Faults:

There have been minor issues with trim falling off, but that has been fixed with adhesive.

A more major issue is the ignition cylinder (where you insert the key), which has locked up twice and required towing, replacement, and re-keying the car (both incidents happened under 20,000 miles). This seems to be connected to some electrical issues (radio, A/C, heater) that have never been resolved.

General Comments:

By most measures, the car has been good. Most of the time only gasoline and oil changes are the things we tend to (along with regular services).

However, the running expenses are not as cheap as some (Honda, Toyota) because the mileage is not very good (21 mpg for a 2.4 liter 4-cylinder engine).

The back seat is very small and the rear seat does not fold down to increase rear storage.

The styling of the car is very nice on the exterior (very BMW like), but the interior suffers from plastic fake-wood.

Controls and gauges are very good. Radio controls could be better though.

Faults:

Rear defogger had 3 lines that did not work. Had dealer replace it, but the work was sent out to a glass shop that made a mess of the car. Molding trim that went from the base of the front windshield, over the roof, and down to the bottom of the rear glass had to be replaced twice due to the poor installation job of the rear window.

General Comments:

V-6 is definitely the way to go in this car. The 4-cylinder was a dog and almost couldn't get out of it's own way when I had one as a loaner car.

Mash the gas and prepare for take off! Some torque steer from the 195 HP jumping to the fairly light front end.

Comfortable seats make for a smooth ride, although road noise is easily noticed on the rougher surfaces.

Faults:

The dealer wants to perform services to the car that aren't listed in the maintenance service. Had the "carbon" cleaned out of the intake manifold, went from 29mpg to 26mpg.

Now the "service engine soon" light stays on after having the oil changed.

The front end now has a very loud squeak when turning the steering wheel.

General Comments:

Not able to drive car with out air blowing on defrost. Cabin gets unbearably hot, even with the windows open.

Faults:

Not one problem in the 20,000+ miles I have owned the car.

General Comments:

Comfortable, economical, reliable car.

Rather large 4 cylinder engine is quite peppy.

24 mpg commuting, almost 30 on trips.

Outstanding handling, good ride.

Interior materials average, poor interior/dome lighting.

Galants often criticized for rear seat room, but extra-long front seat tracks allow for plenty of room front or back (but not both). I'm 6'-3" and have plenty of room while driving. Adjustable seat height very helpful.

Faults:

Rusting in less than two months at all welded seams in the engine compartment, and throughout vehicle. The paint work is very poor.

Vibration continues, and gets worse when accelerating and at higher speeds. This remains and became worse after the best tires were installed by Goodyear. Goodyear to help resolve the problem replaced 7 tires; a total of eleven (11) tires including the original ones in less than one year.

Window outside and inside moldings have gone rotten and stunk until replaced. This problem is also present in the Eclipse.

Door panel padding and fabric separated from resting elbow while driving; padding is extremely poor.

The emission when first starting is like solvent, and it enters the passenger cabin if the wind is blowing right.

Passenger seat, when slightly reclined, rattles when going over the slightest bump.

Transmission has slop in lower speeds, and actually jerks when reengaging. At higher speeds, it has a hesitancy or lag to engage.

General Comments:

If looking at buying a Mitsubishi, don't. With all this 0 0 0 financing hoopla, why not 0 rust until the first payment?

Had a 2003 Mitsubishi Galant model with only 90 miles as loaner, and it already had rust showing in the welded seams. Owners of other 2000, 2001, and 2002 Mitsubishi vehicles allowed me to look at their cars, including other models besides the Galant, and the rust is also present close to the same time period.

If an owner of the Mitsubishi vehicle, any sign of rust should be addressed to the dealer before any new snow or cold weather arrives. Fix in 2002 or 2003.

If an unfortunate Mitsubishi owner, make sure to demand that a work order is initiated regarding the rust, and the dealer puts their response in writing on it, and you get a copy.

I would not suggest you accept any repair where Mitsubishi is having the body-shop to stand behind the "repair" work.

Mitsubishi Motors is at fault through their poor design and manufacturing for this rusting problem, and don't get stuck on having to deal with the body-shop when the rust breaks through again. Make sure that Mitsubishi guarantees the work in writing.

We had four quotes, and the body-shops stated that they could not guarantee the work, because the rusted areas are not accessible for repair; only a cover-up with paint is possible.

I have checked other Mitsubishi cars, including the Mitsubishi Eclipse, and all of the ones checked had rusting welded seams in the engine compartment. I could not elevate the cars at the time to see how bad the rusting was underneath. The owners and onlookers were surprised at how extensive the rust was.

Some Mitsubishi cars had areas as large as 2-1/2" in diameter where the metal and paint were lifting up (blistering) at the strut support welded seams, and the cars were less than two years old.

Any weakening of these areas can result in collapse of the strut supports and affect your steering, endangering you and others.

Also, the rust will weaken the welded seams, and affect the crashworthiness of the vehicle, again endangering you and others riding with you.

See my website at http://www.all-lemons.com for pictures of the car.