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By
ALISTAIR KENNEDY
3 November 2008
After
a break of nearly 13 years, Mitsubishi has added a five-door
hatchback variant to the range of its popular mid-sized Lancer.
Known as the Sportback the new model will be an important
component in the company’s ongoing renaissance as an import-only
player in the Australian market.
While
we love the front styling of the current Lancer, both sedan and
hatch are identical, our jury’s still out on the Sportback’s
rear. At first glance we found it a little bulbous around the tail
light area but have to admit that it has subsequently grown on us.
Drop into your local Mitsubishi dealership and see what you think.
As
with the sedan body, Lancer Sportback is available in three
variants, entry-level model ES, mid-specced VR and the sportier
VRX. It is also available with the new Lancer Ralliart AWD sports
model.
There’s
up to 344 litres of storage space in the rear of the Sportback
although some of that space is achieved by using a space-saver
spare tyre. The floor can be raised or lowered by 90 mm – at the
higher level there is sufficient room for a full-sized spare. The
rear seats have a 60/40 split that can
be folded using a lever located near the tail gate.
Standard
safety equipment on the Lancer Sportback is the same as on the
sedan variants with all models having stability
and traction control, ABS brakes with electronic brake
distribution and brake assist, seatbelt pre-tensioners and force
limiters and dual stage front airbags. Side and curtain airbags
are optional on the ES and standard with VR and VRX.
Wheels
vary with each model, the ES having 16-inch steels, VR the same
size but in alloy while the VRX has 18-inch alloys as well as
sport-tuned suspension and larger brakes.
Other
standard features across the range include central locking, power
windows, air conditioning, MP3-compatible CD player, audio jacks
and cruise control. The VR adds dusk sensing headlamps, rain
sensing wipers, front fog lamps, lip spoiler, leather wrapped
steering wheel, six-disc CD player and an optional sunroof.
The
Sportback VRX also comes with front air dam, rear spoiler, front
sport seats, steering wheel mounted gear-change paddles, keyless
entry and Bluetooth compatibility. Options include power sunroof,
Rockford Fosgate premium sound system Mitsubishi’s
Multi-Communication System which includes satellite navigation and
integrates with the vehicle’s computer to control lighting,
audio, telephone and comfort settings.
The
ES and VR models come with a 2.0-litre DOHC four-cylinder MIVEC
engine which delivers 113 kW of power at 6000 rpm and 198 Nm of
torque at 4250 rpm. The VRX gets the new 2.4-litre engine, also
with four cylinders, that we previewed recently in the Lancer
Aspire sedan. That engine generates 125 kW at 6000 rpm and
226 Nm at 4100 rpm.
Fuel
consumption on a combined city/highway cycle ranges from 7.9
litres per 100 kilometres from the 2.0-litre ES with a five-speed
manual transmission to 8.9 L/100 km from the 2.4-litre VRX with
the CVT automatic transmission.
We
were able to test drive the Lancer Sportback VRX with the new
2.4-litre engine and while it’s no sports machine most buyers
will find there’s more than enough performance for day-to-day
driving.
Sportback
prices are the same as the sedan with the 2.0-litre ES and VR
models priced at $20,990 and $25,590 respectively and the
2.4-litre VRX at $29,790. CVT adds $2500 to each of these prices.
As
with all Mitsubishi vehicles the Lancer Sportback is covered by
the company’s industry-leading five year/130,000 km warranty.
Based
on the premise that hatchback buyers don’t buy sedans Mitsubishi
is expecting to pick up a good number of additional sales with the
arrival of the Sportback, especially with the growing trend
towards smaller family cars. The hatchback comes at the expense of
the previous five-door wagon which is no longer available.
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Marque Publishing Company
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