Mitsubishi Lancer

Sharpened Lancer

Wheels Magazine
October, 2007

Better looking than anything Mitsubishi has launched here in years ... no, decades, drivetrain technology that's a cut above the small-car herd, class-leading safety hardware, and competitive prices. Yes, the new Lancer sedan certainly seems to have what the tri-diamond brand sorely needs.

It's a remarkable achievement, considering Mitsubishi's recent history. There have been massive losses, disastrous partnerships, dumb design directions, cover-up scandals in Japan, financial blunders in the USA, and damaging speculation about the brand's future in Australia. Somehow, after all of this, Mitsubishi has picked itself up and produced the kind of comeback that really counts - a damned good car.

While the new CJ series Lancer is the first production model to feature the fresh exterior design vocabulary previewed in the 2005 Concept-Sportback and Concept-X show cars, it's the third model from Mitsubishi built on its compact 'GS' architecture. The familiar Outlander compact SUV uses it, as does the box-on-wheels Delica people mover that's not exported to Australia.

The GS architecture traces its roots back to the time of Mitsubishi's ill-fated union with DaimlerChrysler, and its use means the CJ Lancer is a big small car. Its chassis has a larger footprint - wheelbase, and front and rear tracks - than the first Magna of 1985. In its day, remember, the TM Magna was regarded as a category buster. Based on the Japanese front-drive Sigma, but widened by 65mm for production in Australia, that first Magna was roomier than the medium-size fours of its day, but more compact than Falcon and Commodore.

Compared to the previous Lancer, the CJ has a longer wheelbase (35mm), and broader tracks (60mm), is longer (35mm), wider (65mm) and taller (60mm). It's also heavier. The increases are moderate, ranging from 17kg to 80kg, depending on model.

As expected with an all-new design, Lancer's body delivers significant strength gains to accompany the additional mass. Torsional stiffness is up 56 percent and bending is 50 percent better. Bolted to the body are fairly conventional steering and suspensions. At the front there's a strut and A-arm set-up, with rear-mounted hydraulically assisted rack and pinion steering. The rear suspension is a simple multi-link design.

There are differences in suspension tune between the base ES and middle VR models, and the top VRX. The first two have a 16-inch wheel and tyre package, with suspension to suit. With 18-inch wheels, the VRX naturally has a different suspension calibration. There are stiffer springs and dampers all around, and anti-roll bar diameters are increased 1mm at the front and 2mm at the rear. There's also a front strut-tower brace and a couple of different rear suspension bushings. The VRX's bigger wheels also make room for larger brake hardware. Both front and rear disc diameters are increased over the ES and VR models.

In a move that makes Toyota's decision to not include electronic stability program technology in the new Corolla range at any price seem very shabby indeed, Mitsubishi has made it standard in every new Lancer model. The ESP system, labelled ASC (for active stability control) by Mitsubishi, is switchable, via a dash button to the right of the steering column. Especially considering the Lancer line-up's very competitive prices, this is a remarkable and praiseworthy move from Mitsubishi.

While ESP, with its proven potential to cut the likelihood of having any kind of fatal or serious-injury crash, is the highlight of the new Lancer's safety story, the passive hardware is not bad either. The base ES has dual frontal airbags and a driver's knee airbag as standard. An additional four airbags - front seat side bags and full length side curtain airbags are standard in VR and VRX, and an option in the ES. Again, a comparison with Corolla does not flatter. In Ascent sedan and hatch, and SX hatch, only two bags are standard, not three as in Lancer ES. The driver's knee airbag is part of Toyota's optional five-airbag package for these models. While independent crash testing has yet to confirm it, Mitsubishi claims its own tests indicate the Lancer will earn a five-star NCAP rating.

Lancer's drivetrains are impressive, too. Mitsubishi's all-new and all-aluminium 2.0-litre four has good torque for its capacity. Maximum power, 113kW at 6000rpm, is better than the affordable small-car average. And max power is only 2kW lower than the 2.4-litre engine of the previous Lancer. While the new 2.0-litre has pretty much every technical feature expected in a modern four, it's the Lancer's automatic transmission that gives it an edge over the competition.

With two-thirds of small car customers currently opting for auto, according to Mitsubishi, Lancer's CVT (continuously variable transmission) really stands out. Most of its obvious competitors, including Corolla, 3, Tiida, Focus and Astra, have conventional four-speed automatics. With smooth, stepless shifting, the Mitsubishi's CVT promises a more refined driving experience. The transmission also has a pseudo-manual mode. This allows the CVT to mimic a stepped-ratio auto, by stopping at six pre-programmed points between the lower and upper limits of the belt and pulley transmission. And if Mitsubishi ever feels it needs to add more, it can do so by simply changing the software in the CVT's electronic control unit. In the ES and VR, 'manual' shifting is via the gear lever, but the VRX adds a pair of steering column-mounted paddle shifters made, says Mitsubishi, from magnesium.

Lancer's manual is a five-speeder, as in the previous model. It's been upgraded with a new case and clutch housing, new ratios, triple-ring (first and second) and double-ring (third and fourth) synchromesh and shifter friction-reduction measures.

Importantly, new Lancer's fuel consumption is significantly lower than the previous model. In official combined-cycle ADR81 tests, the CJ Lancer achieved results of 7.7L/100km for the manual and 8.2L/100km for the CVT. These results represent a 13 percent improvement over the outgoing model, and are competitive with other 2.0-litre small cars. By the way, Mitsubishi claims 0-100km/h times of 9.5sec for the manual Lancer and 10.5 for the CVT.

Settle into the new car and the increase in width is obvious. Although spacious, the car's interior lacks the visual impact of the exterior. The seat fabrics, door trims, floor carpets and headlining make a gloomy impression. While the instrument panel appears made from high quality materials, the multitude of joins seems outdated. And while the gauges and steering wheel are pretty enough, there's not a lot of visual pleasure in the broader picture.

The sedan's chopped-off tail, which does so much for the car's proportions, means the boot is relatively small. It's 400 litres with the standard space-saver spare wheel. Choose the optional full-size spare (which raises the floor level significantly but keeps it flat), and boot space drops to 315 litres.

While cabin ambience and cargo capacity aren't brilliant, the way the car drives is very, very impressive. The ES and VR - on 16-inch wheels, remember - are nicely balanced, with fine steering and comfortable ride. On 18-inch wheels, the VRX has more grip and reduced ride comfort, although it's firm rather than harsh. The steering feels even better connected, although the wider rubber introduces a minor dose of tramlining. The stiffer suspension settings and low aspect-ratio tyres make the VRX's responses to steering inputs crisper. The ESP system seems subtle enough when the limit of grip is approached gradually, and quick to clamp down on sudden provocation. Switching it off also reveals the car has fine foundation dynamics.

The 2.0-litre engine is very sweet. It's nicely linear, and throttle responses are both sharp and accurate. Team the engine with the smooth, light, quick five-speeder and its feel-filled clutch, and you have a drivetrain that makes changing gears a real pleasure.

Lancer's CVT works very well, too. Given wide-open throttle from standstill, it allows engine revs to build slowly (much like an Audi CVT), before levelling out at a steady 6200rpm. By this stage, you'll have reached a speed illegal in most states. The CVT's 'manual' mode is crisper than in other similar transmissions, and the Lancer holds the selected 'gear' even when the engine bumps the rev limiter. In this mode, downshifts that would result in revs increasing to more than 5500rpm are prohibited by the control software.

Drivetrain refinement is very good. The engine is near inaudible at idle, and soft-voiced at light throttle openings. At higher revs it doesn't sound unpleasant. The only shortcoming is a mildly annoying exhaust resonance at 4000rpm, but no sensible driver is going to spend long holding such high revs.

Chassis refinement seems superb on smooth roads, where the Lancer really does feel like a car from the size and price class above. But coarse-chip roads expose a tyre-noise issue that grows more serious with every extra km/h. By the time the speedo reaches around 120km/h, the racket is rather unpleasant. This is true for the ES and VR, as well as the wide-tyred VRX.

While the new Lancer falls some way short of perfect, the same goes for everything else in the small-car class. Although it does have chassis refinement and interior presentation problems, these aren't serious enough to prevent it being a success.

Too-high prices, on the other hand, could kill the Lancer. But Mitsubishi isn't going to let that happen. Lancer prices are very reasonable indeed, considering the standard inclusion of ESP in all models.

Thing is, the new Lancer is a car that's much better than its price tag indicates. And you've got to like that.

  » Visit Wheels magazine website

To comment on this article click here