Mitsu Sportback Long-Term Test Drive: Passing on the Memories

Jul 28 2010 by Kristin Varela

As a youngster, I used to spend every summer weekend at my dad’s lake house, which is really just a nasty hunting lodge on a reservoir that’s loaded with dirty catfish, but don’t tell him I said that. Some of my fondest memories are of getting into my dad’s Suburban at the end of the weekend—exhausted from so much fun in the sun—and snuggling down into the piles of pillows and sleeping bags packed around me.

Now I’m passing those memories on to the next generation.  Last weekend, the girls and I packed up the 2010 Mitsubishi Lancer Sportback Ralliart and headed east on the highway, bumped along the quaint bovine-lined country road and then traipsed through the overgrown weed path to the lodge.  The Sportback handled all of those different conditions supremely, but where it really shined was in swallowing all of our gear at the end of the weekend.

I’m not sure why, but it seemed like our “stuff” multiplied for the return trip.  What was once a neatly organized and tightly packed cargo space, evolved into a horrific mess of sand-filled shoes, wet bathing suits and the like.  The Sportback’s hatchback design invited us to live out of the back of the car, using it as home base for the weekend.

My only challenge now that we’re home is getting the bug guts off the windshield and cow dung out of the tire treads.