Mitsubishi Evolution X goes head-to-head with Subaru Impreza WRX STI

1.699248-31547985 — Image Credit: Christopher List/ANM

Colin McRae and Tommi Mäkinen were career-long rivals. And they were simply made for each other, if you believe that opposites attract. Colin's style was all or nothing, first place or a place in the ditch. Tommi always knew when to cool it and coast home for whatever points he could scavenge. Asking Colin to cool it? You'd have been better off insulting his mother. The man truly had only one speed, flat out.

He made his blue ‘555' Impreza as famous as his wicked rallying style. He may have even contributed more to the STI's notoriety than the Playstation.

A red Evo X was Tommi's tool of choice. And since nobody could ever understand the tongue-twisting Finn, he let his silky driving do the talking.

How awesome then, that our pair for the day is coloured in the legends' respective blue and red? Just like the cars those two giants used to slingshot around Corsica's dust, Sweden's ice, and wherever else treacherous roads and conditions needed taming. So, editor Amit and I decided to play Colin and Tommi. But we couldn't agree which one's playing Tommi, and which one's Colin…

The curse of the AWD

Never mind, we were determined to put the conundrum to rest once and for all: which is better, the Evo or the STI? There's no doubt that all-wheel drive can't match rear-wheel drive for the fun factor. In fact, sometimes even the challenge of getting the most out of a front-driving hot hatch is much higher than the challenge of an idiot-proof all-wheel drive rally car with registration plates.

But you have to tackle these things properly. You can't just jump in and stay content with unmatched corner exit speeds. There's a way with AWD cars that you need to make peace with, even if sometimes it goes against your natural instinct as a driver. To really get the most out of these highly stressed giant-killers, and in fact to actually get them to prove their much-publicised giant-killing abilities, you need to make changes in two areas: first is corner entry and second is corner exit, surprisingly, despite the fact that their immense traction here shouldn't be a worry. But, AWD equals understeer in pretty much every such car we've ever driven except the Audi R8 (which is just about RWD anyway) — yes, even the Nissan GT-R understeers.

Because of this both the Evo X and the WRX STI benefit from a smidgen of trail braking, otherwise they'll push wide before you even get started.

So, on tarmac at least, it's much better to leave your braking as late as possible leaving some weight over the front axle and hopefully giving you enough grip to turn in neater. Then it's all good until you plant the loud pedal at the exit and stare helplessly at the following straight as you plough on wide. At this point, you can either pump the gas and yank the steering wheel for abrupt weight transitions and a very untidy finish, or practise your left foot braking.

So you see, AWD cars aren't the most fun, but they're very challenging to drive at the limit (smoothly) and consequently rewarding when mastered. But because they all have such similar dynamic characteristics, they're also quite difficult to set apart. So we thought we were in for a tricky test drive. We couldn't have been more wrong: the STI and Evo are like brother and sister; same roots, but as different as night and day.

Head to head

The contrasts are apparent immediately and rather obviously: one's a saloon and one's a hatch. Then you start to delve deeper and realise that our Mitsu has the six-speed SST twin-clutch gearbox with magnesium shift paddles, while the STI's centre console sprouts a leather and aluminium clad knob that you'll be seeing a lot more of — that is, it's a six-speed manual. The cabins are diverse too and although both have bucket seats, the Evo's exclusive Recaros aren't height adjustable and its tunnel plastics are out of a Carrefour grocery bag recycling plant. But to be fair, it's just not, er, fair, to call the Mitsubishi's interior as rubbish as popular opinion claims. It's not like the Impreza has the Sistine Chapel of cabins, although its dash top and centre console are better quality. The main culprit for the Evo is the nasty area around the cup holders, but really, everything else is a pass. And anyway, we didn't trek to a faraway empty stretch of dirt roads to have a shouting match about whose plastics cost more. We came for a double dose of sideways and an extra order of turbo. Which is when these two polar opposites begin to drift even further apart.

The Subaru uses a turbo boxer layout 2.5-litres in capacity, with variable valve timing to free up 305bhp at 6,000rpm and 393Nm of torque from 4,000rpm. The Evo meanwhile has a classic 2.0-litre aluminium block inline four and a lightning-fast slick-shifting 'box. Its lack of displacement plays havoc with its paper figures; 27Nm of torque and 14 horses less than the Subaru, available 500rpm after the STI has already utilised its advantage.

Electronics play a huge role in both these cars, with unbelievably clever AWD systems. The Mitsubishi's Super All Wheel Control is mind-bogglingly complicated and features an active centre differential, active yaw control, active stability control and of course ABS. The first two are the most important because they control the colossal torque between the front and rear axle and left and right rear wheels.

The STI comes with Subaru's Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive system with three performance modes for the driver controlled centre differential and six manual diff locking settings. Usually power is split 41:59 (too much to the front in our opinion) but once you figure out the diff, you can have way more fun. The Evo X has an advantage here because you can just select tarmac or gravel and off you go rocketing into the horizon. With the STI you'll still be at the start line figuring out whether you need three or four illuminated bars of diff lock, but it does give you more command.

Then all you'll need is to locate the traction control ‘off' switch and you can start counter steering until you lose feeling in your elbows.

Neck and neck

As far as first impressions go, the STI makes an entrance wearing clown shoes and a face like the bogeyman's — its steering is a let down and immediately noticeable. It has an inconsistent feel on wheel loadup so as the severity, gradient and camber changes, the steering communication does too. There's of course quite a lot of understeer on grippy surfaces in normal mode, but with satisfying gear changes — which are quite heavy and require precise shifts to avoid grinding — and good pedal placement and brake/accelerator offset, the Subaru comes into its own on the dirt quickly. It's just easy-peasy; at first there is a hesitance to go in sliding, but once you make the boxer growl there's no problem exiting with the tail hanging out. The Impreza also has a completely different suspension feel to the Evo: the STI's taut chassis is nicely complemented with a soft suspension (rear double wishbones) which makes daily driving a doddle and the car easier to live with than the Evo. However during hard driving there's noticeably more roll. Yet, somehow this softness ensures clearer communication from the chassis and suspension than in the stiff race-car like Evo which gives very little warning. The STI is easily sussed out; the Mitsubishi can be driven just as fast but it would take a better driver to go over the edge or catch it when it goes wrong.

Sure, you'll cover ground rapidly in the Subaru, but because of its few quirks you'll also have to work for it. It throws you a bone when you muck up, but when it comes to ‘special stage' times there are no freebies. Constantly rowing through the H-gate to stay in the turbo boost's sweet spot, messing about with the perfectly spaced pedals and battling that natural understeer… See, it sounds like a lot of work doesn't it?

Thankfully, at least Subaru Tecnica International has a good ear, so its boxer is the best sounding four-cylinder motor this side of a tuned F20C with a Spoon trumpet. This motivates proceedings.

In the Mitsubishi, the sound suggests it would rather stay in bed, but floor the pedal and you'll put a dent in the headrest. Most evidently, the Evo's steering is superb. Sneeze and you're in the next lane. After the STI, you need quite a long initiation period to readjust to proper steering feedback.

The rim itself is perfectly sized, just the right thickness but it could have done with better quality leather. It's a fair start, and things improve when you begin hitting apexes. Whatever gets lost in translation between the stiff chassis, stiff suspension and your bottom nestled deep in the Recaro bucket, you interpret through the steering wheel.

The fun factor is there too as the Evo has a wilder nature more closely (but still very loosely) resembling a RWD car than the STI ever could, scything through corners with clinical precision and dead level composure. It doesn't even lose out that much from its power deficit, making up lost ground with telepathic gear changes, a taut chassis and a more submissive AWD system.

Verdict

There's no doubt in our minds that the Subaru would be the easier car to live with day to day, especially now that it's an official GCC model with warranty and all. Besides its softer nature, it also has a bigger boot (the Evo's is very shallow), it's quieter and more refined during a mellow cruise, doesn't judder over the tiniest of road imperfections like the Mitsu and is a fair bit cheaper too.

Yet both these legends are steeped in rallying history and didn't get there by doing the shopping rounds. And they both offer genuine sportscar performance at half price.

But the Mitsubishi Evo X SST is a sweet, sweet experience with huge levels of driver involvement that's usually missing from AWD chassis, as we said earlier. Its tail happy nature also makes a better driver of you and commands a little more respect, meaning more fun at slower, safer speeds than you'd be chasing in the Impreza WRX STI.

So, here's the conclusion. Want to be a Finn in all but name, language, birth and culture? Buy an Evo X. Want to have fun on the way to fetch the kids from school? Buy the STI.

Scooby AWD

Subaru's Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive with Driver Control Centre Differential (DCCD) has three pre-programmed driving modes (Intelligent, Sport and Sport Plus), plus six differential locking settings for the mechanical and electronically controlled LSD. Front LSD is helical, rear isa Torsen type.

Evo X AWD

Decades of Dakar and rallying involvement have honed Mitsubishi's AWD systems to perfection. Electronics focus on maximising traction and power delivery through all four wheels individually, with an active centre differential, active yaw control and variable torque distribution. What's more, brake force control keeps understeering wheels in check by braking the offender.

Specs & rating