Of course, when we took on the Mitsubishi we knew it was going to be no ordinary long-termer. The RS Sprint is a trackday version of the Evo VII, created by the UK outpost of Ralliart (now Xtreme Autos), and as such an even more uncompromising device than the regular GSR. Despite its apparent practicality, to use it on the daily commute was rather inappropriate, a little uncomfortable and felt almost illicit - effectively it was a four-door Caterham R500.

The basis of the RS Sprint is a lightweight and unadorned Japanese-spec Evo that lacks ABS and Active Yaw Control and has wind-up windows. Xtreme Autos adds Recaro seats, even firmer suspension, even faster steering (2.2 turns between locks), lightly treaded Yokohamas and an even more powerful engine. Stronger con-rod bolts allow the boost to be raised from 1.0 to 1.4bar, and with an HKS Superflow induction kit, peak outputs of the 2-litre four-pot turbo hit 320bhp and 327lb ft (up 40bhp and 40lb ft).

That uplift doesn't fully explain why the RS Sprint feels so much more aggressively accelerative than the GSR. The shorter gearing of the donor car magnifies the performance to what is, initially, an almost overwhelming level.

After my first drive in the RS, I genuinely doubted that I'd be able to live with it for 10,000 miles. Down a favourite B-road on that dark, damp night, its resiliently stiff ride, neck-snapping on/off power delivery, manically short gearing and hard-edged intake blare left me feeling as if I'd been assaulted.

It took time to adapt. Work the RS hard through the gears on a demanding road and there's almost too much going on for you to feel in control. Better to stick to fourth and fifth gears - even in fifth, there's massive acceleration from as little as 40mph. Slow down your steering inputs, work the wheel smoothly so that you're not exciting the chassis, allowing the 4wd system and sticky rubber to keep its grip, and you find you can go faster.

It was a few months before we tried the RS on track, by which time it had revealed a worryingly healthy appetite for consumables. We rarely saw over 20mpg, restricting the range to 150 miles, and the first set of tyres (which had seen only road use), was replaced at the first service at 4500 miles. The second set didn't last as long, just making it to the end of our two-day Trackday Car of the Year 2002 test at the Bedford Autodrome.

Mind you, the Evo proved brilliantly entertaining, feeling responsive and agile like a 1260kg saloon shouldn't and slipping into lurid-looking but easily held four-wheel power slides. Significant brake fade after three hard laps and the tyre wear were worries. Driving more slowly would have helped both last longer but it's so hard not to drive the Evo flat-out. Through our time with the car, RS Sprint virgins would hand the key back with a shake of the head and a nervous half-laugh. Occasionally they'd shoot a look that said 'rather you than me', which I took to mean 'rather your licence than mine'.

Soon after TCOTY, the RS was part of the 'Power to the People' feature which gathered together the latest crop of affordable driver's cars, by which time it was on its third set of tyres, this time Michelin Pilot Cups. We were keen to try another road-legal 'trackday' tyre to see if the wear rate of the Yokohamas was par for the course. The Michelins were slightly narrower (225 versus 235 section), gave pretty much the same grip, were a little noisier, made the Evo no less nervous and wore out just as quickly. It was no surprise that the RS made the final five - what else offers 320bhp, 4wd, 0-60 in 4.4sec and 150mph for a fiver less than ΂£26,000?

Co-ed Meaden wrote: 'Accelerating in the RS is like being caught in a series of explosions, as each gear releases a furious store of energy.' Unfortunately, while he was tweaking it up for the cornering shots, he locked up a front wheel (no ABS, remember) and nose-dived off the road. The undertray and various expensive bits behind the bumper were rearranged, landing us with a repair bill of just over ΂£2200.

The Michelins were exterminated by a hugely entertaining evoactive trackday at Donington Park. We decided to replace them with a set of a regular high-performance tyres - Pirelli P-Zero Neros - because we were using the RS more on road than track and winter was looming. Ultimate dry road grip may have been sacrificed but the Pirellis made a positive difference, quelling some of the Evo's nervousness and improving its ride and wet grip.

Soon after, the brakes were upgraded with a pair of monster front discs and six-pot Alcon monobloc callipers. We took the Evo back to the TCOTY circuit to check their fade resistance and they breezed it, though the conversion wasn't convincingly positive - the pedal was a touch too sensitive and the nose got a little grabby under sustained braking from high speed. The Pirellis gave more movement in cornering but maintained the Evo's entertaining balance and accuracy.

After a doubtful start 11 months ago, I thoroughly enjoyed running the RS Sprint. I'd hesitate to recommend it as an only car, just as I'd hesitate to recommend our Lotus 340R, because although the Evo has a roof and doors, it's almost as uncompromising as the Lotus. Even going gently you can't expect more than 20mpg or more than 5000 miles from a set of trackday-style tyres, and services come up every 4500 miles. If you rack up the miles it's an expensive car to run. Personally, I'd fit a set of quality road tyres like the Pirellis, which enhance the RS's on-road useability and should give a bit more trackday mileage. On them, only a hardened Caterham or Radical driver would complain about a lack of sharpness because the Evo is full-on, whether you're going down the Craner Curves or going to work.

We did pile on the miles and can report that despite the RS Sprint's gob-smacking performance, in over 10,000 miles absolutely nothing went wrong; it didn't use a drop of oil and there was not a squeak from the interior. It seems that durability and reliability can go hand in hand with extreme