The Lancer Evolution series was born out of Mitsubishi's need to homologate a competitive Group A rally car. Each generation was built around a two-litre intercooled turbo inline four-cylinder engine designated the 4G63, combined with a permanent all-wheel-drive system. The Evolution I debuted in 1992, followed quickly by the Evolution II in late 1993. Both were sold exclusively in Japan and targeted primarily at privateer rally teams and performance enthusiasts.
The Evolution III arrived in February 1995, following a pre-release in 1993, and represented a significant step up in both road car specification and rally-spec potential. It retained the core architecture of its predecessors — the 4G63 engine, five-speed manual gearbox, and full-time AWD — but introduced meaningful improvements to aerodynamics, cooling, and engine output.
The Evolution III received new, more aggressive exterior styling compared to the Evolution II. A revised nose moulding improved airflow to the radiator, intercooler, and brakes. New side skirts, a revised rear bumper, and a larger rear spoiler were added to reduce aerodynamic lift at speed.
The engine was uprated through a higher compression ratio and a larger turbocharger compressor, increased from 65 mm to 68 mm in diameter. This produced a power output of 270 PS at 6,250 rpm and torque of 309 Nm at 3,000 rpm — up from the 260 PS produced by the Evolution II.
Like its predecessors, the Evolution III was offered in two variants: the GSR, a more fully equipped road car with climate control and standard conveniences, and the RS (Rally Sport), a stripped-down version aimed at competition use, delivered with steel wheels and a minimal interior to save weight.
A total of 10,080 examples were built: 8,998 GSR models and 1,082 RS models.
The Evolution III was homologated as a Group A car and competed in the World Rally Championship during the 1995 and 1996 seasons. In the hands of Tommi Mäkinen, the car proved to be an outstanding rally weapon on both tarmac and gravel stages.
Mitsubishi's approach was distinctive: while rivals such as Subaru moved to purpose-built World Rally Cars in 1997, Mitsubishi continued to develop and run the successive Group A Evolutions. The Evolution III was the car Mäkinen drove to his first WRC Drivers' Championship title in 1996, with the Evolution IV and V carrying him to further titles in 1997, 1998, and 1999.
The Evolution III was also driven by Richard Burns, who contributed to Mitsubishi's championship efforts before moving to the Subaru World Rally Team. Privateers around the world also campaigned Evolution IIIs extensively, particularly in the Group N category where the car's combination of power, traction, and toughness made it a class benchmark.
The Proton brand of Malaysia, which had a commercial relationship with Mitsubishi, raced Evolution IIIs in the Asia-Pacific Rally Championship as the Proton PERT, with Malaysian driver Karamjit Singh going on to win the 2002 Production Car WRC in an Evolution V under the same banner.
The Lancer Evolution III occupies a pivotal place in rally history as the car that launched Mitsubishi's sequence of four consecutive WRC Drivers' titles. While the Evolution IV, V, and VI continued the run, the III established the template: a road-legal homologation special with genuine rally pedigree, available to ordinary buyers as well as factory teams.
The car predated Mitsubishi's shift to the full World Rally Car formula in 2001. During the Group A era it competed against the Subaru Impreza, Ford Escort RS Cosworth, and Toyota Celica GT-Four, and proved competitive against all of them. Its successor generations became progressively more sophisticated, but the Evolution III remains recognized as the car that marked Mitsubishi's arrival as a true championship-winning force in the WRC.