Hey guys I'm looking into buying '09 Ralliart from a dealer (used w/20K miles). I have a few questions. I test drove it yesterday and it was great...although I do have a few questions so here it goes:

1. I've never driven a turbo car so am I right when I say that the car seemed a little loud? Not extremely or anything but louder than say a normal Lancer?

2. I've never driven paddle shifter or twin-clutch car either so my biggest questions is while I was test driving in normal automatic mode I noticed the car constantly revving up and down. I think this is normal as it's rev matching but I want to verify. I noticed this a lot while I was just cruising down to a low speed since I saw a red light ahead and the car kept on switching to lower gears and revving higher to match.

3. I'm coming from a Honda S2K (love it) and the reliability and performance is fantastic. I wanted to know how your experiences have been with the Ralliart?

Thanks guys and please chime in with any other info I could use before I buy early next month!

Anyone???

Maybe try evolutionm.net? They have dedicated ralliart forums.

That is a stupid answer.

I'd help, but I have never tried the SST. GSR guy here. PM Bradze he might be able to answer SST questions.

1. I've never driven a turbo car so am I right when I say that the car seemed a little loud? Not extremely or anything but louder than say a normal Lancer?

Sounds about right.


2. I've never driven paddle shifter or twin-clutch car either so my biggest questions is while I was test driving in normal automatic mode I noticed the car constantly revving up and down. I think this is normal as it's rev matching but I want to verify. I noticed this a lot while I was just cruising down to a low speed since I saw a red light ahead and the car kept on switching to lower gears and revving higher to match.

I only really notice this in Sport + Auto mode in my MR, not really in Normal + Auto.


3. I'm coming from a Honda S2K (love it) and the reliability and performance is fantastic. I wanted to know how your experiences have been with the Ralliart?


I've never driven or been in an RA, but I've had a base Lancer before my X MR & neither one has given me much to complain about. Hell, I even convinced my BF to get a Lancer, then a X GSR too. :)

Also, how much is the asking price? Some good deals can be found on Evos too.

Also, how much is the asking price? Some good deals can be found on Evos too.

:+1:

I would pay the extra... whatever it is to get an Evo. Unless the car is 16k. I got mine used (10k miles) for 26k a friend of mine got one BRAND SPANKING NEW for 27k. (I hate him)

That is a stupid answer.

And also a stupid response from you. How many on here own or have even ever driven an RA? Based on your response and the two below you, no one. I tried suggesting a more appropriate forum for his answer. I too have never driven an RA, so instead of saying just get an Evo, I tried to tell the OP where he could get help.

You're the stupid dummy head. Shut up.

:bowlol: Good times.

its louder because it has +100hp on top of the base lancer. It's still pretty quiet. If it bugs you, get a volvo ya pansy ;)

if the car is trying to maintain boost, i'll try to not dip below 3k rpm. I've only test driven the ralliart, but I didn't notice this. Then again, owning a GSR, i probably drive that way normally. However, when I first got my evo, I did notice I had to keep the revs higher than I did when I owned my ralliart (i had the old 2.4l fwd non-turbo one), so i'd guess its a normal observation for anyone who's never had a turbo car.

reliability is pretty good, with a few gotchas that have been ironed out with the first generation engine (minor stuff like overly rich early production tunes, bad relays, and some lose vac lines). It's still a 'new' engine, but there are people who put 100k on their already without any issues. The sst seems to be holding up fairly well, but I've been hearing of some seals causing trans fluid leaks in a few. Again, as far as a new engine and trans, it's acceptable, even exceptional considering the performance, but compairing to s2k reliability sets the bar a little high.

Hey guys I'm looking into buying '09 Ralliart from a dealer (used w/20K miles). I have a few questions. I test drove it yesterday and it was great...although I do have a few questions so here it goes:

1. I've never driven a turbo car so am I right when I say that the car seemed a little loud? Not extremely or anything but louder than say a normal Lancer?

Yes it's going to be a bit louder than other cars

2. I've never driven paddle shifter or twin-clutch car either so my biggest questions is while I was test driving in normal automatic mode I noticed the car constantly revving up and down. I think this is normal as it's rev matching but I want to verify. I noticed this a lot while I was just cruising down to a low speed since I saw a red light ahead and the car kept on switching to lower gears and revving higher to match. If the car is in Sport mode it will do that, If in normal mode it will emulate an Automatic transmission and you will not notice it.

3. I'm coming from a Honda S2K (love it) and the reliability and performance is fantastic. I wanted to know how your experiences have been with the Ralliart?

Thanks guys and please chime in with any other info I could use before I buy early next month!
With any car, maintenance is Key. If oil and other fluid changes are done timely, you should have no issues. On the off chance something goes wrong you have a warranty. If you do not mod the hell out of the car and you go into the dealer with a good attitude, then you should not have any issues.

My VIII was modded with a Turboback, intake and flash when my 5th gear synchro started going out. I walked into my dealer and calmly explained what was happening and they covered the synchro no questions asked. Not only that, but everyone at the dealer knows I AutoX and track the car. It's all about attitude.

And also a stupid response from you. How many on here own or have even ever driven an RA? Based on your response and the two below you, no one. I tried suggesting a more appropriate forum for his answer. I too have never driven an RA, so instead of saying just get an Evo, I tried to tell the OP where he could get help.

You're the stupid dummy head. Shut up.

You two, grow up. Even if you know each other and are just playing around it looks like you are a couple of pre-teens arguing. There are plenty of us on the forum who are more than capable of answering his questions given a day or two to get back from a weekend of activities.

Hey all - thanks for all your responses. I am picking it up today. I really appreciate the info!

Congrats on the purchase! What are your impressions of the car? Pics?

Yes it's going to be a bit louder than other cars

If the car is in Sport mode it will do that, If in normal mode it will emulate an Automatic transmission and you will not notice it.


With any car, maintenance is Key. If oil and other fluid changes are done timely, you should have no issues. On the off chance something goes wrong you have a warranty. If you do not mod the hell out of the car and you go into the dealer with a good attitude, then you should not have any issues.

My VIII was modded with a Turboback, intake and flash when my 5th gear synchro started going out. I walked into my dealer and calmly explained what was happening and they covered the synchro no questions asked. Not only that, but everyone at the dealer knows I AutoX and track the car. It's all about attitude.





You two, grow up. Even if you know each other and are just playing around it looks like you are a couple of pre-teens arguing. There are plenty of us on the forum who are more than capable of answering his questions given a day or two to get back from a weekend of activities.

No offense scooter, but its definitely not the attitude. What you said almost rests on borderline insinuating that those of us who do not get warranty coverage is because of our attitude. I've said it several times on this and many other forums, a good dealer willing to work with you is an exception to the rule in the context of Mitsubishi, not the rule of thumb.

No offense scooter, but its definitely not the attitude. What you said almost rests on borderline insinuating that those of us who do not get warranty coverage is because of our attitude. I've said it several times on this and many other forums, a good dealer willing to work with you is an exception to the rule in the context of Mitsubishi, not the rule of thumb.

I can only speak from my own experience, but I have had good service from all he dealers I have been to except one. A Mazda dealership.

Mitsu, Jeep, BMW, and the other Mazda dealership always dealt with me fairly and without any grief. In fact the two Mitsu dealers down here in Miami that I deal with have never given me any problems with any of my mods. In fact on my last visit with the MR I told my service advisor to NOT flash any updates as I had the COBB installed. He said "sure no problem" and they did the fuel line recall and away I went. There was never a comment about my car being blacklisted or not being able to touch it because it was modded or anything like that. On top of everything else they always ask me how Lady X and I have been doing at AutoX.

Maybe it's just me. Maybe I'm the one lucky Mitsu owner in the whole US... Honestly I don't know.

Lehman was always good to me. West Palm Mitsu (if they're even still around) is awful =/

love my lancer ralliart it goes well handles well and loves the fuel but that a small price to pay for enjoyment

So I picked it up about a week ago and so far it's alright. I really like the power and the handling is good. The only thing for me so far is the transmission. I actually can't stand the automatic mode (normal). The gear switching happens non-stop and feels like it shifts to 6th gear too fast from 5th. It's like I am in 5th for a few seconds and upshifts and bogs in 6th because the RPMs are low...than back to 5th when i give it more gas. I am not sure if it's a problem but I can hear the gear changes and it's kinda of clunky sounding. Is this normal or should I look to sell before it's too late???....BTW how do the brakes feel to you guys (describe in details)..thanks!

Nice man

So I picked it up about a week ago and so far it's alright. I really like the power and the handling is good. The only thing for me so far is the transmission. I actually can't stand the automatic mode (normal). The gear switching happens non-stop and feels like it shifts to 6th gear too fast from 5th. It's like I am in 5th for a few seconds and upshifts and bogs in 6th because the RPMs are low...than back to 5th when i give it more gas. I am not sure if it's a problem but I can hear the gear changes and it's kinda of clunky sounding. Is this normal or should I look to sell before it's too late???....BTW how do the brakes feel to you guys (describe in details)..thanks!

We have an Evo MR, not a ralliart, but it is the same transmssion and it should not sound clunky in the 5-6 speed range... 1-2 maybe, but ot 5-6. As for hunting for a gear, it shouldn't... at least it does not with our Evo.

I'll wait for a ralliart guy to talk to you about brakes.

So I picked it up about a week ago and so far it's alright. I really like the power and the handling is good. The only thing for me so far is the transmission. I actually can't stand the automatic mode (normal). The gear switching happens non-stop and feels like it shifts to 6th gear too fast from 5th. It's like I am in 5th for a few seconds and upshifts and bogs in 6th because the RPMs are low...than back to 5th when i give it more gas. I am not sure if it's a problem but I can hear the gear changes and it's kinda of clunky sounding. Is this normal or should I look to sell before it's too late???....

If you've ever driven an auto trans vehicle, the SST is what one might call "clunky". And if you're used to a manual trans, the SST's NORMAL mode auto shifts might drive you mad.

Here are some shift maps I found...

http://members.iinet.net.au/~hooper/images/ralliart/SST_normal_upshift.png

http://members.iinet.net.au/~hooper/images/ralliart/SST_normal_downshift.png

So if you're at (say) 10% throttle and 60km/h, it'll want to be in 6th! But feed in 25% throttle and it'll downshift to 5th.

My advice? "D" is for your significant other doing a shopping run in your car. But for you... just take full responsibility for which gear goes when. Switch over to manual mode, and don't look back.

The SST isn't an automatic with a torque - when it tries to emulate one, it's just faking at being something it's not. In manual mode, the SST doesn't try to emulate anything... its own nature comes to the fore. Get to know it better - it will impress you.


BTW how do the brakes feel to you guys (describe in details)..thanks!

Oh, that's a whole other can of worms. Describe in detail? Easy, coz I'm on a mission to get some semblance of good pedal feel out of this car. Not there yet. Not even close.

I don't like the mushy way the pedal feels when stationary, engine running, and I apply steady pressure - it goes 3/4 to the floor. Asked the dealer to double-check it, and they say it's normal. Ran through all the correct "in the seat" diagnostic checks for braking system, and it all checked out 100%. Still don't like it.

There's some funky "variable pressure" stuff going on with the vacuum booster - the pressure on the pads doesn't seem to have a linear relationship to the pressure from the foot.

The front discs aren't really large enough to take much heat buildup. If you intend to get 'em hot, fit pads "suitable" for the level of punishment you plan on inflicting on them. Ditto for fluid - and change it regularly.

The factory rubber brake lines are still pretty new - I haven't had any "temporary squishy pedal" that comes from hot rubber lines expanding under pressure. Had that on my last car, prompting a switch to braided lines. In time, I'll probably end up with the same thing on the RA, but I'm not rushing into this area for now.

There are RA "big brake" upgrade packages out there, but some are priced rather high for what is really a "value proposition" vehicle, ie. "not-an-EVO".

So far, I'm most interested in "The Brake Man" (US) front brake kit - more reasonable cost, and doesn't try to turn an RA Lancer into an EVO X. But I haven't yet made any decision.

With DOT5.1 fluid and some suitable pads all round, I've got the car stopping well enough... in short stints. Had an autocross training session the other week, and the instructor commented that the vehicle had "good stoppers on it". He'd have changed his mind if he'd eyeballed the discs and calipers, hehe. But they hauled us up really well for 60-second autocross bursts.

The brakes certainly are arguably the weakest part of the whole RA Lancer package. I want good pedal feel, and I want some ability to cope with heat buildup. Not there yet, but I have hope.

I trust this helps!

Rich