The drive to work in winter when the weather's nasty is about as exciting as having wet feet.
Road closures. Ice scraping. The mountain the plow-guy left at the end of your driveway. Ever just wanted to call in 'winter'? You aren't alone--but there is a solution to beating the cold-weather commute blues. What you need, my friend, is a rally car.
With a driven wheel at each corner, heated Recaros beneath and 290-ish horsepower under your right Sorel, you mightn't even require the alarm clock to fire you out of bed at 5:45 am.
The Evolution
The latest, tenth-generation 'Evo' is the first to be sold in Canada. It brings us up to speed on the models promise of rally-proven performance for the daily drive--an important qualification in understanding the machine.
This thing is hardcore--and the looks leave nothing to guesswork. Hood vents, a massive wing, BBS wheels, fender vents and oversized bumper openings are applied. A front-mounted intercooler is on full display, and the license plate's even been shoved off to the side for airflow's sake.
The tester had no sunroof, CD changer, Bluetooth phone or soft-touch dashboard materials to be found. Sure, race cars don't need that sort of stuff. Besides, even if the interior feels and sounds like it came from a car half the price, you still know where your money's been spent.
Hardcore hardware
All Evolution MR models come with Brembo brakes, wickedly quick steering and a highly tuned suspension. It's engineered heavily for competition on a rally circuit, race course or similar environments. On public roads, you'd best not drive the Evo the way it looks like it wants to be driven.
A Super All Wheel Control (SAWC) system with 'gravel', 'snow' and 'tarmac' modes is fitted for the aspiring rally driver, and a twin-clutch transmission fires off rapid gear changes at the click of a paddle.
Forget that it's sort of an automatic. The Twin Clutch Sport Shift Transmission (SST) swaps gears perfectly every time while pulling off changes that have minimal engine braking effects on the axles. This means that weight balance isn't upset if, say, you gear down hard in the middle of a fast corner.
Road closures. Ice scraping. The mountain the plow-guy left at the end of your driveway. Ever just wanted to call in 'winter'? You aren't alone--but there is a solution to beating the cold-weather commute blues. What you need, my friend, is a rally car.
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| All Evolution MR models come with Brembo brakes, wickedly quick steering and a highly tuned suspension. |
With a driven wheel at each corner, heated Recaros beneath and 290-ish horsepower under your right Sorel, you mightn't even require the alarm clock to fire you out of bed at 5:45 am.
The Evolution
The latest, tenth-generation 'Evo' is the first to be sold in Canada. It brings us up to speed on the models promise of rally-proven performance for the daily drive--an important qualification in understanding the machine.
This thing is hardcore--and the looks leave nothing to guesswork. Hood vents, a massive wing, BBS wheels, fender vents and oversized bumper openings are applied. A front-mounted intercooler is on full display, and the license plate's even been shoved off to the side for airflow's sake.
The tester had no sunroof, CD changer, Bluetooth phone or soft-touch dashboard materials to be found. Sure, race cars don't need that sort of stuff. Besides, even if the interior feels and sounds like it came from a car half the price, you still know where your money's been spent.
Hardcore hardware
All Evolution MR models come with Brembo brakes, wickedly quick steering and a highly tuned suspension. It's engineered heavily for competition on a rally circuit, race course or similar environments. On public roads, you'd best not drive the Evo the way it looks like it wants to be driven.
A Super All Wheel Control (SAWC) system with 'gravel', 'snow' and 'tarmac' modes is fitted for the aspiring rally driver, and a twin-clutch transmission fires off rapid gear changes at the click of a paddle.
Forget that it's sort of an automatic. The Twin Clutch Sport Shift Transmission (SST) swaps gears perfectly every time while pulling off changes that have minimal engine braking effects on the axles. This means that weight balance isn't upset if, say, you gear down hard in the middle of a fast corner.
 |
| The Twin Clutch Sport Shift Transmission (SST) swaps gears perfectly every time. |