It's never a good thing for an engine to crank and not start Oil pressure doesn't start to build up until approx 400 rpm and normal pressure is checked at 650 - 2000 rpm most engines. Start-up is where the most engine wear comes from so ideally you would want to have it start on the first revolution. Another thing to think about is the wear and tear on the starter, alt and battery system from long engine cranking. Do you have a check engine light on, if so, it's possibly a code Po335 or 340. This is a common hard or no start problem with the Lancer's. First you have to have the codes checked and if it turn's out to be one of these codes you need to get your hand's on a O-scope to check pattern's from component's in your ignition system to track the problem down. Should you have an engine light on and your driving it like that you are doing damage to your emission's systems. Check engine light's can no longer be ignored because ignoring them will cause cascade failures. So a simple $200. repair can turn into several thousand dollars in damage in a reasonably short time.
