Mitsubishi promises to “evolve” Lancer Evolution, lowers price in UK

Filed under: Sedan, Performance, Etc., Mitsubishi

2011 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution MR

2011 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution MR – Click above for high-res image gallery

After a strong backlash from its announcement that the Lancer Evolution would be no more after its 10th generation, Mitsubishi has backpedaled on its decision to kill the car. The automaker promises that the Evo X will live out its life cycle as planned, and will continue to evolve in the future, but that may mean going a slightly different direction.

Mitsu is trying to balance the necessity to move toward more eco-friendly conveyances while not alienating the huge fan base that the Evo has cultivated since the first-generation car was introduced in 1992.

Along with its promise to keep building Evos and find a way for them to fit in to Mitsubishi’s new green lineup, the company has lowered the price of entry for the Evo X to £29,699.00 in the UK. While there’s no word yet on what the new Evos may wind up looking or behaving like, there’s at least a tenuous promise that the car will continue.

Gallery: 2011 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution

[Source: Mitsubishi]

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Mitsubishi promises to “evolve” Lancer Evolution, lowers price in UK originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 19 Mar 2011 18:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Toyota lowers tow-rating of Tundra, but it’s a good thing

Filed under: Truck, Toyota

Automakers have been on the honor system when stating the tow ratings of their pickups, and that has led to lofty numbers that could only be achieved under a very particular set of ideal conditions. Claiming the biggest number for any truck spec is a big deal, but maximum towing capacity is the crown spec. So it was only natural that these automakers – mainly Ford, General Motors, Dodge (Ram), Toyota, Honda and Nissan – would feel the pressure to keep coming up with better and better tow ratings.

Enter the Society of Automotive Engineers and détente: Five of the six truck manufacturers mentioned above have agreed to assess their trucks’ tow rating based on SAE standard J2807. The new standard lays out several benchmark tests for pickups, so automakers won’t be allowed to simply find the right conditions and produce the highest tow rating possible anymore. For the J2807 test, a standardized trailer is hooked up and the truck is put through acceleration tests on level ground and an incline, and its response to effects like understeer, trailer-sway and braking are measured. Only Ford, General Motors, Toyota, Honda and Chrysler will be employing J2807 now, but by 2013 all pickup truck makers will be obliged to adhere to it.

Someone had to go first, and today we learn that Toyota has adjusted its pickup’s tow rating to the new standard, and so the Tundra can tow less on paper today despite not a single change being made to the vehicle. Its towing capacities were lowered anywhere from 400 pounds on the 2WD regular cab (10,800 to 10,400) all the way up to 1,100 pounds on the 4WD CrewMax (10,100 to 9,000).

This shouldn’t be viewed as a knock against the Tundra, because we won’t know where it really falls until we get revised ratings from each of the other five manufacturers, and we expect them all to shift downwards.

[Source: PickupTrucks.com]

Toyota lowers tow-rating of Tundra, but it’s a good thing originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 23 Aug 2010 14:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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