Hey guys, have a few questions on the Lancer Ralliart. I would like your input on the car, the good and the bad. I have read over the forums from time to time and have seen a few trends with rust (this was esp in the evo forums) like 3 months after the car was bought. My current car has taken a nose dive and might be worth more to fix then its worth, so thinking about getting one of these. I have read some other sites (edmund) but would like a current/previous owners input. Thanks for your time and information in advance.

 

Rust?! That certainly doesn't sound good.

Well, my RA has been around for 3 months now, and there's no rust yet!

You will find within this forum that most of us love these cars. They're quick, handle well, are built well, and are just fun.

What kind of car are you driving right now? Also, what are you looking to get out of a new car (such as the RA) and do you have any specific questions? I mean, I could write a 10 page paper on why I like the Ralliart, but most of it may do no good to you if you're looking for specific answers. Let us know!

 

Well currently I am driving a 92 Saturn, I got it while I was in HS and drove it into the ground. Im done with college in May, and decided to upgrade my ride. I dont have the cash flow to afford an Evo, and the RA has pretty much everything I am looking for with out the 30k+ price tag.

What I am looking for out of the car is something that has some get up and go and looks good. I have loved the look of the Lancer for quiet some time, and from the reports I have read it has very good performance. Also I have seen some pics of some of the after market stuff done to them and really think it looks sharp. Believe me, I am no mechanic or car junky but I know how cars work, so go easy on me with the lingo =P. Although I am willing to learn.

Getting back to my original question is simply this. Are there any reliability issues with the car, does it have any trends with break downs in certain areas. That kind of stuff. Being fresh out of school money will be tight so I am looking for something that I can depend on that wont be breaking down on me every four months or so. By all means I would also love to hear the good about them.

I hope that makes sense, and thanks again in advance.

 

its reliable alright if you take good care of it, this is the prob with mitsu cars if you dont take good care of it, it'll drive like crap, not like toyotas if you dont take care of it, by this i mean like oil changes and stuff, it still drives fine but not mitsu

you might want to get the sun and sound system, cause that stuff is really2 nice, drive wise, its very quick, handling is firm and light, esp the seats, it holds you more in place than the normal lancers

the only set back is the re-sale value, but if you're going to have the car more than let say 3-4 years, it doesnt really matter

 

Well with any investment in my money I will be taking care of it with Oil changes ect but what else are we talking. I mean even on my Saturn I always made sure that I had it checked out every so often. Is there anything else by taking care of it and stuff?

The Sun and Sound is nice but dont know if I will opt for that. Im not huge on the sunroof, and I know people that can help me out on a sound system for the car.

 

nope, the car has a great growl with the stock muffler, quick and nice
good luck with your new car! hehe

 

Hey, I asked the same thing a bit ago, the basic responses I got as to reliability were positive...and lots of people refered to Eagle...as it was made by mitsu and there's still lots on the road...

you asked about rust being a problem, well I'm not sure if it is, but here it comes with warrenty of 120,000kms for drivetrain, and unlimited rust

...now I know that the car will eventually get at least a little rust, but I doubt they put a good rust warrenty on it if it's rust right away

 

The new warranty is definitely a bonus.

So far, I haven't run across any major problems with this car. A few guys have had theirs since mid-late November, and they've been fine too. The only minor things I can even think of are little dash rattles here and there, but those are things that can be fixed easily.

Also, this car is not high maintenance. If you follow your service manuals and go in at the specified intervals, it'll be all good. It uses regular octane gasoline and non-synthetic oil as well, so that's a plus for budget-oriented people.

This car seems solid to me so far. I think that it will continue to be this way for years to come. Mitsu has done a very good job in bringing sports-car features to a budget car and keeping the price right.

 

I've seen no sign of rust on mine - if I did I'd be quite unhappy since I only got the car in Nov. My other car is a 94 Colt (Mitsubishi), bought new in fall of 93 and I've been happy with it - that's why I bought another one. The car didn't have an easy life (I was a delivery driver for a while - went though a set of brake pads in 6 months), I didn't always keep up with oil changes etc. like I should have, and it still barely burns oil with 240,000 kms on it. As for maintenance, I only had to change oil, plugs and brake pads, and tires + the usual stuff, until last year. I put in it's first new struts, and the transmission had to be rebuilt. It even has the original exhaust on it. As for rust - the only rust that's on it is on the passenger side door - and that was due to to me hitting an ice covered embankment and scraping some of the paint - and then not fixing it properly. After waxing, it still shines up pretty good.

 

I bought my Ralliart in mid-November and I havent had any problems to speak of. Although there was a random windstorm in San Diego last night that blew a big umbrella in the air and it happened to land on my car and scratch my paint up a bit. A little bitter. But anyways, back on topic. The Car drives like a champ, little mods react well. Sounds mean. I havent had any recall work or anything warranty related done yet and I am now over 8K miles. I think if you end up buying the car you will b happy. I didnt get the sun and sound package cuz I didnt think it was worth $2K plus for that upgrade, but to each his own. Good luck and let us know if you need anything.

 

dammit! One more try. Give ya a glimpse.

 

It's a great car with no known issues. Like any other car on the planet, you could get the one that might have some problems but there's nothing specific that plagues the line. Follow the maint. outlined in the manual and you'll be good for 6 figure odometer readings. Good luck and enjoy.

 

I got mine in mid-nov as well (a week or so before thanksgiving). The only problem that I had was a bum strut from the factory. I was without my car for a day and they offered a loaner, but I just used my parents car while I was home one weekend. They didn't hassle me about getting the strut replaced, like some car companies would do. All in all I really like the car, like others mentioned it has fairly crisp handling, good get-up-n-go, nice styling, etc. I would second the thought that you would be happy if you got into this car.

 

The only negative thing I can think of to say about my car is that the doors arent padded where I rest my elbow, and sometimes it can hurt! Other than that it's been great.

 

The door panels are pretty crappy from an audio point of view....they rattle bad sometimes because of the extra bass....that's my only huge complaint, though...