ClubCJ - The CJ Lancer Club

Hey club cj. The new 2012 Lancer SE

When the 2012 Mitsubishi Lancer SE hits dealerships this fall with all wheel drive, it will mark the first time that the Japanese automaker has offered all wheel drive on a non-performance model Lancer. The target audience of the Mitsubishi Lancer and the high performance Lancer Evolution or Ralliart are very different groups so in the past, those buying the low cost, fuel friendly Lancer were restricted to just front wheel drive. Getting into an all wheel drive version meant that you not only had to pay a great deal more for the sport oriented and high powered Evo ($33k+) and Ralliart ($27k+) models but those performance models also fail to offer the fuel economy capacities of the less expensive Lancers.

The 2012 Mitsubishi Lancer SE will power all four wheels with a naturally aspirated engine, reports have not yet indicated which engine it will have. The Lancer DE, ES and GTS (shown above) all currently offer naturally aspirated engines with the first two having a 2.0L mill that makes 148hp and 146lb-ft of torque while the GTS uses a 2.4L engine to make 168 horsepower and 167lb-ft of torque. Both of these engines offer vastly better fuel economy so those prospective Mitsubishi buyers who want the best possible fuel economy and the safety of the Mitsubishi advanced all wheel drive setup – the 2012 Lancer SE provides a new, low cost option.

Mitsubishi has long made popular all wheel drive models dating back into the 1980s and while these were predominantly performance models, the company’s success in the AWD field coupled with the growth of interest in fuel efficient all wheel drive cars combine to indicate that the 2012 Lancer SE could be a popular choice in today’s American auto industry. According to Automotive News, the Lancer SE with AWD could start with a price somewhere in the $20,000 range – making it substantially less expensive than the other current AWD Lancer models. Mitsubishi expects that this - along with more new models - will help them break the 100,000 plateau that they've missed every year since 2007.

Does anyone have anymore info about this??
Will it share the same awd system as the evo x?
Will it share the same wheel base and dimensions as the evo x?
Will you be able to drop in an evo x engine?
Most importantly will it handle as good as the evo x?
Does it mean that every one who has modded there FWD cj lancer as appose in suspension/performance wise will it be transferrable to the new lancer SE????

D

This is old news... firstly most likely it aint comin to aus....

secondly it probs will use the same 4wd system from an RA NOT and EVO.... it will just basically have a 4wd system from the RA thats it.... everything else will be a bog standard lancer.... these have already been on sale in Japan when the current lancer was launched... so no need to get so excited....

lancervr wrote:This is old news... .

LOL i only just found out now. Why wouldnt they hit the aus market?

lol dunno they dont seem keen in bringing it in? and also with an AWD on an na its more grip but will def be slower than fwd tho...

i dont understand aus has The lancer acvtiv, es, sx, vr, vrx, ralliart, evo mr, evo gsr in sedan and have the es, sx, vr, vrx, ralliart in sport back. Why the hell wouldnt aus want to sell the SE awd? I see it as an ultimate p plater car

lol its not that simple... they gotta make money too... u nvr know they just might make a limited edition run of it for all we know... theres a member on here from new zealand with a an imported lancer from japan thats awd... think his username is jasonkira or sumin

Yes i do agree it will be slower than the fwd but think about it do all the work this club has done intakes, exhausts, tunes, it will go very good, and as appose for handling wise do all them bars and coilovers and it will handle like an animal, before i sold all my stuff out of my car my car handled like an evo if not better. Not getting a big head or anything but all of it came down to geomoerty of the car, spring tension, rebound, ride hide, camber, wheel size, tyre psi, type of tyre, diffs, brake distribution, etc.,,,,,

lancervr wrote:lol its not that simple... they gotta make money too...

Agreed but! They could sell the lancers now at a lower price. And sell the awd SE at a higher price. Lets say es now sells for 20,000.. make the se $22,000 (this price for the se was just and example) lets admit no company makes and sells something without making money. But if this club knows all about it then im going to drop it and go down to my dealer today and ask

If you look at the Japanese site for Mitsubishi:

http://www.mitsubishi-motors.co.jp/gala ... index.html

The Lancer has been sold in 4WD variation for years.

The price differential has been ¥210,000 = A$2,814.00

Also if you realise the ES in Australia is still a 2.0L car and will remain as one. It is unlikely that they will release a 2.4L ES.

So if anything you'd be looking at VRXs and above for a chance at a 2.4L 4WD.

A 4WD VRX will then cost the same as an Aspire.
and
A 4WD Aspire will then cost the same as a RA Sportback demo.

And based on a 2012 release in 1 yr's time will be superseded by the new 2013 Mitsubishi Lancer CL. What's to say Mitsubishi won't be releasing a 4WD version of the CL Lancer from the get go?

So then you need to ask yourself, is it ok buying a car at end of cycle or do you prefer buying at start of cycle?

No one is really excited about a 4WD version of a NA car as it will end up much like a Subaru Imprezza. Go drive a Subaru RS sedan or sportback and you'll then know precisely what the draw backs are of mating a 4WD system to a NA engine.

By the time you drop in all the Evo engine parts you can buy 2nd hand, you would have been able to buy a RA and just gotten the 4WD turbo you really wanted.

I realise some people like the DIY approach. Much like tjoz but for the general population, they just want something that works. And Mitsubishi sells cars to the general population.

[quote="ofey"] And based on a 2012 release in 1 yrs time will be superseded by the new 2013 Mitsubishi Lancer CL. [quote]

How do we know its CL and not CK for the next model?? Has that already been stated my Mitusbishi???

GlenoCJ wrote:How do we know its CL and not CK for the next model?? Has that already been stated my Mitusbishi???

Well it could be... .
Going backwards, it has been : CJ, CH, CE, CC

We'll see?

Mitsubishi already has too many models. They realise now releasing the SX as a permanent models was detriment to sales. The SX is such good value that it now accounts for 90% of Lancers sold.

Dealers now find it very hard to move VR, VRX and Aspires. Mitsubishi should have just left the SX as a special model at the end of the model year as previously.

I dont think a 4WD NA Lancer would sell many cars at all.

The fact that the SX is so cheap now with that amount of add-ons probably suggest they're taking into account the introduction of the new model. It's almost an unofficial "runout" pricing.

If I had $35k to spend, I don't think I'd be purchasing a VRX/Aspire now that it's about 4 years since the same body was introduced 4 years ago. The new Focus is out, Mazda3 will be getting a more fuel-effficient engine, new Imprezas and Civics are coming out soon and the higher end Cruzes come with a lot of gear.

The AWD system has potential to take on the Imprezas, but I don't think it'll be happening on the CJ. I suppose they could do a similar model structure like the ASX, with 2WD base models and 4WD higher end models. It would be particularly useful if they combined it with a diesel engine for the extra torque.

Mazda already has the new SkyActiv engines out in the MY12 Mazda 3s. They've been on sale for around a month. They retail for around $27000 apparently. They have knocked the Maxx model out. They now have the Neo, Maxx Sport, SkyActiv powered SP20 then the SP25. The Diesel is in there somewhere between the SP20 and the SP25.

The Sky engines will be coming into the 2s and 6s and the RXs eventually. They also have a Sky diesel coming out.

The SkyActiv engines are supppsed to halve fuel consumption.

dannyboi wrote:The fact that the SX is so cheap now with that amount of add-ons probably suggest theyre taking into account the introduction of the new model. Its almost an unofficial runout pricing. If I had $35k to spend, I dont think Id be purchasing a VRX/Aspire now that its about 4 years since the same body was introduced 4 years ago. The new Focus is out, Mazda3 will be getting a more fuel-effficient engine, new Imprezas and Civics are coming out soon and the higher end Cruzes come with a lot of gear. The AWD system has potential to take on the Imprezas, but I dont think itll be happening on the CJ. I suppose they could do a similar model structure like the ASX, with 2WD base models and 4WD higher end models. It would be particularly useful if they combined it with a diesel engine for the extra torque.

Very sensible post.
Which is why I pointed out there is no excitement about the 2.4L AWD Lancer.
Simply no point.
the car is already old.
Everyone is now waiting for what the next Lancer will be like.