Any video game fan knows about “easter eggs” and “cheat codes,” those secret commands that can be used to reveal more powerful weapons on many electronic games.  If there were such a thing as a cheat code for economy cars, the result would look a lot like the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution.  This Lancer seems to have undergone a rapid transformation from “normal” to “attack” mode.

That’s because, unlike all of the Honda Civics and Nissan Sentras running around with spoilers and scoops and big wheels, the Lancer Evolution is actually based …

It’s not enough to be a good car these days.  Not everyone wants to be a fashion plate, of course, but cars that can’t stand out from the herds of generic three-box sedans clogging the freeways are increasingly doomed to also-ran status, no matter how good they are.  As a result, the competent and conservative wallflowers of the industry have taken it upon themselves to dress up a little in recent years.

A lack of distinction has always been the only problem for Mitsubishi’s Galant.  Long hailed as an equal to …

Mitsubishi’s Endeavor doesn’t look like anything else.  Considering the extremely crowded nature of the mid-size sport-ute market, that’s probably a good thing.  Our first reaction was, admittedly, to think it was ugly, but the design grew on us after a while.  The Endeavor’s good road manners and powerful 3.8 liter V6 didn’t hurt in winning us over, either.

The Endeavor is one of the latest entrants into the “soft-roader” class of mid-sized sport-utility vehicles that have been bred for life in the suburbs, rather than bashing through the boonies.  Although the …

As a long time fan of station wagons, this reporter is always happy to see another Giant Box version of a sedan come along.  They’re getting more common too, thanks to a backlash against gas-guzzling SUVs and a recent image boost in the form of hot-rod station wagons like Subaru’s WRX and Audi’s S4 Avant.  The latest entry into the squareback brigade is Mitsubishi’s 2004 Lancer Sportback.

The new wagon shares the Lancer’s new-for-’04 sheetmetal and suspension revisions, and is available in standard or performance-enhanced Ralliart trim.  That’s a good thing; …

Hiding back in the shadow of the family-sedan giants from Ford, Chevrolet, Toyota and Honda are a number of quite worthy cars.  The trouble has always been getting buyers to look past the best-sellers and notice them.  As the competition gets more fierce for a slice of the bread-and-butter sedan pie, the offerings have gotten less and less boring, and that’s a good thing.

For 2002, Mitsubishi’s well-rounded Galant sedan attempts to break away from the pack with a more aggressive face.  The Galant has been quietly competent for several years …

Words to live by:  Never trust a “sport sedan” that isn’t available with a manual transmission.  This nugget of wisdom has been brought to us courtesy of the 2001 Mitsubishi Galant GTZ.

The GTZ has impressive genes–Mitsubishi can do sports cars, and they’ve proven it with multiple championships in rally and desert racing, and with cars like the Eclipse sports coupe.  Even the Galant line has some screamers in its past, most notably the Galant VR-4 of the early 1990s.  Current overachievers in the Mitsubishi lineup include the all-conquering Lancer rally …

Unless you actually own a Mitsubishi Mirage, chances are you can’t picture one offhand.  While a decent little car, the Mirage has labored for years with a near-total lack of distinguishing features.  Like any self-respecting car company, Mitsubishi isn’t happy with that–especially not with the competition getting exciting.  Nissan’s Sentra SE-R, Mazda’s Protege MP3 and Subaru’s Impreza WRX have upped the ante for sporty compact sedans in a big way.  Enter the 2002 Lancer O.Z. Rally edition.

When it hit showrooms in August, the Lancer brought more than a new name …

One of the first things you notice upon entering the Mitsubishi Montero Sport is the grab handles–sometimes known as “uh-oh” bars, or by even more colorful names.  There are seven of them all told, which seems a little excessive for a four-door, five-passenger vehicle.  Is this truck planning to have you clutching at as many grips as you can find for dear life?

Don’t bet on it.  In spite of all the grab handles and the other design elements that mark the Montero Sport as a dune-hopping, mud-slogging off-road beast, the …

True story:  within minutes of the 2001 Mitsubishi Spyder’s arrival, it was being scrutinized by the owners of a Camaro Z28 and a 4.6-liter Mustang GT with an aftermarket exhaust and a modified airbox.  “Three-liter 24-valve V6, two hundred horsepower,” the Mustang’s owner told us, without having to ask.  He looked at the Camaro’s owner and grinned.  “It’ll go pretty good, but he can’t run with us,” he said.

Luckily, the Spyder isn’t expected to go head-to-head with 300-horsepower, rear-drive pony cars.  Or is it?  It’s less frenetic and intense than …