When someone says de sais, we usually imagine an executive sedan or a neat sports coupe packing that kind of engine. Whether it’s a V6 or inline-six, it’s normal to associate it with something, well, expensive. And we’re not just talking about fuel expenses.
But there was a time when a V6 engine made its way into an economy car. Yes, we know it sounds ironic, but that’s exactly what Mitsubishi did about 30 years ago.
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Unless you’re American, economy is the last thing on your mind when it comes to a gas-fed six-cylinder. You’d be happy to get 6km/L on a good day, although they’re still quite efficient on the highway.
Still, that didn’t stop Mitsubishi from shoving a V6 in a model you would’t expect: The Lancer. Wait, what?
Yes folks, at some point in history, the humble Mitsubishi Lancer was once available with a V6 engine. And here’s another fun fact for you, that same engine was related to the one used in the Galant VR6 sold from 1993 to 1997.
It’s dubbed the 6A10 engine, and it holds the record for being the smallest V6 to be ever placed in a production car at just 1.6-liters. Mitsubishi fanatics might recognize that engine code, albeit in a different form. A larger version of this same engine was called the 6A12, powering the Galant of the mid-‘90s.
So, which generation of Lancer used it? That would be the one made from late 1991 to 1996. Enthusiasts would call it the ‘itlog’ or ‘hotdog’ Lancer for its, er, distinct design characteristics. Ah yes, Pinoys and their automotive nicknames.
A V6 Lancer sounds like a recipe for a high-performance model, right? But that wasn’t Mitsubishi’s intention at all. The 1.6-liter V6 was made for tax purposes in Japan. Yes, the 1.6-liter four-cylinder exists, but the two extra cylinders bump the power up without incurring additional registration taxes thanks to its compact displacement.
As expected, the V6-powered Lancer was only offered in Japan and reserved for the MX, MX Limited, and Royal trim levels. Aside from being a tax break, this model was pitched at junior executives who’s like a brisk compact car with some executive sedan trappings. Surprisingly, it came standard with a five-speed manual, although most went for the optional four-speed automatic.
Its power figures aren’t too impressive by today’s standards, but one has to remember that this was an era where getting 100hp out of a 1.6-liter engine was an achievement. The V6 engines the Mitsubishi Lancer MX made 138hp and 147Nm of torque, solid figures for the era. For comparison, the 1.6-liter four-cylinder made just 111hp and 137Nm of torque.
One would think that the Lancer V6 would last just a single generation. The six-cylinder Lancer would live on in the next generation model that was produced from 1995 to 2001, known as the ‘pizza’ model locally. However, the 1.6-liter would be discontinued and replaced by a 1.8-liter V6. Mitsubishi would drop that engine completely by the millennium, thus ending the Lancer’s fling with sixes.
Given the more stringent emission regulations and the push towards electrification, it’s unlikely that we’ll ever see a compact V6 ever again. Still, it’s an interesting, if little known footnote in Mitsubishi’s history.
