D R I V E N

There’s something chic about Europe these days.  People don’t go for ice cream, they’d prefer gelato.  Tommy Hilfiger is passé, Mango is in.  The Euro’s hot, while the Dollar’s like cold turkey playing in the winter snow.  Yet, despite all of this trendy hipness towards the Big E, the most we can aspire to, at least when it comes to cars, are pictures on rip-off British magazines and a television show with a certain Jeremy Clarkson in them.

European has become the ‘it’ word when it comes to PR and ads—everyone of them seem to have it.  They have Peugeot, Renault, Alfa Romeo, Seat and the entire lot.  Sure, and we have ‘Euro-inspired’ British-tuned suspension of the Chevy (Daewoo) Optra.  Wait just a darn minute here—if Koreans could claim that they could make a bonfire sound like an infernal blaze, what’s stopping the Japanese?  They’ve been making utterly reliable, refined and comfortable cars since you were wearing diapers.  With the countless Toyotas, Nissans, et.al. churned out by mechanized factory slaves, surely Nippon-san should have come out with one compact sedan that’s as good on the twisty bits as a Peugeot.  Err…no.  For all that talk about B-road munching ability, they most Corporate Japan could manage is a slight peek in the right direction—that is until an extended drive in the new Mitsubishi Lancer MX.

My expectations weren’t too high with the new Lancer, honestly.  I’ve loathed the previous one, and I still do—I could name it as the worst compact sedan I’ve driven this side of a Volkswagen (Seat) Polo Classic.  This is certainly not the case with the new one.  The nicely chiseled masculine looks do help, but the bottom line is that this is a car that’s ten times—no a hundred times better than the one it replaces.  If the Corolla were the consistent honorable mention, the Lancer finally got its dunce cap off.  Despite the lack of emphasis towards its new-found handling prowess, I believe that this is the most sorted out in its class, balancing both comfort and downright mechanical grip.

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