Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution FQ-400 Car Review

Facts At A Glance
Car: Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X FQ-400
Prices: £49,999 – on the road
Insurance Group: 20
Emissions: 280g/km [est]
Performance: 0-60mph 3.8s / Max Speed 155mph
Fuel Consumption: (combined) 22.4mpg [est]
Safety: Super All-Wheel Control, Advanced Stability Control, ABS, twin front and side airbags
Dimensions: length/width/height mm 4505/1810/1480

SPEED FREAK

Our Rating: 7.6 / 10

Mitsubishi is showing just what its Lancer Evo is capable of with the FQ-400 model. Steve Walker reports.

At some point, the car industry’s horsepower war has got to end and that end might just be in sight. The big German marques have reached an armistice of sorts but it’s one born out of necessity as concerns mount that a sports saloon on general sale probably shouldn’t have a whole lot more than 600bhp. Even in the no-holes-barred supercar sector, the Bugatti Veyron has succinctly ended years of incessant one-upmanship with its 1,000bhp nuclear strike. Against this backdrop, Mitsubishi still shows little desire to call a bhp ceasefire. Its Lancer Evolution may not operate at quite such a rarefied level but down the years, it’s always shown itself to be good for a jaw-dropping performance figure or two. The latest is the 403 horses charging around the engine bay of the Evo X FQ-400.

The previous generation Lancer Evo IX ventured into 400bhp territory in FQ-400 guise and it was generally accepted to be an ill-advised move. The dustbin lid turbocharger needed to boost the car’s 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine to a power output of that magnitude took a while to get into its stride, producing an unsatisfactory lull at low revs before the maelstrom was unleashed and everything went absolutely mental. That was the last generation of the Evo built on the original Lancer platform but today’s Evo X model, based on more modern foundations, should have a better stab at coping with power of this kind.

So how exactly do you get 403bhp from a 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine when most other manufacturers would employ something like a 4.0-litre V8 or a twin-turbo 6-cylinder unit to achieve the same results? The years of experience that Mitsubishi’s engineers have in fettling the Evo’s bombproof four-pot obviously helps here. They’ve fitted the obvious higher specification turbocharger with low friction bearings, a high temperature turbine and a strengthened thrust bearing to sharpen response and reduce lag. The turbo’s cooled air supply is provided by an upgraded intercooler and the combustion cycle itself it jazzed-up by motorsport spec high-flow fuel injectors. A big bore stainless steel exhaust and an extensively re-mapped ECU provide the finishing touches to an engine that will take the FQ-400 from standstill to 62mph in 3.8s and generate its 525Nm maximum torque at 3,500rpm.

The Evo FQ-400 has a whole farmyard of grunt and your heart goes out to the transmission system tasked with deploying it. Mitsubishi’s Super All Wheel Control (S-AWC) set-up, the one found across the Lancer Evo X range, gets the job and it’s got a variety of tricks up its sleeve to ensure things run smoothly, or as smoothly as they can. There’s Active Stability Control, an Active Centre Differential, Active Yaw Control and Sport ABS to keep the FQ-400 out of the bushes. Meanwhile, the 4x4 S-AWC system can be set in Tarmac, Gravel or Snow modes which adapt the settings of the various systems to suit the conditions.

The Lancer Evolution isn’t known for hiding its considerable light under a bushel and as the flagship version, the FQ-400 is an appropriately imposing sight out on the road. There’s a composite front bumper moulded around the trademark Lancer grille which features carbon fibre elements on this model. The enlarged bonnet vent allows heat an easy escape route and a 30mm drop in the front ride height beings everything closer to terra firma. If anything, the rear view of the FQ-400 is its most striking with the multi-finned Vortex Generator running along the roof, a super-sized spoiler and a splitter beneath with the huge letterbox exhaust at its centre. Owners could conceivably slap on a couple of numbers and turn up at the start line of a rally stage without being given a second glance, such is the aggression in the styling.

With a wider track than standard Evo models and upgraded suspension featuring Eibach springs and Bilstein shock absorbers, the FQ-400 is more than merely an exercise in raw power. The handling package has been enhanced to match the searing pace on offer but Mitsubishi has been careful to retain the everyday usability that has always been at the Evo’s heart. Practicality is relative but if you can live with a firm ride and a fruity engine note, the car’s generous rear passenger space and sizable boot make it an almost unique propositi