Evo vs Scooby
I will be the first to admit that this one is rather old. Since the early nineties it has always been Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution vs Subaru Impreza WRX. They have a lot of similarities:
- Made in Japan
- 2.0 litre turbo
- Impeccable World Rally Championship heritage
- All-wheel drive
- Absolutely unbelievable acceleration and handling
Up till the year 2001 things were stacked pretty evenly on both sides. Although the Evo had a slight edge in terms of 0-100 numbers, the first-generation WRX looked saner than the “make little children cry” Evo IV-V-VI. Moreover the Scooby had a boxer engine which gave a very pleasing crob-crob-a-crob sound.
Then, with the second-generation WRX, Subaru somehow decided that uglier was somehow better:
Ugh, a face even a mother couldn’t love. Fortunately the facelifted model looked a bit better but the damage was done. It was a wasted opportunity because the Evo VII-VIII-IX seemed to be close to infringing Toyota’s copyright on blandness; the Impreza could have easily conquered the looks department had it stuck to its original design philosophy.
2007 was the year that heralded the end of their 15-year rivalry. The Evo X looks amazing, and handles even better. The third-generation Impreza WRX, on the other hand, looks indifferent and handles even more indifferently. It’s finally over: we now have a clear winner.
And now, over to the inimitable Jeremy Clarkson.
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