Hi Doom,
A DOHC Vti is defintely better than the mivec, but not sure abt the
SOHC Vti though. But by far, Honda is definitely a better car than
Mitsubishi in general.
A mid-99 Lancer will cost u abt 70k in the current 2nd hand car
market. Of cos, think this price can be cut by a further few
thousands.
Nevertheless, these 2 cars look great, with some slight mod here
and there. If you are going for a mivec, try to go for a manual
one.