Ralliart Europe Mitsubishi rally driver
Andrew Cowan set up Andrew Cowan Motorsports (ACMS) in 1983 as a European base for Mitsubishi's motorsports activities. Based in
Rugby, Warwickshire, it evolved into Ralliart Europe, with support from Mitsubishi's high performance division. Ralliart Europe entered the
World Rally Championship full-time for the first time in
1989, with the
Mitsubishi Galant VR-4. The car won in the hands of
Mikael Ericsson in Finland and
Pentti Airikkala in Great Britain. Mitsubishi finished fourth in the manufacturers' standings in 1989, and third in
1990.
Kenneth Eriksson delivered the team its next victory in Sweden in
1991. The team introduced the
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution for the
1993 season, but did not manage to win during the year and only scored two podium finishes. The team developed the Lancer Evolution II and introduced it half-way through the
1994 season,
Armin Schwarz scoring a second-placed finish on the cars debut in Greece. The car took its first victory on the following year's
Rally Sweden, with Kenneth Eriksson leading home
Tommi Mäkinen. 's Lancer Evolution VI on 2001
Rally Finland. The Lancer Evolution III was soon introduced, and enjoyed great success in hand of Eriksson in the
Asia-Pacific Rally Championship, Mitsubishi's main focus at the time. Eriksson took the Evolution III to victory on the 1995
Rally Australia, a round of both championships. He finished the WRC season in third place in the standings behind the dominant
Subaru World Rally Team pairing of
Colin McRae and
Carlos Sainz, after the
Toyota Castrol Team pairing of
Juha Kankkunen and
Didier Auriol were excluded from the championship for running illegal turbo restrictors. In
1996, Mäkinen won five out of the nine rounds to win the
Drivers' Championship. The Lancer Evolution IV was introduced for the start of the
1997 season. Mäkinen won four out of 14 rallies to win his and Mitsubishi's second drivers' title. The car won the second and third rounds of the
1998 season, before being replaced by the Lancer Evolution V for the fifth round in Spain. As their rivals Subaru and Ford were competing with the new
World Rally Car spec, Mitsubishi continued to develop their cars to the old
Group A regulations. Mäkinen took the car to victory in Argentina, which then won the final four events of the season, allowing Mäkinen to win a third straight title, while Mitsubishi were finally able to take their first manufacturers' title, thanks to two victories from
Richard Burns. The team introduced the Lancer Evolution VI for the opening round of the
1999, complete with sponsorship from
Marlboro. Mäkinen won in Monte Carlo on the car's debut and then again on the next round in Sweden. He picked up further wins in New Zealand and Sanremo to record a then record fourth consecutive drivers' title. In 2000, the team struggled against their rivals and their World Rally Cars, Mäkinen only winning once and finishing fifth in the standings. Mäkinen managed to win three times in 2001, until Mitsubishi introduced the
Lancer WRC in Sanremo, having continued running to the old Group A regulations even though their rivals began working with the new WRC regulations from 1997. Both Mäkinen and teammate
Freddy Loix struggled with the new car, before Mäkinen suffered a heavy accident that injured his co-driver
Risto Mannisenmäki. Two retirements and a sixth-placed finish from the final three rallies meant that Mäkinen missed out on winning the title. Mäkinen left the team for Subaru for 2002, so
François Delecour and
Alister McRae were signed to replace him and Loix, who had moved to Hyundai. Both struggled with the car though, McRae managed a fifth-place finish on Rally Sweden, but those were the only points the team would score all season. The team finished last in the manufacturers' points, behind Skoda and Hyundai. Mitsubishi would not compete during the 2003 season as Mitsubishi restructured their motorsports activities.
MMSP driving the Lancer WRC04 at the 2004
Rally Finland. . Mitsubishi consolidated their racing activities in 2003, acquiring ACMS Ltd from Cowan while
Mitsubishi Motors Australia took over Stewart's operation. ==Ralliart, Inc==