đź“° Auto News Report: Mitsubishi official says Evo franchise is dead

Bru

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http://www.autoblog.com/2011/03/02/report-mitsubishi-official-says-evo-franchise-is-dead/

According to Gayu Eusegi, head of global product development for Mitsubishi, the Lancer Evolution X will be the last Evo the Japanese automaker ever builds. Eusegi says the move is part of a shift in strategy to put the company's product focus and ethos on leadership in EV technology.

To that end, Autocar indicates that Mitsubishi will release eight fully-electric or hybrid-electric cars by the time 2015 rolls around, and make a grab for a big portion of the CO2-reduction market share. It goes without saying that the fun-yet-fuel-swilling Evo just doesn't fit that mindset, particularly since it apes a rally car that no longer exists.

Despite the Evo's huge popularity, Mitsubishi apparently isn't scared of the step and says it's confident that consumers will glom on to the idea and rally behind the brand. By killing the Evo, they're making their intentions plain to an increasingly environmentally-conscious car-buying public.

Eusegi killed dead any notion that the brand would roll out a performance-oriented hybrid as well. "Maybe the world can change, and maybe someday we can do a motor race by electric vehicles. Maybe then we can enter the market agian," he said.

This report of the Evo's death would seem to stand in contrast to multiple reports that an Evo XI is in the works with a hybrid drivetrain. We're taking this latest Autocar missive with a few grains of salt, as we can see how Eusegi may have simply meant that an Evo that relies exclusively on internal combustion is dead – a hybrid Evo would seem to offer a nice technological bridge to Mitsubishi's more electrically minded future. Hat tip to Dennis!
 

KaMaSuTrA

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I gotta say I'm not suprised, after what was produced for the Evo X, I think many Evo enthusiasts were disappointed.

They pushed the class the car was in to the limits with all the luxury and premium options. They made it heavier and gave it a world engine that makes real Evo enthusiasts vomit. It's not that the Evo X is an extremely bad car but it shouldn't have been called an Evo.
 

CrunkMaro

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Jun 17, 2010
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maybe mitsu just decided that they had enough with 16 year olds gettin evos from their parents and wrappin em around various inanimate objects and decided "hey, maybe if we stop making them, then the people who have em will cherish em that much more"

just makin shit up

i'm happy the trans am never came back. makes my car that much more special.
 

Bru

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Followup: Mitsubishi unconvincingly addresses Evo death rumors via Facebook

http://www.autoblog.com/2011/03/03/followup-mitsubishi-unconvincingly-addresses-evo-death-rumors-v/

Will the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X be the last Evo ever built? Rumors to that extent were flying fast and furious across the Internet yesterday. Mitsubishi has decided to address these claims by way of a post on its Facebook page:

Further to some comments published in the press recently, production of the current Lancer Evolution continues as planned. As for its successor, regulations and market feedback will dictate its engineering package & architecture. Stay tuned.

So relax Evo fans, this answer should make you feel... well, actually, stay worried – the above statement really doesn't answer anything about the model's future.
 
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