It seemed appropriate the weekend before the latest installment in the Fast & Furious movie franchise hit theaters nationwide that Leith Mitsubishi in Raleigh would spotlight one of the cars that helped launch the tuner car scene, the Mitsubishi Evolution.
LeithCars’ Zero to 60 team was on site the second Saturday in April to experience Leith Mitsubishi’s annual Evo Show & Shine competition. This year’s Evo show was the largest to date with more than 20 cars in attendance and nine Evo cars registered for the competition. Evolution owners from around the Triangle area and as far away as Fayetteville attended this year’s show including a group know as NC Lancers.
Cars ranged from completely factory stock to wildly modified which usually means heavy use of carbon fiber, both for weight and aerodynamic advantages, plus lots of go-fast parts bolted on for even more power and speed. Some Evo owners also like to dial-in a bit more performance by adding aftermarket parts to brake, suspension and steering assemblies. To help monitor all the added performance bits, you’ll usually see a few extra gauges mounted inside the car to help the driver keep an eye on the exact level of performance he or she expects.
What’s even more amazing about the cult-like following of the Mitsubishi Evolution is the fact that it was only available for sale in the United States from 2003 to 2015. There’s no doubt it was helped by earlier appearances in the Grand Turismo video game series and Fast & Furious movie franchise. Mitsubishi even placed a couple of its cars—a Mitsubishi Eclipse GT Spyder and Evolution VII—in 2003’s “2 Fast 2 Furious.”
Leith Mitsubishi in Raleigh has been selling and servicing vehicles of the three diamond marque since 1985 with many examples through the decades on display at the Evo Show & Shine including the Mitsubishi Eclipse and 3000GT. The true stars of the show however were the brightly painted and customized Evo cars. One Evo owner who spoke with LeithCars.com Zero to 60 podcast host Mark Arsen, said he had spent about $15K in modifications—that’s how much Evo owners love their cars!
For the Evo X, the legendary 4G63T engine was replaced with a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder code-named 4B11.
Talk to any of the Evo owners on-site for the Show & Shine and you’ll learn just why they love their cars. It starts with what one owner called a “bullet-proof” engine, the legendary 4G63T that powered the Evolution VIII and IV series cars from 2003 to 2007 here in the States. With the release of the next generation Evolution X in 2008, a new engine—code named 4B11—became the new standard for performance, delivering a whopping 295 horsepower and 300 lb-ft of torque! An Evo owner will also tell you how his or her car has incredible grip, sticking to the pavement like glue, but also quite capable off-road thanks to its high-tech all-wheel drive system. After all, the Evo was developed as a World Rally Championship race car!
At the end of a full day of swapping car stories, examining engine builds and enjoying the company of so many enthusiastic Mitsubishi owners as well as owners of a few other makes in attendance, raffle prizes were handed out by Leith Mitsubishi General Manager Charlie Kline and his staff, as well as trophies to the third, second and first place finishers in the Evo Show & Shine competition.
Kline promised that this would definitely be an annual event so stay tuned for more to come. As for our iconic friend, The Mitsubishi Evo, there are still a few on the market, including less rare variants like the Lancer Ralliart with it’s detuned turbo-four, all-wheel drive and six-speed dual-clutch sequential automatic. So, if you’re chomping at the bit to get your hands on a gently used Evo, keep an eye on LeithMitsubishi.com’s inventory to be the first to know!
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