Mitsubishi Motors presented their latest Colt Ralliart Version-R last week, and it took them 2 years of studying and refining before they could release this little bomb onto the Japanese roads.
Mitsubishi invited the elite of the Japanese and world press in Hakkone (ok, we were the only ones representing the foreign press there, but it still feels good) to test the manual and automatic gearbox versions of this latest Ralliart-injected version.
Before going any further, let's describe the Hakkone area. It's one of the most renowned Japanese areas in the world for its green, mountainous scenery and small roads that crawl up these hills in a sequence of neverending bends and twists. Hakkone is also known for their drift tracks, and it's actually on these roads that this racing discipline was invented! Whilst we were getting closer to the area where Mitsubishi had planted our two test vehicles, we realised that, bend after bend, the reputation of Hakkone in the drifting world was a reality and not a fruit of our imagination. These roads look more like the Nürburgring on sunny and hot weekends than a normal country road, and that is accentuated by the tire rubber deposit... a truly incredible sight!
The sights and history in mind made us push the pedal to the metal to get there as fast as possible. It took us an hour thirty minutes and minus 3 points on our drivers license (highways are limited to 70km/h, and 98km/h is not appreciated by the police) to get to the rendez-vous point, where the charming Mitsubishi team handed us two sets of keys, one for the 5-speed manual version and one for the automatic version.
There are so many things to say and discover about this car, so we'll limit ourselves to a small preview today, and you can expect a full review of these 2 models next month. To get your juices flowing, here's a small 2-minute video of us behind the wheel of the manual gearbox version of the Colt Ralliart Version-R.
We'll quickly recap the basics of this Colt Ralliart Version-R though. This 1100kg car is powered by a 4 cylinder MIVEC engine that develops 154bhp at 6000rpm. It offers a lot of sensations with a chassis that is 30% stiffer than before, and the powerful engine turns this into a very stiff and agile vehicle. The manual gearbox of this Colt adds to the fun with gears that are not too long nor too short, and the balanced gearbox provides a lot of driving pleasure for every type of driver. The steering is not wobbly at all, and the car responds immediately to the driver's steering input. But let's stop right here, you'll have to tune into our in-depth review soon for complete coverage of this little beast.
Posted on Sat Oct 06, 04:25 by Fastcars, accounting, California / US
Home Page: http://www.dpccars.com great video, looks like a mini Lancer Eco. Unfortunately another great car that we do not get in the United states. I would but this over the Mini Cooper any day.
Mitsubishi Colt Ralliart Version-R Preview
