Does Anyone Know Much About Mitsubishi Galants?

[Stanky]

So, I have been scratching my head about a replacement for my little Almera which is reliable and thrifty but is looking a bit shabby after 19 years of oxidisation and giffer related damage. I drive approx 25k miles a year and am after something sort of Ford Mondeo size in either saloon or estate flavour. It also needs to be pezzer-powered as I don't like the power delivery or potential catastrophic expense of a modern-ish diesel.

 

I have narrowed my list down from about 15 cars including Mk3 mondeos (scared of DMF failure); Mazda 6's (rust); Pisshats (apparently the NA engines are somewhat lacklustre and a TSI/FSI sounds like a world of pain). this has left me with the possibility of a 1998 - 2003 Mitsubishi Galant in either 2 litre/4 cylinder or 2.5 litre/6 cylinder guises. From what I have read they are reliable cars, a cambelt on a 4 cylinder will live for 50k miles and should only take a couple of hours to change with the engine in situ, the v6s have a shorter cambelt life but this is understandable.

 

Downsides are that bodywork can be expensive though I'm relatively handy with fibreglass and Mrs_Stanky's uncle runs a bodyshop so we can get good rates if the worst happens. Also the road noise is 'not the best in class' but to be honest after driving my Almera for 25k miles over the velvety* smooth* roads of Hampshire, a penny farthing will probably feel luxuriously cosseting in comparison. The 2 litre engine is supposed to be good for real-world economy of high 30's - 40mpg (which is acceptable as my almera is getting 44mpg over 28,000+ miles, as attested by fuelly). 

 

My ideal spec would be 2.0 litre, manual, petrol estate with cloth trim from 2002 - 2003. There is a red one near-ish to me on auto-raider for £795 currently with 92k on the clock which perfectly fits this specification but I'm not looking to buy until around easter. Budget will stretch to £2k for the right car, though from what I can see around right now this should be plenty.

 

Has anyone had one of these, and offer any insight into what to look out for? I'd like a 2.5 v6 one but by the sounds of things I'd struggle to top 30mpg even on a run so that'd seriously damage my wallet in fuel consumption. I spend around £300 a month on pez currently so that would be heading towards £450 if I opted for the v6, whereas the 2.0 petrol shouldn't* cost me more than £350 or so. I'm happy to accept better motorway legs and generally more refined motoring for a bit more cash.

 

Insurance for the 2 litre isn't dramatically different to what I pay now, tax is higher but shouldn't be more than £280 for a year, even with the post 2001 banding system.

 

 

 

[carlo]

Don't know too much about these although I was looking at them at one stage, I remember Autocar being very complimentary about them in 1997 when the V6 saloon was launched.  I think at that price range I wouldn't discount the V6 models - just get the nicest car you can find.  The difference between 25mpg and 30mpg won't matter so much if you save £500 odd on the purchase price.

[skattrd]

I don't know much about them either, but I do like them.

I've heard good and bad things about Mitsubishi GDi engines though. Apparently they need to be run on super unleaded as running them on normal unleaded can lead to expensive injector/pump problems. In good condition the GDi engines can be quite economical as well.

[tooSavvy]

Hmm... GDi?

 

This the one where the piston crown resembles a snapped off valve head

 

 

TS

[Stanky]

Thanks for the feedback, much appreciated!

 

From what I've read the GDI engines can be troublesome and don't bring a lot to the party that wasn't already there with the non-GDI 2.0 and 2.5 engines. I think I'll avoid them unless there is a very good reason not to - economy is good but not at the expense of new injectors and fuel pump!

 

I've read up a lot on them and contemporary roadtests seem to indicate they were good cars and reviews of them more recently haven't suggested they rust any quicker than any contemporary rival for example. Things to look out for seem to be Service History (as per any used buy!) and damaged bodywork. Apparently the autobox can be troublesome but I'd much rather have a manual so I'll discount any slushbox equipped cars I find. Also the brakes can be a pain point, it seems they can become imbalanced and it tugs to one side under braking. by the sounds of things this should be fairly easy to spot on a test drive so I'll bear this in mind when going to look at potential purchases.

 

Any other opinions or suggestions for alternatives to consider would be greatly received.

[garethj]

We had one as family transport for a couple of years, it was one of the few cars you can get three booster seats in the back.  Ours was the 2.5 V6 with manual gearbox and a fair stack of standard equipment, aircon, electric windows, leather seats, that kind of thing.  It was very smooth but not particularly powerful, the engine doesn't encourage thrashing but it's quick enough.

 

Ride and handling was good, the rear suspension has some fiendish passive steering arrangement which means it hangs on really well and doesn't feel squirmy when you go a little faster.  Boot space was good too and if you get one in good condition they are nicely quiet inside, certainly up to 100mph.

 

It was really Mrs_garethj's car so I don't remember fuel economy, just over 30 sounds about right although you might get up to 35mpg on a long run.  Nothing special but not bad if you don't do many miles.  The only fault it had was noisy gearbox bearings which we got fixed, otherwise it never failed an MoT, never broke down, didn't even blow a fuse.

 

The only thing that finished ours off was being hit by an oncoming car which crossed the central reservation.  I was doing 65mph, she was doing about the same, ouch.  The car was completely wrecked after rolling down the road several times.  I had a small scratch on my hand and didn't realise how many airbags it was possible to cram into one vehicle.  If we could have found another one that hadn't been chavved up, we'd have got another exactly the same.

[trigger]

Pete_M has/had an imported sport estate model, I think they are a great looking car, I used to drive a lot of them for the local Mitsubishi dealer when they were new and found them to be a nice car, if a little bland driving wise.

 

The later one's were more sporty looking with tinted headlights and bodykits which really made them look the bees knees.

[Stanky]

Gareth, out of interest how many miles did you rack up? The ones on Auto-Raider right now seem to have north of 90k on the clocks which isn't a lot for a modern-ish engine but I'm interested if its worthwhile looking for a leggier one on the basis it will probably be cheaper. I had a Mk2 Mondeo several years ago which I bought cheaply as it had a 'high' mileage of 135k. I put 20k on it in 2 years without any problems and sold it to my brother in law who has put another 20k on it and its still going strong.

 

Glad to hear the 2.5 doesn't need thrashing to death to extract performance, I'd like a bigger engine but wasn't sure if it was a screamer or a cruiser. Sounds as though it may be the latter which suits me down to a tee.

 

Trigger, I agree the later ones look sporty without looking like someone won the lottery and went straight to Halfords. Forgot to say that reviews say they are a little bland to drive but the alternatives I'm also considering (Passat, Mk3 Mondeo, Avensis) aren't going to win many prizes in this area either!

 

Again, thank you all for your input - Its much appreciated.

[garethj]

I think we took ours from about 90,000 to 120,000,maybe a little higher. It's no Ferrari to drive but better than a Japanese minicab of the same era

[Bren]

Had one from 2004 until 2012 - ours was a 2.0 auto. A bit gutless and pish on fuel - low twenties around town, mid thirties on a run. Rear arches are the only weak spot body wise.

 

Despite only having 75k on the clock it shit itself when the crank pulley went - it started throwing off the drive belts and the damage had spread to the timing belt and cover - more than the car was worth.

 

New crank pulley was fitted and car swiftly moved on.

 

The youngest is now 11 years old - mitzi spares are horrendous, a minor fault could mean a trip to the bridge.

[Stanky]

Hi Bren,

 

Is that just genuine Mitsubishi parts, or are pattern parts similarly exorbitantly priced? I try to buy ECP parts wherever possible and have priced up service items which seem no worse than my current Almera in terms of cost. I've not looked into the costs of non-service items so thanks for pointing that out.

 

re rear arches, I assume it would be quite obvious if these were going? they don't rust in secret places then the car suddenly snaps in half?

[RichardM1]

On a slightly off-topic note, my 99 Avensis 1.8 (hatch, not estate mind) has been a model of reliability, and according to my very unofficial calculations returns 48mpg on a run - and I MIGHT be looking to sell around easter (getting permission from DM permitting)...

[Stanky]

Thanks for letting me know Richard, Avensis came in the top 3 so I'd be very interested if you are looking to sell in a couple of months.

 

Hatch isnt a problem, I'm basically after something with a bigger boot than the Almera and which is a bit more 'at home' at 70mph on the M3, so a 1.8 Avensis should tick these boxes neatly. Obviously this will change but how many miles has it done, and what shape is the bodywork in? Any idea how much OMGCA$$$HMONEYZZZ you'd be looking for?

[RichardM1]

Brief history:

 

It was bought new by my grandfather and has been in the family since. 38,000 miles on the clock (genuine,too!)

It had a few parking scrapes during it's time with him, all of which had been resprayed to a not-very-good standard. I've had new bumpers along with a few other bits on it to smarten it up. There isn't a hint of rust or bubbling paint anywhere on the bodywork, I've never had a proper look underneath though.

 

Something like £800 sound reasonable? I don't really know what it's worth but that should go a long way towards my next car!

 

R

[Stanky]

Hi Richard,

 

Yes, thats exactly the sort of thing I'm after! May I have first refusal if it does go up for sale? 

 

Happy to conduct over PM (to keep the vultures away )

 

Huw

[Vince70]

When I worked for a printers years ago we had 5/6 colour Mitsubishi B1 printing presses and the engineers had estate Galants as company cars (always seemed to be a metallic black if I remember)..

 

The cars would do a serious amount of miles per year heading all over the country on a day to day basis and proved reliable motors if a touch juicy if I remember..

 

It's the shame that the same couldn't be said for the Mitsubishi Diamond offset press as it was a complete pile of cack hence the need for the service engineers clocking up the mileage in there Galants..

 

We had one Mitsubishi engineer who was on a permanent loan to us as you could guarantee a major problem on daily basis on press..

 

It was either that or maybe his Galant had broken down

 

But I did have a mate who was a top notch Volvo mechanic for a main dealer and he said never buy a Volvo with the Mitsubishi engine..

I think it may have been the S/V 40 he was on about but I don't know it it shares the same engine as a Galant..

[Station]

PeteM has a 'Legnum', which is basically a Galant.

I think they're one of the most aggressive looking cars on the road, and the non performance ones can be had for pence. I'd love a diesel estate!

[wuvvum]

Both manuals and autos have gearbox issues (although I think the autos are worse).  That and rear arch rust that would make a Rover 100 blush are the main drawbacks on the earlier cars.  They drive well, look good (although the wheels look too small on boggo versions imho) and are usually pretty well equipped.  2.0 is a tad underpowered but decent on pez; never owned a V6 model but I've heard good things.

[mercedade]

My ideal spec would be 2.0 litre, manual, petrol estate with cloth trim from 2002 - 2003.

 

That's what I ditched to get my Vitesse (well, in 2000/X flavour anyway)

 

To be honest it fell firmly into 'dull but worthy' category. It looked a lot better than it was to drive. I did about 9k miles in about 6 months and didn't think it was brilliant on fuel (mid 30s).

 

Engine was kind of gutless feeling, never had any bother getting up to required speed or anything, there was just no excitment getting there. My Mk2 Mongdeo Si was much more sprightly. In fact it was pretty much better in every way.

 

In the time I owned the Galant, I bought a rear luggage cover to make it usable.

 

As for repairs though....

 

Inner tie rod and end

Drop links

Front discs and pads

 

And in all that time, still never managed to shift the vibration when braking at speed.

 

I also fitted a new downpipe (blowing at the flexi section) which was a right ballache (no bother disconnecting from the outlet manifold, but absolutely rusted solid at the cat)

 

And it also needed an alternator and clutch slave when I sold it, but the parts didn't arrive until a week after I'd sold it by which time I'd lost the contact details of the guy who bought it. (I still have these, keep meaning to ebay them!)

 

The biggest boot I've ever seen in real life. Managed to plonk a washing machine in the back without having to drop the seats.

 

7/10

[Junkman]

Them is J-tin, which I avoided hitherto based on the grounds, that you may need some very trivial spare in order to proceed, which then all of a sudden is made from a laminate of unobtainium and OMG£££bumrape.

I recently bought a 1988 Colt and the first thing is exactly that - the fuel filler neck is rotten (apparently a common fault on these, even much newer ones are affected), which means you cannot fill up an otherwise perfectly functional car, which is detrimental to being able to use it.

 

The pipe is £130.00 (for a foot of bloody PIPE, for crying out fuck!) plus Vehemently Annoying Tax, but still unavailable new or used.

Hence the car is dead-lined for the time being.

[New POD]

Whilst in the USA I had a hire car that was badged Mitusubisi Galant. It was pretty crap.

 

Why not a Honda Accord Estate like this http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201401141019001/sort/default/usedcars/radius/1501/price-to/2500/onesearchad/used%2Cnearlynew%2Cnew/make/honda/body-type/estate/postcode/l378bt/page/1/model/accord/fuel-type/petrol?logcode=p

[Guest Tony Hayers]

All I know is don't expect it to sell within 4 days of being advertised. Especially to a forum of bitter, bearded moaning bastards.

 

You have been warned.

[trigger]

I wish I could grow a beard.

[Stanky]

OMG U LOT HAVENT FOUND THE EXACT CAR I WANTED WITHIN 30 SECONDS I'M JUMPING OFF A BRIDGE F U ALL

 

Thanks for the tip New POD, A guy at work has a '55' plate Honda Acrid Diesel and really rates it. I've driven and it is a pretty nice to be. I'll have a look at Auto-raider for some pezzer ones shortly. 

 

Sounds like the general consensus is that the Mitsubishi is OK, but has its foibles just like the other cars on my list. I suppose any 10 year old car will have issues (OMG SO UNFAIR I HATE ALL MANUFACTURERS THEY HAVE WOUNDED ME etc etc) - probably worth going and test driving some potential candidates and getting some actual experience.

 

Again, thanks all for the input, it is very much appreciated.

[twosmoke300]

Don't get the diesel accord . The 2 and 2.4 petrols are brilliant.

[gordonbennet]

My first post, so be gentle.

 

Mitsi are decent enough motors, my Mrs has an 04 plate Outlander 1, fortunately its running on LPG cos you'd need some dosh to keep up with its drink problem otherwise.

 

The dealer, miserable bunch of buggers, has proved itself not great at sorting out problems, help if they were even slightly interested i s'pose, (my old school) LPG geezer sorted the non LPG problem out in no time the old way of proper elimination and a good dose of common sense.

 

Worse though is the genuine parts prices, shocking, eg both headlights could do with replacing as the lenses crack (known problem), they're £250 odd a side, sod that, but apart from the usual service and friction items which are as cheap as any, Mitsi don't have a great aftermarket spares following.

 

OK, this is bugger all to do with Galants, except the 2.4 4 pot petrol in her Outy is i believe an option in Galant, but just an oversight into my experience of Mitsi...the car itself is a cracker, permanent 4WD and will take a twisty bumpy road at frankly terrifying speed without a murmer, typical Japanese electrics, everything works and simply, but the dealer and parts back up isn't a patch on Toyota.

 

I know someone who has run the slightly smaller Carisma, more or less a Volvo S40 under the skin (underneath you'd struggle to tell them apart), and apart from avoiding the GDi engines they seem to be a pretty bombproof car....as is the S40 itself, this car both makes has a well deserved no nonsense bangernomics reputation.

 

If you fancy a 4x4, i would suggest one of the last of these mk1 Outlanders (f'ugly mind), they facelifted it slightly in 05 and replaced the headlights with a different type eliminating the only real problem the motor has, but for Christs sake don't get one unless its either got LPG or you're prepared to fit it...remember this model goes into £470 VED if regd after Mar '06.

 

There you go, my first waffling post of unadulterated rubbish, get used toowit it'll only gets worse...    assuming i don't get banned before i start.

[Stanky]

Thanks Gordon, And welcome (though I'm a relative n00b myself!)

 

from reading a bit more it seems that as long as nothing goes wrong with a Galant then they are a good car but even something relatively trivial can render an otherwise good example a write off on economy grounds. 

 

Due to my job being put 'at risk' at work today I think I'm going to have to thank all and sundry for their kind input but the most economical way forward for me is going to involve dealing with some of the bits and bobs on the otherwise massively reliable, if somewhat unrefined Almera, at least until:

 

A ) the axe falls and I get a redundancy payout to blow on something totally unsuitable

B ) the company I work for wins another substantial contract and the 'at risk' is lifted.

 

Onward!