It’s with some sadness that we’ve reported Mitsubishi’s decision to pull out of Europe next year. No doubt the immaculate example of the Evo VI Tommi Mäkinen from the firm’s UK heritage fleet will be sold to a collector and hidden away, leaving the world bereft of the greatest car this diverse company has brought to these shores.
A few years ago, £10k would have been enough for a good one, but now £25k or more is required, which is a lot for a car that’s over 20 years old.
But what a car it is. We should laugh at some of the comments made when it was new – the ones that suggested the active yaw control (AYC) and complex four-wheel drive system detracted from the purity of the driving experience, because where would the modern performance car be without them?
Probably behind an Evo VI in the real world. Even though it has ‘only’ 276bhp, the performance is so easily accessible because the car never feels twitchy or nervous and just breathes over even the worst of road surfaces; plus there’s pin-sharp steering, AYC to help mitigate understeer and oversteer and confidence-inspiring big Brembo brakes.
The tricky part is finding an unmolested example, because modified cars won’t be as reliable. You’ll also want to make sure the suspension bushes have been renewed and the vehicle has been rust-proofed. So it’s no wonder good examples like the 48k-miler we found cost so much. However, we’ll be looking out for when the UK heritage press car goes up for sale – and working out how many organs we will need to sell in order to buy it.
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Maybach vs RR
As much as I dislike the Teutonic Tank style of the Phantom at least it is more regal and expensive looking than the Maybach! The Benz looks like a Hyundai cast off at best and a Chinese copy at worst. It may have lead the way on refinement, interior appointments and reliability but they could have made a better effort on the look of the thing...
Reminds me of what Volksvagen did with the Phaeton, dress your new Bentley chassis in a Passat XL body and watch the sales dwindle away...
CR-Z
Nice to see a bit of enthusiasm on this site for the Honda CR-Z, pity there wasn't a bit more when the car was new. That, at least means that it is a cheap and entertaining used buy - but I can't help wondering how muxh better it might have become with say a more interesting, smaller petrol engine and a bigger battery, more powerful electric motor to propel it along.
I loved my crz, great fun to