Mitsubishi Ralliart (Withdrawn from WRC)

Mitsubishi Ralliart

Definition and Historical Standing
Mitsubishi Ralliart is the official motorsport and high-performance division established by Mitsubishi Motors in 1984. Headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, it stands alongside manufacturer-backed high-performance marques such as BMW M and Mercedes-AMG. Ralliart spearheaded all of Mitsubishi’s factory-backed campaigns in the World Rally Championship (WRC) and the Dakar Rally, securing numerous accolades for the brand, including the WRC Drivers' and Manufacturers' Championship double and 12 overall Dakar Rally titles, establishing itself as the core embodiment of Mitsubishi’s motorsport DNA.

The WRC Golden Era and the Lancer Evolution
Ralliart set up its Australian subsidiary in 1988, marking its official entry into the WRC. Initially competing with the Galant VR-4, it officially introduced the Lancer Evolution as its premier WRC contender in 1993. From 1996 to 1999, Finnish ace Tommi Mäkinen piloted the Lancer Evolution to four consecutive WRC Drivers' World Championship titles, becoming the first driver in WRC history to score four titles in a row. In 1998, Team Ralliart dominated by winning 7 of the 13 rounds on the calendar, securing Mitsubishi’s first-ever WRC Manufacturers' World Championship title and completing the Drivers' and Manufacturers' double. Armed with an electronically controlled all-wheel-drive (AWD) system and the iconic 4G63 turbocharged engine, the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution was widely regarded as one of the most lethal rally machines of the WRC Group A era.

WRC Exit and the Fall of Ralliart
Mitsubishi officially announced its withdrawal from the WRC in late 2005, citing a strategic shift of resources towards its corporate turnaround plan. Andrew Cowan, former Chairman of Ralliart Europe, candidly reflected on the team's missteps during the transition from Group A to the World Rally Car formula: "Our rivals took one to three years to build their WRC cars; we thought we could be clever and turn it around quickly, but we just couldn't pull it off". In March 2010, Mitsubishi announced that Ralliart would effectively cease operations from 1 April onwards, halting motorsport technical support, new product development, and racing updates, retaining only the supply of FIA Group N competition parts. The decision, handed down by then-President Osamu Masuko, was seen by the automotive industry as a pragmatic recalculation of motorsport marketing ROI rather than a mere personal whim.

2021 Brand Revival and Present Status
In May 2021, Mitsubishi announced the resurrection of the Ralliart sub-brand in its FY2020 financial report, with then-CEO Takao Kato expressing intentions to roll out bespoke accessories for customers and "re-engage in motorsport activities worldwide". At the 2022 Tokyo Auto Salon, Mitsubishi unveiled the "Vision Ralliart Concept" based on the Outlander PHEV, signalling the official start of the brand's revival. However, the current iteration of Ralliart has shifted away from a full-blown motorsport division, functioning primarily as a branded accessories and cosmetic bodykit label without a works factory racing programme. With the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution officially discontinued in 2016, Ralliart’s glory days in the WRC remain a chapter in the history books.