Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X review: Bahrain's most involving used sedan, bought with eyes open
3.9/5MotorsSouq Editorial Team
Buy a base GSR with full, verifiable maintenance and modification history from a known Bahrain Evo community seller — never from an unknown import with a vague story. Budget separately for clutch, turbo and suspension wear beyond what a normal sedan needs, and insurance premiums well above a standard Lancer's. This is the grade-to-buy call: a stock or lightly modified GSR over anything advertised as heavily tuned.
Pros
- Super All-Wheel Control delivers genuinely involving, precise handling
- Strong enthusiast community in Bahrain for parts and knowledge
- Turbocharged 4B11T is a proven, tunable engine when maintained properly
- Distinctive, still-desirable performance sedan on today's roads
Cons
- Most used examples have an unverified modification or track history
- Insurance premiums well above a standard Lancer's
- Clutch, turbo and suspension wear faster than a normal sedan
- Firm, tiring ride on long highway or causeway drives
Mitsubishi built the Evo X to homologate a rally programme, and even a decade after production ended it remains the most genuinely thrilling sedan you can buy used in Bahrain for the money. The 2.0-litre turbo four's 291hp is modest by current hot-hatch standards, but paired with Super All-Wheel Control — a torque-vectoring, active-centre-differential system that shuffles power front-to-rear and side-to-side under load — it puts power down with a directness that nothing front-wheel-drive can match on Bahrain's tighter back roads.
The catch is the used-market itself
Almost no Evo in Bahrain has lived a quiet life. This was, and remains, the car enthusiasts buy specifically to modify, track and drive hard, which means the used pool skews heavily toward cars with aftermarket turbos, suspension, and — critically — clutch and drivetrain components that may not have been fitted correctly. Buying one requires assuming a modified history until a seller proves otherwise with receipts and, ideally, a known specialist's involvement.
The 5-speed manual is the purist's choice and the more common one on GCC-spec cars; the SST twin-clutch automatic was offered later and is quicker but adds its own maintenance considerations. Either way, the interior is a firm reminder this was homologated for competition rather than comfort — Recaro-style seats on GSR trim, a stiff ride, and road noise that makes the Evo tiring on a long causeway run in a way a Lancer never was.
Running one in Bahrain
A small, dedicated community of Evo specialists in Bahrain keeps well-known examples properly maintained, and that community is genuinely the best resource for buying safely — a car with a documented history within that circle is worth paying a premium for over an unknown import. Insurance is notably higher than for a standard Lancer given the performance and modification risk, and clutch, turbo and suspension bushings wear faster than on any comparable family sedan.