STI Slaying EVO

The rivalry between the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution and the Subaru Impreza WRX STI has fizzled out a bit of late, with both cars initially offering a raw, rally-bred experience that intensified on a bell curve of extremity before becoming watered down and bland in recent years. For me, this peaked in 1998 with the Evo V and judging by the plates on Polo Bour's stunning example, he wholeheartedly agrees.

Tracing the rally heritage of the Evo V, one needs to look no further than the menacing front end. The front bar filled with fog lights, a prominently placed front-mount intercooler and various aerodynamic tweaks give the roided up Lancer a seriously tough demeanour.

In an update from the IV, the Evo V received an adjustable rear wing, flared guards and a slightly wider track all adding to the models image as an unadulterated race car with rego. Polo has chosen to accentuate these features even further by adding an ARC dual wingblade and vented, widebody front fenders filled with gorgeous 18x9.5 Work Emotion 11Rs.

Of course aesthetics alone are not what strikes fear into the horizontally-opposed hearts of Subaru's champion, with this AWD assassin packing quite the arsenal under the bonnet. The factory-tough 4G63 has had it's bottom end filled with forged replacement parts while up top, a pair of spastic Tomei Pro-Cams give this Evo one of the toughest idles around and some serious punch at any RPM above it. With a Garrett GT3076R huffing 24psi of boost into a sea of pump fuel provided by Rochester 1000cc injectors, this bad boy pumps out a ballistic 323kw at all fours, enough to make even the most raucous Rexys think twice.

As an animal from the factory, the Evo V came fitted with a pair of hip-hugging Recaros so this was one area that Polo was happy to leave untouched. A trio of Defi gauges, some carbon fibre trim and a decent sound system are among the few interior changes and to be honest, this is exactly how an Evo should be.

After looking over this stunning example, I can't help but find myself leaning towards the Evo camp but I want to hear what you think. Let me know whose side you're on in the comments below. If you are having trouble making up your mind, check out the May issue of Fast Fours & Rotaries (on sale 25/4) for a closer look at what is, in my mind, the peak of rally-bred road cars.