Mitsubishi fans are in for a long wait. There is no new Lancer Evolution on the horizon — and the company’s president said it bluntly. The topic came up at the 57th annual shareholders’ meeting, where three legends were dragged back into the spotlight at once: Evolution, Diamante and Galant.
The trigger was the shareholders’ excitement about the return of the Pajero. Riding that wave, someone asked the obvious question: bring back the rest of the icons too. President Keisuke Kishiura took the mic. Those models, he said, are “treasures” for the company. The problem is, the treasures will stay locked in the vault — there are no concrete plans to put them on the market.
Kishiura was refreshingly honest. To bring such cars back without disappointing fans, Mitsubishi first has to become strong enough. And right now, it isn’t. The Lancer as a mainstream model is gone — the brand’s global lineup long ago shifted to crossovers and pickups. Reviving an Evo-level legend from a blank sheet is not a one-season project.
A factory WRC team with a new Lancer Evo? Mitsubishi doesn’t hide the interest. But for now it’s not even a plan — just a wish.
No quick rebadging tricks either. Mitsubishi flatly rejected the temptation to pull an Evo out of thin air by sticking the badge on an existing sedan. A realistic comeback window? Not before the next decade. Right now the brand has a more urgent job: launching the new family around the returning Pajero. First the legendary SUV. Then, maybe, the legendary sedan. If everything goes right.
