Mitsubishi wants to replace the Evo… with an SUV?

By Stephen Edelstein October 3, 2014

The departure of the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution after the 2015 model year will leave a rally-car sized hole in enthusiasts’ hearts.

Fear not, though, because Mitsubishi has a replacement in mind.

It is, however, an SUV. At the recent Paris Motor Show, company product chief Kanenori Okamoto told Autocar that the Evo “will be replaced in spirit by an SUV with high performance.”

The SUV will reportedly be a hybrid, with technology borrowed from the MiEV electric Pikes Peak racer, including a version of that car’s Super All Wheel Control all-wheel drive system, itself based on the system used in the current Evo.

The concept actually isn’t too surprising given Mitsubishi’s recent emphasis on crossovers and green cars.

While the Galant is gone and the Lancer has been left to rot, Mitsubishi has focused on the Outlander and Outlander Sport utility vehicles, and introduced the tiny the i-MiEV electric car and Mirage hatchback.

Related: Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV Concept-S debuts at 2014 Paris Motor Show

The company already sells a plug-in hybrid version of the Outlander in Europe and Asia, and plans to bring it to the U.S. at some point.

Playing to one’s strengths is always a good idea, but will Mitsubishi be able to pull it off?

Incorporating the performance of the lithe and agile Evo into a bulkier SUV or crossover will be quite a challenge, and the hybrid element will add further complexity.

It’s also unclear what the resulting vehicle would compete with. Hot-rod SUVs like the Porsche Cayenne, Range Rover Sport, and Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT tend to be full-size rigs with big engines and big price tags.

On the other end of the spectrum are smaller models like the MINI Countryman ALL4 John Cooper Works or Nissan Juke NISMO RS, but these are really tall hatchbacks, not SUVs.

So the Mitsubishi hybrid SUV Evo Frankenstein would essentially create a new segment, just like the first Lancer Evolution did.

However, given that no Evo resurrection rumor has panned out so far, we’ll take this one with a grain of salt, even if it would be cool to see a Mitsubishi hybrid kick some dirt in Porsche’s face.

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Stephen Edelstein

Contributing Editor

Stephen is a freelance automotive journalist covering all things cars. He likes anything with four wheels, from classic cars…

Cars

2023 Mercedes-Benz EQE SUV preview: The EV lineup grows again

Front three quarter view of the 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQE SUV.

As Mercedes-Benz has steadily expanded its EQ range of electric cars, the lineup has become a bit like the late stages of a Tetris game. It’s mostly complete, but with a few gaps still left. And the 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQE SUV is the piece that perfectly fits one of them.
Mercedes recently launched two other electric SUVs at opposite ends of the price spectrum. The EQS SUV is positioned as the lineup’s flagship, while the EQB is the entry-level model. The EQE SUV slots between those two in size and, presumably, price. The latter hasn’t been confirmed yet, and likely won’t be until the EQE SUV’s planned March 2023 on-sale date.

Design
As the name says, the EQE SUV is a utility-vehicle version of the EQE sedan, which will likely beat it to showrooms by a few months. Mercedes did the same thing with the EQS, which is available in both SUV and sedan body styles.
With its tall, upright profile, the EQE SUV definitely looks like a proper SUV compared to the low-slung EQE sedan. Park it next to an EQS SUV, though, and you’ll have to get out a measuring tape to spot the differences.
The EQE SUV is 0.6 inch narrower and 1.2 inches lower than the EQS SUV, but the most significant difference is in length. The EQE SUV is 10.3 inches shorter than the EQS SUV, with a 2.1-inch shorter wheelbase. And while the EQS SUV has three-row seating, the EQE SUV has two rows. Based on our experience with the EQS SUV’s third row, that’s not a big loss.
The interior design theme carries over from other Mercedes EQ models, with an expansive sloping dashboard designed to accommodate many screens, and multicolor ambient lighting that should look pretty dramatic at night. However, leatherette upholstery is standard, rather than real leather, which Mercedes is now spinning as a vegan option.

Cars

Sporty Polestar 3 SUV is an EV guiding star

Front three quarter view of the Polestar 3.

For Volvo’s EV-focused Polestar spinoff brand, the third time really is the charm.
The brand’s first model, the Polestar 1 plug-in hybrid coupe, was built in low volumes and still had a combustion engine. The current Polestar 2 is a derivative of the Volvo C40 Recharge and XC40 Recharge. With the Polestar 3, the brand is really finding its footing.
Scheduled to go on sale in the fourth quarter of 2023, the Polestar 3 is the brand’s first SUV, and while it still shares much hardware and software with parent Volvo, it’s next-generation tech that’s blended with a unique design aesthetic and a greater emphasis on performance.

Design
Where the Polestar 1 and Polestar 2 recycled styling from old Volvo concept cars, the five-seat Polestar 3 debuts a new brand-specific design language. The scrunched-up “face” and minimal air-intake opening advertise the 3’s electric powertrain, while the pinched rear side glass gives it a more streamlined appearance than other SUVs — particularly those of parent Volvo. The headlights look like an enlarged version of the “Thor’s Hammer” LED elements from current Volvos, however.
While not officially confirmed, the Polestar 3 is expected to be twinned with the Volvo EX90, the parent brand’s upcoming all-electric flagship SUV. Both are expected to use Volvo’s SPA2 platform, a successor to the SPA (Scalable Product Architecture) platform underpinning most current Volvo models.
Because eliminating tailpipe emissions doesn’t totally erase a vehicle’s environmental impact, Polestar also emphasized sustainable materials, such as wool upholstery that, the automaker claims, can be certified as sustainably produced. Polestar also plans to conduct a lifecycle assessment of the 3’s environmental impact when production starts, and follow up with additional assessments through the production run to look for ways of reducing its carbon footprint.

Cars

We need more 7-passenger EVs, but the 2023 Mercedes EQS SUV has room to improve

Front three quarter view of the 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV.

Mercedes-Benz is continuing to expand its EV lineup, this time with a model aimed at (wealthy) families.
As the name states, the 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV is an SUV derivative of the EQS sedan. With the EQS sedan positioned as the electric analog to the Mercedes S-Class, the EQS SUV is the electric version of the GLS-Class. And like that vehicle, the EQS SUV is available with up to seven seats across three rows.
That makes the EQS SUV an important vehicle not just for Mercedes, but for the cause of EV adoption in general. While the Tesla Model X and Rivian R1S also offer three rows for family-hauling duty, there’s a lot more room in the market for another entry. Given the popularity of equivalent gasoline luxury SUVs like the GLS, Land Rover Range Rover, and Cadillac Escalade, the EQS SUV arrives not a moment too soon.
The EQS SUV is scheduled to reach U.S. dealerships this fall in three guises. The base rear-wheel-drive EQS 450+ starts at $105,550 with destination, while the all-wheel drive EQS 450 4Matic and EQS 580 4Matic start at $108,550 and $127,100, respectively. Although it will be built in Alabama, the EQS SUV won’t qualify for the revised federal EV tax credit because it exceeds the $80,000 price cap for SUVs.

Design and interior
A defining feature of Mercedes’ EQ lineup is aerodynamic bodywork aimed at maximizing range. The typical SUV is not aerodynamically ideal, but Mercedes managed to achieve an impressively low drag coefficient for an SUV — at 0.26, it’s close to the Toyota Prius. But function clearly took precedence over form. Mercedes deserves credit for not going in the polarizing direction BMW did with its two-row iX SUV, but the EQS SUV looks like a melting scoop of ice cream.
More disappointing is the third row, which should be the EQS SUV’s defining feature, but seems more like a useless afterthought. Adults will find it difficult to insert themselves into the third-row seats, let alone tolerate riding in them. As in most three-row vehicles, the rear seats also pretty much eliminate cargo space. And if you want to fold them down to create more cargo room, you’ll have to do it manually as Mercedes didn’t include a power-folding system — a bit disappointing for a six-figure car. The EQS SUV also lacks a frunk; like the EQS sedan, the hood is sealed.
The EQS SUV looks like a melting scoop of ice cream.