virtually behind the dashboard and the intake is where the turbine used to sit in previous generation Evos (IV to IX; I through III had the same layout).

Rally fans may regret the Evo has moved away from its roots in World Rally Championship competition, but it's faster than its predecessor by almost every measure, now more like an affordable BMW M3.

The Evo X is heavier, by some 300 pounds, than the IX. But it's more powerful, too, by five horsepower and 11 pound-feet of torque, so it forfeits little if anything in sheer performance.

With one notable exception, the Evo interior packaging is as inviting as the exterior is brash. At least as far as creature comforts, that is.

Given that the Evo is a car intended to be driven more than merely steered, the loss from previous iterations of full-time gauges for oil pressure and engine temperature is a serious disconnect. Yes, the data are available, but can be accessed only by clicking through a series of virtual LED gauges centered between the otherwise most impressive, and quite sporty, large analog tachometer and speedometer.

Driving is the best part of the new, 2008 Mitsubishi Evolution and marks perhaps its most welcome advancement from the old Evo IX.

Against the most probable competitor, the Subaru Impreza WRX STI, the Evo doesn't give up much. It's a couple hundred pounds heavier, but it's slightly higher torque rating (300 lb.-ft. versus 290 lb.-ft.) makes up for some of that in outright acceleration.

The Evo reflects the best of that world, too. It is, in sum, evidence that fun can co-exist with maturity and high tech.