The following is an extract from Ralliart Japan's High Performance Catalogue by Mr. I. Kimata.General Manager of theWRC Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart Team.

HIGH PERFORMANCE TUNINGSET UP GUIDE

For those of you who may be planning to do some high performance tuning on your car, it helps to find asmuch "how to" reference material as you can. In this article, as a car tuning professional and expert onMitsubishi rally cars, Iwao Kimata, General Manager of the Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart WRC Team,explains basic car tuning philosophy and ways to upgrade car performance, using the Mitsubishi LancerEvolution as a model.

Step 1Know the basic performance of your car

Today's cars are very well manufactured vehicles. In particular, the Lancer Evolution has developed intoan extremely well balanced 4WD sports car.As the first step of high performance tuning, I recommend that you get the feel of driving the car. Youshould become thoroughly familiar with every behaviour of the car in its normal condition, and at thesame time, drive the car as much as possible to break in all the drivetrain components.Before advancing to the next step, it is necessary for you to be convinced of your skill in driving the car.If you are not skilled in driving the car and do not understand the basic characteristics of your vehicle,you will not be able to clearly decide the targets and ultimate goal of fine tuning your vehicle.For such a high performance car as the Lancer Evolution in particular, it is indispensable to carefullybreak in the car in order to minimize frictional resistance of all moving parts. If we compare a car thathas been fully broken in with one that has not, for example, by driving both vehicles side by side on astraight road at 100 km/h and then disengage the clutch at the same time to let the cars coast to a stop, wecan see the difference in performance between the two cars. The former i.e. the car whose parts havelower fractional resistance, can coast for a longer distance that the latter.

Step 2Minimize friction (resistance).

For the Lancer Evolution to be competitive for WRC racing, it must deliver 100% performance.Consequently our workshop in the U.K. spends much of its time on "break-in" of differential gears andvarious arm joints using a lapping machine. Most of you do not have to go that far, but after masteringthe driving of your car and successfully eliminating the initial mechanical friction by careful break-in ofyour vehicle, you may move on to the next step of reducing resistance from air intake and exhaustsystems.In Ralliart's development of engine parts for the Evolution VI, they focused their efforts towardsreduction of air induction resistance so that the driver experiences the inherent performance ability of thecar. The same idea has been applied to the WRC competition version of the Evolution VI.

This translates into a reduction of air intake resistance existing in the air filter, air suction pipe, etc. and asmooth induction of air into the inter-cooler and turbine. Also, an attempt has been made to reduce theresistance in the exhaust system to minimize energy loss. Such approaches can result in a faster rise ofboost pressure and a change in shift-up points.

Step 3Make the tyres work for you.

Tyres act as an interface between the car and the road surface. Even the most advanced high performancecar cannot demonstrate its inherent ability unless its tyres work properly. Any of today's highperformance tyres can demonstrate excellent ability if they are properly utilised. The key to controllingtyre performance lies in the suspension system. Here I'd like to describe the suspension height controlsystem for the Lancer Evolution VI. The height control system, along with raising or lowering thevehicle body, can precisely adjust the load distribution between the front and the rear, and left and rightsides of the car. In order to enhance cornering stability, especially on tarmac, the ride height of the carshould be reduced to lower the roll centre. It is also important to precisely adjust the load on each wheelwhen the vehicle is stationary to balance preload of the tyres for the following purposes: To incorporatelarge diameter stabilizers to reduce the roll of the car, to optimize the shock absorber and springcharacteristics to get the best and most supple adhesion of the wheels with the road surface, and to adjustthe wheel alignment as correctly as possible. The height control system of the Lancer Evolution VIfunctions well for such precise load distribution adjustments.When you reach the step of optimizing your car's suspension system, I definitely recommend you to takeyour car to a suitably equipped repair shop in order to get the load distribution and wheel alignmentprecisely adjusted, since the job requires expensive equipment and involves an exacting procedure. Afteradjustments of load distribution and wheel alignment are successfully made, you can consider this stepcompleted.

Wheel alignment specificationsRide height at the standard vehicle height; Front; 385mm Rear; 350mm

FRONT REARCamber -1°00' + 30' or

-2°00' + 30'-1°00'

Caster -3°50' + 30'Toe-in 0 + 3 mm 3 + 2 mm

Step 4Balance performance enhancements with compromise.

If you fine-tune your car accordingly to the first three steps, it will give your car more than sufficientperformance on the road. But as your driving skills continue to improve, you may find yourselfhungering for more. Perhaps you would like to try serious sport driving on circuits or in gymkhana

events. If that is the case, you would first need to change the brake pads of your car to those of higherfade resistance. You would also want to get a twin-plate clutch which has a higher clutch disc pressure sothat your car can perform rocket-like starts and can avoid degradation of torque transmission performancewhen driving at the maximum speed range. Also, if you change the rubber bushings of the steering andsuspension systems to those of harder rubber, you can improve the effectiveness of these systems.Performing such high level tuning operations, however, may narrow the allowances of your car. Youmay notice a more rigid vehicle response, more road noise, and a higher sensitivity in steering response tochanges in the road surface. In addition, you will need to be more careful when engaging the clutch andyou may have to endure brake squealing. You can never completely avoid these side effects when youtune your car to its ultimate performance level.The Lancer Evolution VI has excellent basic performance and at the same time has a wide versatility forhigh performance tuning. In other words, it fulfils whatever you desire for seasoning the car'sperformance. But don't forget that it is you who decides the direction your car will take in terms ofperformance.With these tips I've provided, I encourage owners of the Lancer Evolution to enjoy their car to the fullest.