Behold: The Lancer Evolution VIII MR What's the MR stand for? Mitsubishi Racing. Making its debut on the Galant GTO in 1970, the suffix is reserved for only the ultra high performance caste of Mitsubishi cars.
The Evo MR is lighter, thanks to a strategically-lightened aluminum roof, which lowers the center of gravity. With the reduction in weight up North, the amount of force generated to the tires and suspension has been reduced, lowering the roll angle. With less force being transmitted to the suspension, the tires experience less positive camber in a turn, resulting in a faster cornering speed.
At-the-limit adhesion has also been improved with a new 4-wheel control system, which continually adjusts the level of suspension damping applied to each tire. Beefy Bilstein dampers at each corner react quicker to driver inputs. An improved AYC (Active Yaw Control), dubbed Super AYC, has also been thrown into the mix to give the Evo MR the most neutral handling during hard cornering.
This means that when you're driving hard into a turn, you won't have to counter steer or over correct as much--problems a car can experience when it understeers or oversteers.
With the shipments of Evolution VIII's and WRX STi's flowing onto U.S. soil, we're finally getting our fair share of Japanese Supercars, but the diehard enthusiast will always crave what he or she can't get. With the Sti boasting a Driver Controlled Center Differential, Mitsubishi might feel the heat and send the MR into battle...stay tuned.