Mitsubishi's famous racing division Ralliart is shutting up shop, marking the end of a glorious motorsport era that saw Tommi Makinen clinch the WRC title four times in succession from 1996 to 1999 driving the Ralliart-prepared Lancer Evolution.
A notice has gone up on the Ralliart Inc website announcing the closure, which the company attributes to global economic conditions. The move is unlikely to make any significant difference to Mitsubishi's current operations as they've pretty much opted out of motorsports anyway. (Last year Mitsubishi's remaining 20 motorsport engineers were transferred to electric vehicle projects, which - we must assume - was probably better than being fired!)
The Ralliart name will survive, as it currently appears on various 'sporty' Mitsubishi models sold around the world - including the 147bhp Colt Ralliart sold here in the UK.
The Lancer Evolution line will continue too, according to a spokesman for Mitsubishi in the UK. Ever since the Evo VI was replaced with the VII, the model has been developed almost exclusively in-house by Mitsubishi engineers, with only a token input from Ralliart Inc. That will continue with future Evo models says our man.
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