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2010 Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart Review


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2010 Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart

SEE ALSO: Mitsubishi Buyers Guide

2010 Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart Provides Fun & Function

By MARLON HANSON
Texas Auto Writers Assn

It feels great to be able to drive again after a couple of months off and even better to have an attractive young lady bound up to ask what kind of vehicle you are driving because it looks so enticing. The new Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart is definitely cutting edge in terms of styling, both inside and out – not what one might consider an easy task for any 5-door hatchback.

Even better, it backs up the slick styling with real performance features such as Sportronic Paddle Shifters, a Turbocharger with a front mounted intercooler, All-Wheel drive (just in case!), Sport-Tuned suspension and anti-lock brakes even thrown in to help insure safety. Although not a large vehicle, the Ralliart boasts 237 horses and combines them with enough torque to make anyone who loves to scream off the line proud (253 lbs ft at 2500 rpm). I find it hard to resist pouncing on the accelerator everytime I fire this baby up.

Oh, I need to point out the convenience of keyless entry and even keyless start. The $30k pocket rocket has many of the same features of a $140k BMW 760, and, I might add even a few that aren’t found on any vehicle costing four times the price.


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I especially love the instrumentation. Directly in front of the steering wheel one will find a wonderful set of gauges with simultaneous readouts of miles til empty, miles per gallon of fuel (instant), time, odometer (trip and total), water temperature, fuel tank level, and even the gear you are currently in.

“Lots of vehicles will tell you this,” you say? “Not all at the same time,” I reply! Everyone that comes to my mind requires you to toggle through individual readings of most of these items.

The sound quality by Rockford-Fosgate is excellent and the nine speakers provide a concert hall feeling so one can listen to any of the hundred-plus stations on the Sirius Satellite Radio or from the regular FM or AM stations some people still are relegated to tuning in to. Complete controls for audio levels, cruise, and other controls are steering wheel mounted making changing sounds and stations quick, easy and safe with your eyes never needing to leave the road.

For it’s size, the Ralliart is not a fuel miser, choosing to opt for power rather than great economy. While respectable, the 17 mpg city and 25 mpg on the highway it provides are not in the same realm as other vehicles as compact as this Lancer might find achievable.

All in all, it’s not an ‘everyman’ car, but it was never intended to be as the name “Ralliart” indicates. It’s a great way to achieve sports car excitement without laying out the prime sports car pricing by more familiar icons.

Marlon Hanson is president of the Texas Automotive Media Association and a past president of the Texas Auto Writers Association. He has been in the media industry since 1970 with the New York Daily News, the Dallas Times Herald, Bumper to Bumper, Avid Golfer, Avid Living Magazine and Focus Daily News. He can be reached at marlon@testdrivereport.com.