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It's all we'll drive! - part 2
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To continue my list of all-wheel-drive cars for enthusiast who still want to get around in winter, and in style, here are some more of my picks.
Let's take a look at the rally racing bred duo from Subaru and Mitsubishi. A great article comparing the two cars on ice was already written by Motor Trend, so I'll leave most of the explaining to them this time.
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X -Ten generations of the Evolution spec version of Mitsubishi's Lancer have created a formidible and very capable machine. Generating 291 hp and 300 ft-lbs of torque from it's diminutive 2.0 liter turbocharged motor is impressive. But decades of proving its chops on racetracks and muddy, snowy rally courses have taught the engineers at Mitsubishi a thing or two about all wheel drive systems.
Subaru WRX STi - As with the Evo, the Scooby Rex was bred on the tracks and trails of racing all over the world. The current body style is a little less boy racer (which for an old guy like me is a good thing) and also more practical as it is currently only offered in a 5-door hatchback body style. As I've said before I am a fan of hatchbacks because of their combination of style and utility, so I like this current design better than the previous sedan body. The STi puts out a competitive 305 hp and 290 ft-lbs of torque from Subaru's ubiquitous 4 cylinder boxer engine configuration. A slight improvement to say the least over their 4 cylinder boxer engines of yore (any engine compartment that also includes enough room for the spare tire gives me pause).
Although both cars are popular and well suited to Colorado, I see a lot more Subarus than Evos. I think this is mainly because the Evos are not built in the numbers that the STi is, and of course it's a bit more expensive. The current models of both cars are much more refined for daily driving than previous versions. This broadens their appeal but also is considered "selling out" by the die-hard fans of the cars. Personally I don't mind a mix of raw performance and civility since in real life there's too many traffic jams we have to sit in idly, which is when your rear end appreciates a good seat!
More AWD cars to come in my next column!
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