April 2004 is a significant month in the history of the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VIII. The previous FQ models are being replaced by yet more purposeful versions with the addition of MR (standing for Mitsubishi Racing) in their titles, and power outputs extending to somewhere on the high side of 340bhp. At the other end of the scale, this month also sees the introduction of the 260 model tested here.We'll be looking at the MR cars over the next few months, and a rip-roaring experience that promises to be. So rip-roaring, in fact, that there is bound to be a temptation to become rather sniffy about the 260. At £23,999 on the road it is, after all, the cheapest of the Evo VIIIs, as well as being the slowest, the softest, the one with the lowest specification and the one you are most likely to see someone else driving - Mitsubishi reckons that around 800 examples of this model alone will be sold in the UK during 2004, as opposed to a thousand for all three MRs put together.But using these facts to dismiss the 260 would be a big mistake. Forget the MRs for a moment and bear in mind that the 260 is aimed squarely at Subaru's excellent Impreza WRX STi, an entirely desirable machine in itself. Deciding whether Mitsubishi has done the better job with similar resources is a personal matter, but within the Evo VIII range (not having driven any of the MRs yet, but having spent some time with a now-discontinued FQ-330) I'd say that the 260 may well be the best of the bunch, at least as far as road use is concerned.The relationship between the 260 and the MR models is worth looking at. The 260 has a smaller rear spoiler - still very noticeable without being over the top. It has different alloy wheels (made by Enkei) which are nevertheless very attractive. It has a five-speed gearbox rather than a six-speed, but five are quite enough in conjunction with an engine which pulls very strongly all the way from 3000 to 7000rpm. The two-litre turbo engine is 40bhp down on the humblest MR, 80bhp shy of the most powerful, but you can use the power it has. It's not nearly as quick from a standing start, and won't beat six seconds for the 0-62mph dash when the MRs will all dip into the fours, but how often do you really need to accelerate from 0-62mph in a hurry?The ride, while unquestionably very firm in absolute terms, is comparatively soft for an Evo and frankly far more suitable for public roads. The handling - again super-sharp compared with almost every other saloon on the market - is marginally less precise but a great deal more friendly. Altogether, there is nothing in the extra ability of the more powerful Evos that makes them better high-performance road cars than the 260.As long as there isn't a more expensive Evo parked right next to it, the 260 looks mean and aggressive from the outside. The cabin, by comparison, looks just as dull as it does in other Evos (with the exception of the businesslike steering wheel, Recaro seats and so on), though I suspect this may actually be part of the appeal - there's a feeling that you are paying all that money for performance and not for interior fripperies.Apart from the large central revcounter, the instruments are not particularly clear, but at least the speedometer is legible at a quick glance. It covers everything from 0-170mph in a sweep extending over slightly more than half a circle, where the FQ-330 reads up to 180mph in slightly less.261bhp may be the lowest power output in the range, but don't for a moment assume that this is therefore a slow car. That amount of grunt makes for tremendous on-road performance but still allows you to keep using the throttle at times when you would have had to back off in the more powerful versions. Overtaking is a cinch, and short straights between corners on a true Evo-style road can be disposed of very rapidly.In any case, the key to the Evo is how it handles. There is a lot of trickery going on in the four-wheel drive system, with an active centre differential and adjustable Super Active Yaw Control in the rear diff. For the full details, read someone else's test report or ask your local Mitsubishi Ralliart dealer. For the purposes of this article, it's the effect that matters.Well, the first thing you have to bear in mind is that the Evo has to be driven with some determination. It's a bit of a lumbering beast in slow traffic, and it doesn't react well to tentative inputs. That doesn't mean you have to muscle it - the turn-in is so sharp, particularly when the Super Active Yaw Control is on the Tarmac setting, that you would barely be able to control the thing if you drove it with clenched fists.No, the point here is that you need to show the car who's boss. This became particularly apparent on one occasion when I had no option but to be tentative. I was pressing on through a series of long, fast corners on a wet road, and I had to go easy on the throttle. The 260 reacted by showing signs of wanting to understeer. Easing off the throttle very gently removed this tendency immediately, to the point where it became clear that backing off harshly might result in snap oversteer.On a track day this would have been no problem - use more throttle and slide through the bends. I'm not sure who would have enjoyed that more, me or the car, but on this test the question didn't arise. I'm not going to drive on public roads in a series of four-wheel drifts, thank you.Later, in dry conditions this time, I tackled a very different kind of road. It's one of my favourites in the country, with a very long series of medium-speed corners, nearly all of them involving a dip or crest of some kind. There are enough straights on it for power to make a difference, but it's the behaviour of the chassis that is really important here.I don't think I've ever been down that road more quickly in my life. The 260 was quite phenomenal, not least because of the way it dealt with the various bumps. Let's distinguish different kind of bumps here: even with its relatively soft set-up (in Evo terms) the 260 has no scruples whatever about passing every single ripple in the road surface to your backside. This isn't much fun, though it does act as a constant reminder that you're driving a very special machine.The bumps on this road are quite different. At the sort of speed the 260 can manage here, they are big enough for the car to take off. When that happens, there is no crunch as you come back down to earth. The suspension sorts out the landing and the car is immediately ready to continue at unabated pace. More impressively still, if the bump is in mid-corner, and you find yourself flying sideways for a few yards, there is still no loss of composure.If the road had been closed and I'd been wearing a crash helmet and the stopwatches had been running and honour had been at stake, I'd have spent much of my time in third gear. What I actually did was select fourth and hold on to it for most of the run. As long as the revcounter is indicating 3000rpm or more, the turbo spins enough to give you as much power as you need. That sort of flexibility is a splendid complement to the fantastic abilities of the chassis.Actually, another reason for not selecting third very often was that the test car's synchromesh on that gear was already showing signs of wear. This may be a function of how many other journalists had driven it, but it could also be down to the fact that the brake and throttle pedals are not particularly well positioned for heel-and-toeing. That feature is common to the whole Evo range, not specific to the 260, and seems like a strange miscalculation in a car which lends itself so much to blips of the throttle on downchanges.It's a minor detail, though. I've found myself becoming bored with driving other Evos on the road after less than an hour. The 260 was fascinating from start to finish. It may be the humblest car in the range, but it's also the one I would want to keep. Engine 1997cc, 4 cylinders Power 261bhp Transmission 5-speed manual Fuel/CO2 25.9mpg / 258g/km Acceleration 0-62mph: 6.1 seconds Top speed 152mph Price £23,999 Details correct at publication date
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