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Over the summer, we reported on the UK-market's Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX FQ-360, a car whose verbose nomenclature communicated the presence of a force-fed 366-horsepower 2.0-liter four under its bonnet. With its MR-style vortex generator on the roof, gigunda rear wing, carbon-fiber lip spoiler and rally-look five-spoke wheels, the FQ-360 looked every bit the tarmac carver that it was engineered to be.

Fast forward to January '07. Mitsubishi is laying the groundwork for the arrival of the next Evo, which was previewed with the appearance of the Prototype X at Detroit last week. Before we get too caught up in Evo X hysteria, we need to remember that the Evo IX still roams the streets, and that even when faced with imminent replacement, it's no shrinking violet. As such, Mitsubishi's UK division is bidding farewell to the machine with one final model: the Lancer Evolution IX MR FQ-360.

Its 2.0L engine is prepared by Ralliart and HKS, and while its output matches the 366 horses of the last HQ-360, this car's mill is said to be even more responsive. The FQ-360's 0-60 sprint is now an astonishing 3.9 seconds (vs. 4.1 for the last one). Top speed is 157 mph -- and that's an electronically governed number. In terms of appearance, the final edition MR FQ-360 looks like the car it replaces with some subtle changes. The five-spoke Speedlines are out, replaced by 11-spoke units from the same manufacturer. This time around, there's enough badging on the trunklid to let everyone know that this is the alpha dog Evo IX, and it's going out in style.



Full details in the press release after the jump.

[Source: Mitsubishi UK]