- The current Lancer Evolution X will be the last, according to a senior Mitsubishi executive.
- The original Evo was introduced in Japan in late 1992.
- In calendar year 2010, Mitsubishi sold only 2,046 Evos in the U.S.
GENEVA — Mitsubishi Motors is killing the company's most iconic car, the Lancer Evo, after 2013.
The news of the impending demise of the Evo — its full name is Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X, with the X denoting the 10th generation — was confirmed on Wednesday by Gayu Eusegi, Mitsubishi's global product director, in an interview with Britain's Autocar.
In the U.S., Mitsubishi spokesman Maurice Durand told Inside Line that the current Evo will remain in the company's lineup through 2013, but he declined to comment about the company's plans beyond that date. In calendar year 2010, Mitsubishi sold only 2,046 Evos in the U.S.
The 2011 Lancer Evo GSR is priced from $34,755 in the U.S., while the Lancer Evo MR is priced from $37,955. Both prices include a $760 shipping charge. The U.S. version of the Lancer Evo is powered by a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine rated at 291 horsepower.
Eusegi said the current Evo X will be the final generation, telling Autocar: "There is still a demand (for the car), but we must stop." Indicating the decision to kill the Evo represented a corporate policy change at Mitsubishi, Eusegi added: "Our influence now is EV technology."
Mitsubishi is in the midst of sweeping changes in its global product portfolio and is rapidly developing a new generation of electric and hybrid vehicles, beginning with its tiny i MiEV.
As part of the overhaul, the Japanese automaker plans to drop at least three current models — Eclipse, Endeavor and Galant — from its U.S. lineup by 2013, while introducing as many as six new electric, hybrid/electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles by 2015.
The original Lancer Evolution was introduced in Japan in October 1992. The car was not sold officially in the U.S. market until the arrival of the eighth-generation Evo in 2003.
As for a possible successor to the WRC-inspired Evo, Eusegi told Autocar: "Maybe the world can change, and maybe someday we can do a motor race by electric vehicles. Maybe then we can enter the market again."
Inside Line says: Don't be surprised to see the engineers at Mitsubishi eventually reinvent the high-performance Evo formula with a newer, greener tint. — Paul Lienert and Josh Jacquot, Correspondents
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jorge50505 says:
04:38 PM, 12/28/2011
EVER SINCE I HEARD THIS I LOOK DOWN ON MITSUBISHI THEY ARE RETARTED AND ARE STUPID FOR DOING THIS IN THE US EVO IS THERE ICONIC CAR, WELL I FELL BAD SAYING THIS BUT HELLO WRX
booyahbaby says:
06:00 PM, 05/12/2011
Goodbye Mitsubishi......thats all I have to say about that. With no EVO they should just close the company all together. Im literally pissed about this lol.
BTW
Toyota(Owner of Lexus) is DUMB for making the FLA... why not come out with a new SUPRA to compete with the new Skyline(GTR).....
jmm_101r says:
03:25 PM, 03/18/2011
WOW... AMAZING!! THAT DOESN'T MAKE SENCE WHAT MITSU' IS DOIN.. THEY ARE TRYING TO DISCONTINUE AN ICON! WHY?.. MITSU' IS NOT REALLY DOING GOOD IN GENERAL SELLING CARS.. THE EVO' IS THE CAR THAT IS KEEPING THEM ON THE MAP IN THE AUTO INDUSTRY. WHY DON'T THEY FIRST BRING OUT THEIR NEW PRODUCTS SO THEY CAN SEE IF THEY SELL FIRST.. I DON'T THINK MITSU' HAS WHAT IT TAKES TO COMPETE AGAINST THE FAB. 3"(TOYOTA,HONDA,NISSAN). OR THE WORLD.. HOPEFULLY MITSU' HAS SOMETHIN UNDER THERE SLEEVE . CUSE THOSE ARE BIG SHOES TO FIT!!
U DON'T SEE AN ICONIC CAR LIKE THE EVO' SERIES THESE DAYZ . I REAL BANG FOR THE BUCK PERFORMANCE CAR.
HONDA/ACURA HAD LOTS OF CRITICS WHEN THEY DISCOUNTINUEd THE ICONIC INTEGRA/RSX VEHICLE. A CAR THAT HAD CONSISTAND SALES.. THEY ALSO DECIDED THAT THEY WERE GONNA TAKE ACURA IN ANOTHER ROUTE. HAS ACURA BEEN SUCCESSFUL BY DOIN THIS? NOPE. MITSU' HAS A BIG CHALLENGE AHEAD OF THEM I THINK.. THE EVO' IS SOMETHIN THAT CANT EASILY BE REPLACE..
P.S MITSUBISHI U ARE CRAZYYYYY...
street_king1 says:
08:23 AM, 03/13/2011
Screw Mitsubishi. Subaru is still here and its coming out with the new Impreza soon.
deathtollwrx says:
05:05 PM, 03/12/2011
I'm not surprised as a long time Subaru/Mistubishi fan it's sad to see it go. I love AWD turbo four door sedans and I didn't have much to choose from so the WRX and the EVO were my choices. I don't think spending more than 26k on a "fun" car is worth it. I bought the base model WRX which is plenty fast and at 25k it's a good deal. If I am going to spend 30k and up I am going to look for luxuries and a luxury badge. In the 35k area there are just way too many alternatives.
As a father of two and a Southern California Mortgage holder the Evo never even crossed my mind.
I'll stick with my el cheap 2010 WRX for my jollies and when it comes time to buy a bigger car i'll end up with a Rx350 or a BMW (if I can justifty paying over 30k for a toy/appliance.
I used to see a ton of the first gen american Evos but when it was redesigned they were far and few between. It's rare that I see ANY new generation Mitsubishi around here.
kernals12 says:
08:07 PM, 03/07/2011
Ya know, back in the mid 80s when the US was also suffering from high gas prices and a sluggish economy, Ford planed to get rid of the Mustang due to slow sales. Maybe history will repeat itself for the EVO
gts09 says:
11:28 AM, 03/07/2011
this is BULL first the eclipse now the evo. whats going on with the world?
way2goslick says:
09:16 PM, 03/06/2011
mallard - on a racetrack or when playing stoplight hero, the EVO having 4 doors means nothing. That is the point because these cars are built for that very purpose. Is having 4 doors really a selling point for a high performance vehicle...c'mon seriously? I'm sure we have all done idiotic/crazy things when driving by ourselves or with a friend, but the person driving their family around at dangerous high speeds because he can with 4 doors takes idiotic to another level. Thankfully there are plenty of adults that put their families first rather having a 4 door high performance car. If the 4 doors was a major selling point then why isn't enough to keep it from being canned? The bottom line is: at it's price point it has nothing better to offer than the direct competition (Mustang 5.0, Camaro SS, 370Z) and for the folks with more disposable income it simply can't match the pedigree of a BMW, Porsche, or Vette.
madmallard says:
06:37 PM, 03/06/2011
-slick
but.... your point in even bringing it up was to say they were all in the same segment.
if you have a family and are not of income enough to be a 3+ car family, 4-doors DOES put you into a completely different segment of vehicle than pretty much everything you listed.
Its not about what the next-over stoplight warrior thinks, its what the consumer is interested in buying.
roadster_rs says:
06:36 PM, 03/06/2011
hmm.... let me get this right then.... toyota no longer sells a sports car (the TC doesn't count), honda no longer sells a sports car (si owners no offense), and now mitsubishi joins their ranks... so japan only has a few ambassadors of speed now.... :/ things sure have changed since the mid 90's...