Mitsubishi chairman and CEO, Osamu Masuko, has confirmed that the current Lancer Evo X will be the last sedan model to bear the Evo name. The next generation of Evo models is highly likely to be high-performance hybrid SUVs.
Talking about the next-gen Evo, Masuko said that the company as of now had no concrete plans on the Evo X’s replacement, as it had a lot of work to do in developing its new mainstream hybrid SUV line-up.
Mitsubishi has been developing high-performance Evo versions of its long-lived Lancer sedan since 1993, and now with low sales and environmental concerns it believes that the time is right to stop the Evo sedan model. The company has been testing a high-performance Outlander PHEV that will be entering into cross-country rallies starting later this year.
The next-gen Evo is likely to return as a high-performance version of the ASX crossover, a crossover previewed by the XR-PHEV II concept earlier this year at the Geneva motor show, with the car expected as early as 2016.