#LancerEvolution

Lancer Evolution vs WRX STi had been as classic a rivalry as Mustang vs Camaro. But, with the departure of the Evo in 2016, there has been a hole in the marketplace and in the hearts of enthusiasts. Reports coming out of Autocar point to a revival of the famed rivalry, with an theoretical Evo XI getting some help from Renault.

While the Evolution name has been rumored to be revived in the form of some sort of SUV or electric vehicle — or both — the Lancer Evolution may yet return in proper super-sedan form. While details are spotty, it is speculated that the engine would come from the next-generation Renault Mégane RS. The current Mégane RS is the front-wheel drive Nürburgring production vehicle record holder, sporting a 296 horsepower and 295 ft-lbs 1.8-liter, 4-cylinder engine. With the next-generation engine anticipated to displace 2.0-liters, it may utilize a bit of electric boosting from a 48V mild-hybrid system to close in on the 341 hp coming from Subaru’s WRX STi S209.

Mitsubishi has quite the storied history, but for car lovers things don’t really kick off until the 1970s, when the company spun off Mitsubishi Motors from its Heavy Industries division. With help from Chrysler, the Japanese company managed a foothold in North America and started escalating volume. Before long, Mitsubishi was delivering economically minded vehicles to the American masses while fleshing out its lineup to include sporting models.

By the 1990s, Mitsubishi was the underdog option for discerning import enthusiasts. But all of those spectacular models gradually started to vanish. The 3000GT disappeared from the market, the Eclipse morphed into an overweight cruiser without the option of all-wheel drive, the Galant lost its excellent VR-4 variant, and the company never bothered to replace any of its previously discontinued performance models to pick up the slack. Eventually, Mitsubishi even abandoned the beloved Lancer Evolution due to hard times.

Mitsubishi gets a lot of mileage out of its defunct nameplates, but it remains steadfast in its unwillingness to provide enthusiasts with the car they’ve been asking for.

You remember the Lancer Evolution. It’s the car you saw Tommi Mäkinen use to win four consecutive WRC driver’s titles in the late 1990s. It’s the car you clocked the most hours in with your favorite automotive-themed video game. Maybe it was even a car you owned and used to embarrass vehicles well outside of its price range.

That rally-ready sedan is dead now. However, Mitsubishi is taking the Evolution name and adhering it to a fantastical new prototype. Called the e-Evolution, the automaker is serving up a recipe similar to the Eclipse Cross: Borrow a name from a retired model and slap it on an ultra-modern crossover. The difference here is that the new Eclipse is a real automobile while the e-Evolution is a self-indulgent exhibition of semi-real technologies.

Even thought Subaru’s new Impreza is already here and riding on the company’s new global platform, an updated WRX appears to be a long way off. In fact, it might be another three years until we see an updated performance sedan from the (mostly) all-wheel-drive automaker.

While the current incarnations of the WRX and its hotter STI variant still provide balanced dynamics and remain well liked by driving enthusiasts, seven years without a significant upgrade is a long time to wait.

Bad news: Mitsubishi’s storied Lancer Evolution will stop at 10 after the 2015 model year. Good news: It will go out with a bang.