Welcome to Cars of The Ku, a new weekend segment where I highlight a cool car I've found around where I live. Ku (区) is the Japanese word for "city ward." Today's Car of the Ku is this Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VII.
This car is right along the route I travel to my other job, a route that weaves in and out of Gunma and Saitama Prefectures. It's parked right off the street, so everyone who drives by can see it. There's a serious amount of carbon fiber on this Evo, and the various scratches and chips reveal it's not just for show. This vehicle is is obviously taken out to the track or the mountains.
What I think I love most about this car is the personal touches. Just as I hang a Sailor Chibi-Moon "plushie" from the rearview mirror, this driver has Hello Kitty, Crayon Shin-chan, and various other little doodads associated with Japanese pop culture. It's one of the small details I never see quite authentically recreated in the US JDM "style" enthusiast community. More JDM lovers outside of Japan could do with a touch of kimagure or whimsy.
It's true that I'm a Honda girl, through and through, but even I'm sad that there will be no more future Evos. After the 2015 model year, the Evo X, we will have no longer be able to wait with barely contained anticipation for further models. Mitsubishi didn't give us much reason, but given how essentially everything is sucking hardcore for the company of Three Diamonds, we shouldn't be surprised they're cutting their losses in many markets.
Images via Kat Callahan/Jalopnik.