The end of era is coming soon. Automotive News reports that Mitsubishi has planned the departure of the Lancer Evolution at the end of this generation. The company hasn't given a date to that though.

“Mitsubishi Motors does not have any plans to design a successor with the current concept, as a high-performance four-wheel drive gasoline-powered sedan. Mitsubishi Motors will explore the possibilities of high-performance models that incorporate electric vehicle technology,” said Mitsubishi spokeswoman Namie Koketsu.

Rumors of what would happen to the Lancer Evolution have been swirling around for the past few years ranging from the model becoming a plug-in hybrid rally car to a model that wouldn't exist anymore. Last year, then Mitsubishi President Osamu Masuko said in a interview that for Mitsubishi's strength is in pickups, crossovers and SUVs. For the company to get back to health, they will need to focus on the basics and go after volume models.

“We have to prioritize. When you consider Mitsubishi's size and management resources, we can't do everything on our own,” said Masuko.

Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required)

William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster.

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Very true, unless they are heavily profitable which Mitsu is not they will have to cut out the flare of a low volume fun model like the Evolution and go after mass market models. It is understandable.

Does anybody really care about this lame duck company? I sure don't

This is almost like Chevrolet killing the Corvette, but Mitsu doesn't even have a separate platform for the Evo. What a terrible idea.

About 8000 Mitsubishis were sold in March 2014. Chevrolet sold that many Corvettes in all of 2014, selling about 3400 of them in March. My question is why does Mitsubishi think it is competitive in the USA now. Time to abandon these shores for greener pastures.

I get the feeling that this car company is on life support to just let the current ceo retire in a few years and then it will go away.

Who needs to Evolve, when the Mirage is selling beyond expectations?

Maybe they are going for a reboot and to regrow Hyundai style. Start with just one econo-box and move up from there.

They need to crawl under a rock and die. The evo has lots of performance, but it s pricey and built on a crappy platform.

If they think people are not buying Mitsubishi's because they don't have an electric car or a hybrid, they are seriously mistaken. People don't buy Mitsubishi's because their models of late are rather uninspiring in terms of styling, refinement, quality and performance.

If they think people are not buying Mitsubishi's because they don't have an electric car or a hybrid, they are seriously mistaken. People don't buy Mitsubishi's because their models of late are rather uninspiring in terms of styling, refinement, quality and performance.

Quoted for truth!