2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution GSR

Pros

Mitsubishi EVO 10 just outclasses the more expensive German brands!

Cons

None to make mention!

On the skidpad, the Evo tilts the world back on axis-easily besting the 135i on the figure-eight course and breaking the 1.0g barrier for lateral acceleration. Under braking, the 135i's 183-pound weight advantage, six-piston front brakes, and wide, sticky tires haul it to rest in an impressive 102 feet. The Evo stops only two feet behind, so we call it a tie before moving on to Reno Fernley Raceway.

Thinner and harder, the Evo's tiller gives the impression that you're hardwired into the car; the action is light, accurate, and unnervingly fast at first. Once underway, the precision of the Evolution makes it easy to relax and focus on this technical track. It has a more planted feel, with less body roll, which means 115 mph entries into the double S-turns can be taken with a lot less pucker.

The trick is to fight the instinct to slam on the brakes and, instead, keep the throttle pinned. The Evo's fancy Super-All Wheel Control (S-AWC) system takes care of the rest by sending just the right amount of power through three differentials; accelerating the outside rear wheel, retarding the inside rear wheel, or shifting up to 50 percent of the power to both front wheels.

Thanks to the MR's paddle-shiftable six-speed Twin-Clutch Sport Shift Transmission (TC-SST), the Evo always seems to be in the right gear as well. For fast lapping, we learned to leave the MR in Super-Sport mode and ignore the paddles-so spot on is the TC-SST's automatic shift logic. We've come to expect perfect throttle-blipped downshifts and gears run to redline from these kinds of transmissions, but were impressed that the MR always had us high in the right gear, even in the slowest of corners. Test editor Mortara couldn't say enough about it, "The Evo has the best version of this kind of transmission to date. The 135i's auto isn't bad, probably the best currently in a BMW, but the Evo's TC-SST is just amazing."

Lastly, $8,000 price difference between the EVO and BMW as tested with EVO costing less and the EVO with AWD and BMW with RWD only!