Mitsubishi Lancer Evos don’t seem to hang around very long – neither at traffic lights, nor in the showroom. Mitsubishi has rung the changes through its most iconic range of cars at breakneck pace since it first began importing the Evo in 1999; since then, there have been three generations of the car. This is the fourth – Evo number nine – and this model in particular is as fast, as expensive and as desirable as it comes: the £32,999 FQ-340.We drove its lesser-powered rangemate the FQ-320 in May; it left little to be desired in the performance stakes. A supplementary engine ECU, however, endows its big brother with 345bhp at 6800rpm and 321lb ft of torque at 4600rpm, which officially translates into 0-62mph clocked in 4.3sec.In actuality, this car is quicker than both statistics imply, yet very different to drive than its immediate predecessor, the 330-badged Evo VIII. Burying the accelerator from standstill in an FQ-330 produced a similar effect to being launched out of a catapult: the turbo boost would build with savagery the closer you got to the redline, and it was too easy to run into the rev-limiter if you weren’t ready with the next gear ratio. The FQ-340 gives up much more of its power in a surge between 4000- and 6000rpm; by comparison, it’s a little less frenetic to drive flat out, but also feels even quicker through the gears.All the other characteristics of the Evo’s driving experience – pin-sharp steering, aggressive throttle pedal and unbelievable four-wheel-drive traction – remain, but in a package that’s even faster and slightly less edgy to drive. Just as the badge implies, it’s quick with a capital ‘F’.
Matt Saunders
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