Mitsubish Lancer Cedia

The guys at Mitsubishi are real whackos. THey use the same engine and chassis to god knows how many means. The same 2.0 L that does duty in the Cedia in India producing 115 BHP cranks out a range of power outputs in models abroad. It can range from 133 BHP in non detuned-for-mileage version to 340 BHP in the Evo in the force fed turbo avtaar. Same applies to the chassis.

Why Mitsubishi did a hero honda kind of a job (detune engine for efficeincy) with a 2000CC car in India priced in the uppish band is tough to understand. I think they could have easily come out with e 200 odd BHP version and smoked the competition.

Anyway, this version is no slouch either, with the performance coming in plenty and strong. You can plod along the right side ok the 100 mark all day long (if you find the road to) and still dab the throttle to overtake the slowcoach ahead with ease. The hig-speed stability is superb and the car does not give you many anxious moments. Ride is in a class of its when compared to the Skoda Octavia (makes you feel every pimple on the road) or the Corolla (makes you feel nothing). Considering our raods, it always is tough to get a good ride/handling balance, and the Mitsubishi engineers have got is spot on with both the Lancer and the Cedia. The only company that does it better is maybe GM.

I do have a grouse with the company though. They sell two models with the same price tag. One has leather seats (in India weather - yikes!!!), chrome door handles and plain lights. The other has a sports kit (Only the visuals) and really smart head and tail lamps (replacement cost thrice that of the luxury Cedia's!!). Alloys, ABS and airbags are standard. The tires are 195/60 R14. I do not get the idea of selling a sport model which has the exact same power as the one you sell to 40 year old executives. We know that it is well within the capabilities of this engine to produce thrice the power it is pumping out right now. Maybe the lac rupees saved in leather can be spent to put in a VTech or a turbo charger. Also different chip programming would be welcome.

I am sure some of the owners would go in for these upgrades. I want a greddy engine chip, a turbo charger and a sports exhaust. Let's wait out the warranty period.

The Honda City

Those of you who are thinking that this review is about the City being sold presently are encouraged to leave this blog right now. If are asking for a reason, I am not offering one. Now back to the job at hand.

This car really begs to be punished. A real sadist, she comes into her own when you hoist the Taco above 4000 RPM and hold on for dear life (the car's road holding abilities are questionable). Razor sharp steering means that it permits you to be ridiculously stupid at high speeds. Extremely light weight translates to almost zero understeer.

And that is where the good bits end. You ended up paying a premium price considering what you got for your money. Grey interiors, bad stereo and a gear knob straight out of 80's Datsun. The airconditioning is over engineered, with reports of frostbitten drivers in June heat quite common. But hey, who cares when the service cost rivals the Marutis, the service quality beats the Mercs and the running costs put Santros to shame (read fuel economy).

The driving experience is - shall we say - enjoyable. You sit low with the steering right in your lap. Add to that an 8/10 gear shift plus a happy go slippary clutch, and you can for sure practice those snappy gear throws in real life. At any RPM, the engine is free revving, but comes into its own beyond the 4000 RPM, at which point the HC starts to behave like a crazed rottwieler. Put in a decent set of tyres, and this car will always put a smile on your face on a gloomy Monday morning.

HCs tend to be well taken care of, with Honda maintained central service records. The flux of new cars and a new model (and revision thereof) have brought down the prices. Planning to buy that 4-5 lac car? Stop right there.

Spend 3 lacs to pick up an old VTec, put in good tyres, A turbocharger, air filter and performance exhaust system. I am not proposing NOS, coz I love cars and am not an avid fan of blown gasket or dead drivers. The above mods will give you about 20-30% extra power plus faster take off from lower RPMs.

Long live the HC, I will sign off now, for all this writing has put me in the mood to do some driving.