Polish company Dytko Sport, who specializes in building parts for Mitsubishi Lancer Evo rally cars, created what can only be called the Lancer Evo XI. Partnering with the company Proto cars, Dytko Sport utilized the Dynamic Shield design philosophy of the latest Mitsubishi line of vehicles and slapped the parts on the Evo X. I can only tell you this - it looks the business. While the full reveal is still a few days away, the officially named Lancer Edition R has already gained serious Internet traction and fame, even waking up dreamy Lancer Evo X enthusiasts in the process. The stories about the comeback of the Lancer name are already swamping the Internet, but I can tell you right away that the only way Lancer Evo will ever come back is in the form of a Crossover. Nevertheless, Dytko Sport obviously formulated something awesome that undoubtedly took some time to build.

Peter Dytko of Dytko Sport Tolds A Thing or Two About the Mitsubishi Lancer Edition R

First off, read our short correspondence with Peter Dytko, Dytko Sport owner, about his latest project - the Mitsubishi Lancer Edition R.

In my quest to find out as much as I can about the Lancer Edition R, I reached out to Peter Dytko from Dytko Sport for a comment.

This is what he told me after kindly thanking me for my interest and enthusiasm about this awesome project.

TopSpeed: How much time did you need to make the car?

Peter Dytko: At the moment, it is just prepared as a show car for presentation. We need to finish all fitting points on body kit panels and after, when everything is finished, we will make proper molds (forms).

As you can imagine, designing and preparing such a body kit takes a lot of time. We have started with 3D designing. In the future when we have all body kit panels, rebuild of the Lancer will be much faster. I think installing a complete Edition R body kit will take around two weeks. Then we also must take into account the painting job which will also take a few days.

TopSpeed: Did you use Eclipse Cross headlights at the front and what kind of headlights were used at the back?

Peter Dytko: Yes, headlights come from the Eclipse Cross, rear ones come from Jaguar.

TopSpeed: I am quite interested in what’s under the bonnet?

Peter Dytko: The Edition R is based on the Lancer Evo X, so all mechanical parts come from the Evo X

TopSpeed: Do you plan to compete with it, or is it a show car?

Peter Dytko: Of course, it would be great to present our project on some kind of a rally, but at the moment we don’t have a precise plan

Exterior Design of the Mitsubishi Lancer Edition R

The most notable changes, however, come as a courtesy of using the Dynamic Shield design philosophy for the front end of a car. I would guess that the lights and the grill on this one have been adopted from the latest Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross. And boy, does it look nice. It is sort of a natural evolution compared to the Evo X. The integration of lights like this would feel a bit awkward if Dytko Sport and Proto cars did not integrate the buffed up fenders. But they did, and it all took a rather fine turn for the better - especially with the added intakes on the hood and on the roof.

The sides remained the same as before. Actually, the sides of this car are underwhelming as we are blessed with powerful hips and kinda athletic side proportions on many cars today. This is one segment of the Dytko Sport Lancer Edition R that still feels a bit outdated.

The back, on the other hand, isn’t outdated. At all. In fact, Dytko Sport and Proto Cars managed to integrate Jaguar E-Pace lights just under the massive rear spoiler. And it looks the business.

Sure, the rally and racing character is still overwhelming. The only elements that clearly show this is an aftermarket creation are the buffed up rear fenders that look somewhat unfinished and almost slapped on. Then again, this is a rally car, a racecar. Not a Lancer Evo XI.

Who Is Dytko Sport?

Dytko Sport is well known in Poland. It all started all the way back in 1996 and 1997 when Pawel and Tomek Dytko, cousins, started racing rallies in Poland. Then, after a few years, they evolved from using fast Golf 1 and Peugeot 205s to a Ford Escort Cosworth and finally, to Mitsubishi Lancer Evo cars. Not only did they race all over Poland, but their Lancer Evo X cars managed to hit some European hill climbs and rallies as well.

A natural progression into the development and production of aftermarket parts was the most logical step Dytko Sport and Proto Cars could take, after all.

Final Thoughts

While the Lancer Evo X is the last of amazing Lancer Evo cars, this Edition R definitely reminds us of the once great line of sports sedans that built their pedigree over world rally tracks. Unfortunately, this is the closest we will ever be to a Lancer Evo XI.

We will have much more information about the new Mitsubishi Lancer Edition R in a few days so stay tuned, as I will update this article.

Further reading

Read our full review on the 2008 - 2015 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X.

Read our full review on the 2016 Mitsubishi Lancer.