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After Lancer WRC failed to maintain Mitsubishi's run of success, team withdrew from Championship to regroup and former chief engineer Bernard Lindauer was replaced by Mario Fornaris. First thing for him was to have a look at Lancer WRC and decide what to do with it. Options were either to continue refining it or start from the beginning. Fornaris was convinced that former was the wrong approach even if complete redesign would sacrife short-term performance.
Original Lancers, both the Group A versions and WRC, had curious transmission system which meant that car did not have permanent four-wheel drive. Though it was central to early success of the Lancer, Fornaris thought it caused much of the problems inherent to Lancer WRC and also required particular driving style from the driver. Hence the decision was taken to ditch this and almost everything else from the earlier cars apart from the engine. This meant a lot of work and resulted in some very simple concepts in order to be ready for Monte Carlo 2004.
These simple concepts included new five-speed gearbox without any semi-automatic gearshift,
passive differentials and lack of exotic materials in the car. One of the most striking features of the car is prominent rear wing, located on top of the boot immediately after rear window. Despite unorthodox, even ugly appearance this has been tested in wind tunnel and has been found out the be the optimal location. Similar aerodynamic work is evident for example in wheel-arches.
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| Debut WRC event: | Monte Carlo 2004 |
| Best WRC result: | 6th by Gilles Panizzi in Monte Carlo 2004
6th by Daniel Sola in Catalunya 2004 |
| Rallies contested: | 11 | (works entries) |
| WRC starts: | 23 | (works entries) |
| Outright wins: | 0 | |
| Podiums: | 0 | |
| DNF's: | 14 | (DNF's to starts ratio 60.9 %) |
| Points scored: | 17 | (manufacturer championship points) |
| Avg points per rally: | 1.5 | |
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| Group and class | World Rally Car |
| Engine |
| Location: | Front transverse |
| Turbo: | Yes |
| Cylinders: | 4 in line |
| Valves: | 16 |
| Bore x stroke: | 85.5 x 86.9 mm |
| Cubic capacity: | 1996 cc |
| Power: | 300 hp |
| Torque: | 539 Nm |
| Dimensions |
| Length: | 4360 mm |
| Width: | 1770 mm |
| Height: | 1390 mm |
| Wheelbase: | 2600 mm |
| Front track: | 1550 mm |
| Rear track: | 1550 mm |
| Weight: | 1230 kg |
| Transmission |
| Drive: | 4WD |
| Gearbox: | Transverse |
| Gears: | 5 |
| Sequential: | Yes |
| Clutch plates: | 3 |
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Mitsubishi Lancer WRC04
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