I recently reviewed the EVO MR, which I absolutely adored, so I thought, it’s only fair that I take the manual shift GSR version for a spin and compare the two. After all, it would be a great comparison test, and would allow me another whole week full of EVO excitement!!! (I might have been born during the day, but it wasn’t yesterday!) :-)

Of course, we all know that the Mitsubishi EVO basically sits in a class of its own, so to what else would I compare it to?

Yes, fair enough, its main competitor has to be the Subaru WRX, but truthfully, these are quite different vehicles. The Subie is possibly a tad friendlier to drive on the road, and maybe offers a little less drama to it. It is also more practical in some ways because of its hatchback design. However, who purchases what is basically a rally ready road car with practicalities in mind?

No, cars like the EVO are all about performance and how they make you feel whilst sitting behind the wheel. Yes, I like the WRX for its combined performance and civility, but I love the EVO for the huge silly grin that it brings to my face!

The EVO looks the part even whilst standing still. Yes, that huge whale-tail spoiler might block a little rearward vision, but boy does it look sharp! Add to that the menacing front grille, and brake rotors which are nearly as big as the wheels surrounding them and you have one truly mean looking street machine.

Many of my colleagues have termed the front of the EVO shark-like, but I tend to view it more like a Catfish. Think about that for a moment. The wide lower half of the grille does resemble one, but more to the point, the Catfish is known as a bottom feeder which prowls around the tank devouring everything in sight. Yes, in my mind, the Mitsubishi EVO is definitely a Catfish!!!

Now, just in case some of you haven’t read my EVO MR review, I’ll give you a quick recap to bring you up to speed... It’s radically quick, holds the road like glue, and the MR sports one of the quickest changing automatic transmissions that I’ve ever encountered.

We now move on to the GSR version, which is similar to the above, but you have to fiddle with a stick yourself. Of course, it costs a few grand less because of that, exactly $6k worth of difference when comparing the base prices (MR base: $47,498 – GSR base: $41,498).

Now what immediately springs to mind is the fact that the automatic MR version might suit downtown dwellers slightly better. After all, sitting in traffic playing with a manual transmission tends to get a little tiresome on ones clutch foot after a while. However, as I don’t reside downtown, we’ll leave them merrily pedaling their way to work on one of those god-awful cycle thingamabobs and come to the real crux of the matter, which is...which is more fun to drive, the auto or the stick?