Comments: 1-15, 16-30, 31-45, 46-51
I own a 2003 Dimante.. guess what? The heater core went up at 70k miles.. carpet is a mess. The antenna motor went up almost the same time.. All 4 struts need replacing and I cannot keep a rear rotor/brake to save myself.
Has anyone filed a class action lawsuit yet? This is a disgrace for Mitsubishi!!!
Own a 2002 Diamante LS and should I even state the same things that have been said already. Only difference is that I had to replace a Knock sensor at 120,000 miles. Other than that all the same problems as stated before. Come on Mitsubishi make me proud of you again.
I own a 2003 Diamante and guess what!! The heater core just went out at 84,000 miles. I started smelling the same odor. I was told it would run anywhere from $1800.00 to $2000.00 to have it fixed. Now reading what everyone else has said, it may be time to get a new car.
To add to the comments; I have a 2002 Diamante and the same problem is happening to me. I shift the car into gear and the indicator light flashes from drive to neutral, and it doesn't accelerate like it's supposed to. I took it to my mechanic and he said it was the a/t relays, and he didn't see a leak on my heater core, but then I had a diagnostic (106.00) at the dealer, and he said it was my heater core and my relays to a tune of $1150.00, which I really don't have all the high prices of stuff, but my pay check remains the same; it's not fair. Advanced America here I come.
Reading through all these posts, it's clear I'm not alone.
1) My 2002 LS started fogging up the windows at 48,000 miles. It's the heater core issue. I'm going to try "Blue Devil" liquid to see if that permanently fixes the problem (even a 6-month fix is FINE with me).
2) At 43,000 miles, the radio antenna broke (I guess it's the mast and not the motor).
3) Like a previous poster, I had rust in the right rear wheel well. Fortunately, it was covered under Mitsubishi's Rust & Corrosion Warranty.
Hello!
I have a 2002 Mitsubishi Diamante LS and I love the car!
I have been problem free for almost 6 yrs.
I have developed the same problem as everyone else!! I started smelling anti-freeze at 77,000 miles and the windows fogged up. The dealer said it was the heating core and would cost $930.00 to replace.
The radiator fluid leaked on the ECU Computer Module/Relay and put the car into a "Safe Mode". Which means the care has to be taken back to the dealer to "clear" the problem. The car in safe mode starts the car out is 2nd gear and is not to be driven very far or damage may be casued to the motor/transmission.
I am waiting to find out if the computer has shorted out or if the relay needs replaced. The price from the dealer on the ECU computer was $1200 and if the relay switch is bad it would be $19.80!!
I would like to find out what legal action we could take as a group? Any suggestions on how to go about this from anyone??
Disgusted...
April 26, 2008.
I agree with you all! My TCL flashes also and was told it was a sensor. A $695 sensor! Today I was driving and my service engine soon light came on. I have 65,000 miles on my car. Could I be having the heating core problem? We need to get together and get a law suit up against Mit!
I own a 2003 Diamante VRX; it is a very cool looking car but the leak from the heater core finally took out the transmission relay. Luckily, after the tow to AAMCO, they fixed it for $200, but they said the heater core needs to be replaced for $1000. Mitsubishi should do something about this. I wanted to disconnect the heater core so I do not have to worry about it. Does anyone know how to do that? I live in Ca, and I really don't use my heater anyway. Good luck to everyone.
If I lived in a warm climate, I would bypass the heater core before I kept spending $1,500 on replacements, and would even consider it in a colder climate and install an electric heater.
I have a 99 with 136,000 miles and have had many of the same problems I see here (no heater core), but fix them myself saving a lot of money.
2001 Diamante @ 90,000 miles, heater core issues. I was told that I needed to replace the heater core at the sum of $1200.00. When I picked up my car from dealership and reviewed the bill, I realized that they only changed the O rings and did not replace the heater core. I believed I was ripped off by the Mitsubishi dealership. If Anyone knows of a class action lawsuit, please let me know. I am contacting the Mitsubishi corporate headquarters.
I purchased a used '02 Mitsubishi Diamante VR-X in 2007 with 85,000 miles. It too has the same anti freeze smell / leaking heat core problem so many others have experienced. I encourage you to submit your complaint via the national highway traffic safety agency website at http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/ivoq/. Only by a sufficent volume of consumer complaints will the US Gov't open an investigation with Mitsubishi, so speak up!
I fixed the heater core issue for now thru bypassing the heater core entirely with the coolant lines in the engine compartment. That is fine for the warmer months when I don't need the heat. I have purchased the heater core replacement orings, and will tackle this permanent fix in the fall.
Now I have a new issue - the ABS & TC lights flash on / off, and the ABS system kicks in intermittently when braking. Had a brake shop inspect all four brakes and said the pads / rotors were all fine. I see some discussion on the rear wheel ABS sensor as possible culprit. Plan to go to Auto Zone to see if they can read ABS codes. Last resort is going to Mit. dealer. Might also sign up for one of the on line repair manuals to download additional detail on troubleshooting ABS plus get the Mitsubishi technical bulletins issued on this subject.
Anyone out there have more info on this subject???
OH MY GODNESSSS. I just purchased my 02 Mitsbushi Diamante 6 months ago with 69K miles.. and now with 72K miles my passenger side has antifreeze leaking all over it (heater core).
Then I got in my car this morning, and while I was in Drive, it was flashing NEUTRAL and the car was acting like it was in neutral & drive. WEIRD. Huge transmission problem, and now it's in the shop for god knows how long.
As for the heater core problem, they told me it was going to be an OVER $1000 job, and they could not bypass it with my make/model.
If ANYONE has had their heatercore bypassed in the past, PLEASE let me know and email me at beachblndy84@yahoo.com within the next few days, so I don't waste $$ fixing it, because I'm just going to sell the car anyways.
Worst car EVER.
I recently began experiencing the same intermittant TLC/ABS warning light display as described above. I was trying to prep myself before taking it in for repair to avoid the dealer needing to go on a diagnostic fishing expedition when I came across this site. I now see that I am part of the 'Foggy Windshield' club. My repair for that was over $1200 and I was told by the dealer that the gasket failed between the heater core and the rest of the cooling system. The high cost was due to 'difficult access to re-attach the core and having multiple hours of shop time to clean the inside of the windshield defrost ducts to prevent re-fogging the windshield with coolant still in the duct. If that in not a description of terrible design, I don't know what is. I will continue to watch these postings to see if any effort for a recall starts.
I bought a 2002 Mitsubishi Diamante LS in August 2007. After about 3 weeks my heater core went out and stained my carpet. Smoke came out of my vents and my car overheated in about 3 seconds with no warning.
Then of course after I got that fixed, my transmission was doing the neutral thing in drive, and I took it to a shop; they replaced my transmission, which didn't do the trick, because it did the same thing a week later, I took it back and found out it was my heater core leaking on the relay. I was almost disgusted with the whole thing. It's now June 2008 and it's just all got fixed.
This is followup to my June 6th posting (02 Diamante VR-X) :
I signed up for online repair manual service (eautorepair.net $25 for 1 year). Smart move. It provided considerable detail on ABS system diagnostics and repair. With a multimeter, basic tools, and pair of car jack stands, I was able to confirm that the right rear wheel sensor was faulty (low AC voltage output). After much calling around, I found salvage yard that had a low mileage '02 Diamante in reasonable good condition and sold me the right right wheel hub w/sensorfor $150. The Mit. dealer quoted over $400 for new sensor (labor not included), and no auto parts stores or on line companies carry it. Fingers crossed that it will fix the ABS flashing light problem when I installed it this weekend.
No change on my heater core problem since I bypassed it earlier this summer. No more anti freeze smell problem or window fogging for now. I purchased the replacement o ring gaskets ($3.00) to fix the leakage, and have a procedure to install them without having to remove entire instrument panel. Reason for high cost +$1000 repair bill when you go to repair shop is that the whole instrument panel must be removed in order to replace the entire heater core unit. The leakage issue is due to faulty o ring gaskets, not the heater core unit itself.