2007 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X

NZPC Hi, Luke. That look is super loud — do you race?

Luke: Yeah, I’ve competed in three rounds of the Auckland Production Series so far, and have entered the NZ Superlap series too. As a kid, I was always interested in motorsport, from my dad buying shells and building these amazing cars from scratch, to competing as a kid in go-karting and spending almost every weekend in summer at a race track, whether it was Pukekohe or the speedway. Once I bought the [Evo] X, I wanted to be around more like-minded people and not as much the ‘boy racers’. That’s why I joined the Auckland Evo Club, and, after I started realizing the potential of the Evo X, I looked into other avenues of racing.

Is this the first Evo you have owned?

No, I bought my first Evo back in 2010; that was a V. I wrapped it matt orange and called it ‘Jafa’, even went as far as going to get a custom plate. The wife and I took it on a three-week trip around the South Island, which was such a mint drive on the open roads. I owned the V for three years, and sold it on as I was starting to get bored, and found a mint 380kW Evo III online. I owned the III for a year, and that’s when I found the X.

Bit of an Evo fiend, then. Did you buy it local or overseas?

Leon from NZ Motorsport Imports sourced this beauty from Japan for me. I needed something more suited to the family life, something with room and a little classier, but I didn’t like the look of the standard Xs available online locally, so I approached Leon to source one that stood out like no other. He found this one, and I absolutely fell in love with it.

So, how did it end up going from family duties to track work?

As you do — you start doing things here and there, and it builds up. I’m lucky that my two girls are right into it, and the wife is supportive. They come out to the track with me each race meet — [it] wouldn’t be a track car otherwise [laughs].

Happy wife, happy life. What have your race results been like since starting?

I really surprised myself when I started — I came second in my first race, and, since then, I’ve been consistently in the top three. At the end of the first and second round of the Auckland Production Series, I had come first place in both rounds, with the third round still to be tallied.

That’s an impressive start. Are there any big changes coming up?

There are some big changes coming up in the off season next year. As well as maintaining the car as a street-legal vehicle, it will produce around double the current power — think stroker and big snails.

Is there anyone you would like to thank?

Mychanics, NZ SpeedShop, Pure Vision Graphics, North Shore Toyota, Platinum Wheels, M.Tech Evos, NZKW, Boost Performance, JDMCalibre, Omegah Photography, and Torque Performance — without all my valuable sponsors, the car wouldn’t be where it is today, and I cannot express enough my gratitude towards each and every one of them