The hotter the MR's brakes became, the shorter the car stopped until it owned braking records outright from 60, 70 and 80 mph. Normally, pushing on the brake and dead pedal are enough to hold you in your seat; in the Forcedfed MR, our elbows were practically locked to keep our chest off the airbag. Fourteen-inch rotors working on 275mm tires stopped the Forcedfed car in 98 feet from 60 mph and 179 feet from 80 mph, 12 and 21 feet shorter respectively than the excellent stock numbers.
Brakes with this kind of velocity-retarding impact are usually found on cars with slicks and work only when blistering hot. Pedal feel, travel and feedback are superb even when cold and superlative when hot. Forcedfed screwed on STaSIS Engineering's EVO big brake kit, which uses six-piston, differential-bore AP Racing monoblock calipers and huge two-piece rotors. And there's a 14.4-inch kit available in case stopping in these record distances with superb feel isn't enough. SBS track pads are used up front, and the rear brakes are stock with the exception of Ferrodo 3000 pads.
Ohlins single-adjustable dampers are mated with 600-lb/in. springs in the front and 800-lb/in. springs in the rear, and these racecar rates translate to a racecar ride. Cusco camber plates give the big front meats huge camber. Rotating an all-wheel-drive car with such mechanical grip can be difficult, but is managed surprisingly easily with a Progress 25mm rear anti-roll bar.
Great plains of R-compound rubber are tucked under rolled fenders. Toyo RA1s sized 275/35-18 are worn by 18x9.5-inch 5Zigen FN01RC wheel for our testing; at track attacks the car spins Hoosiers of the same dimension. There's lots of tire noise and they collect rocks like J. Lo does, but who cares?
While the 1.04 g it generates on the skidpad is nothing to shake a stick at, the Forcedfed MR blitzes through the slalom at 76.9 mph, just a tenth off the record-setting JIC RX-8 that excelled at that test and not much else. This EVO was not the most directionally stable vehicle ever to pass through the cones, but that's part of the reason it's fast.
The Forcedfed MR is a tool, assembled with a singular aim to excel in one motorsport discipline. There are, as a result, compromises. You have to drive the car a gear lower than in stock form to take advantage of a powerband that doesn't come on full boogie until 5000 rpm, and whose torque peak is almost 2000 rpm later. The clutch engages with the finesse of a bear trap. More compliance is built into the suspension on a Razor scooter.
This MR has lost the ease with which you can generate world-beating numbers and cream backroads in the stock machine, but is transformed into a brute of terrific capability, which expresses its purity by raising its middle finger. For all our beating, the car never felt tired or stressed, but rather overbuilt, like all chisels should be.
We step post-test into a stock MR and the experience is disappointing, as if Buick engineers sprayed it with their suck gun. We find ourselves waiting for a turbo rush that never arrives and have to constantly be reminded that we are driving one of our very favorite cars. Perspective can be unkind.
Forcedfed Lotus EliseEngineEngine Code: 2ZZ-GEType: Inline four, aluminum block and headExternal Modifications: Forcedfed turbo kit with tri-Y stainless-steel exhaust manifold, custom air intake system, sealed aluminum intercooler duct, air-to-air intercooler with dedicated puller fan and thermostat, 3-inch stainless-steel exhaust and flanged removable high-flow catalytic converter, Garrett GT28R turbocharger, Bosch recirculating BOV, modified oil panEngine Management Modifications: Unichip plug-and-play ECU, 550cc injectors
DrivetrainLayout: Transverse mid-engine, rear-wheel driveDrivetrain Modifications: ACT Stage I clutch
SuspensionFront: -hlins double-adjustable coil-overs with 250-lb/in. springsRear: -hlins double-adjustable coil-overs with 300-lb/in. springs
ExteriorWheels: 17x7.5-inch SSR CompetitionTires: 205/40-17 (F), 225/45-17 (R ) Toyo Trampio R888 middle compound
PerformanceAccelerationQuarter Mile: 12.5 sec. @ 114 mph0-30 mph: 1.8 sec.0-60 mph: 4.4 sec.0-100 mph: 10.1 sec.HandlingSlalom Speed (700-ft. slalom): 76.5 mphSkidpad (200-ft. diameter): 1.08 gBraking80-0 Stopping Distance: 180 ft.70-0 Stopping Distance: 136 ft.60-0 Stopping Distance: 100 ft.
Forcedfed Mitsubishi EVO MREngineEngine Code: 4G63Type: Inline four, cast-iron block and aluminum headInternal Modifications: Revolver 262 degree intake and 264 degree exhaust cams and AEM cam gearsExternal Modifications: Forcedfed tri-Y stainless-steel exhaust manifold, Garrett GT3076 turbocharger, TiAL 38mm wastegate, TiAL blow-off valve, Forcedfed 3-inch stainless exhaust and front-mount intercooler kit, GReddy catch can, Forcedfed engine damperEngine Management Modifications: Autronic plug-and-play standalone ECU, Walbro 255-liter/hr fuel pump, 780cc injectors
DrivetrainLayout: Transverse front engine, all-wheel driveDrivetrain Mods: Cusco twin-plate clutch, SR Motorsports short shifter, SR Motorsports 9.75-lb. Flywheel
SuspensionFront: -hlins single-adjustable coil-overs with 600-lb/in. springs, Cusco camber plates Rear: -hlins single-adjustable coil-overs with 800-lb/in. springs, Progress 25mm anti-roll bar
BrakesFront: STaSIS/Alcon six-piston calipers and 13.9-in. two-piece rotors, SBS track compound brake padsRear: Ferrodo 3000 rear brake pads
ExteriorWheels: 18 x 9.5-inch 5Zigen FN01RCTires: 275/35-18 Toyo RA1
InteriorSparco harness bar and harness
PerformanceAccelerationQuarter Mile: 12.4 sec. @ 115 mph0-30 mph: 1.6 sec.0-60 mph: 4.3 sec.0-100 mph: 9.5 sec.HandlingSlalom Speed (700-ft. slalom): 76.9 mphSkidpad (200-ft. diameter): 1.04 gBraking80-0 stopping distance: 179 ft.70-0 stopping distance: 135 ft.60-0 stopping distance: 98 ft.