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Back to more important matters, the MX’s main entertainment is still the driving experience. Besides the class-leading handling, the addition of a standard CVT transmission with 6-speed mode deserves a salute from all petrol heads. Using belts and pulleys rather than gears, the MX has enough smoothness as a genuine Italian gelato. Of course, this ability gives the Lancer a very European trait: excellent touring comfort. Using the engine’s new-found low-end torque (another very European character, that useable pulling power), the CVT is responsive and perfectly matched. I’ve managed to put on the mileage, savoring every nook and cranny of Metro Manila and then some, and each time I climbed out, I felt as every bit as fresh as when I stepped in. There’s no sensation of having your innards all shaken and stirred. Not bad, not bad at all. Nonetheless, I just couldn’t resist griping for a bit more power for the Lancer. The previous generation, with the Cyclone-series engine had more horses, though on the coarse side. Still, it could prove its mettle—imitating a scaled-down, old fashioned American muscle car. The new one does pretty well in single and double-digit speeds. Then it starts to struggle. Sliding the shifter to ‘Sport’ does little. You’ll see the revs climb up, but the one that counts, the speedo, rarely hits above 120 km/h. Brrr…push, push, push. Nada. It’s like trying to move a mountain with your bare hands. It just won’t go any farther—Scotty has already given you all of the warp engine’s reserve power. Trying to brake at such speeds would require a good set of stopping power, which the Lancer luckily has. Despite the absence of ABS, EBD or any of those acronyms, the experience is sure-footed with well-weighted pedal feel and minimal brake fade. Of course, that’s on a dry surface. Things turn a complete 180-degrees on the wet though, as the lack of safety devices prove too much for the disc / drum brake combination of the range-topping MX, despite the rather grippy Goodyear 55-series tires. If there’s one thing I’d forego on the specs sheet, I’d trade in that darn in-car entertainment package for an ABS system. Sure the ABS will be of use only one percent of the time, while you can be delighted with watching Meteor Garden during everyday EDSA traffic, but that one percent can spell the difference between walking out of an accident and ending up in the morgue. |
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