Mirage

On Thu, 31 Jan 2008 16:06:32 GMT, against all advice, something compelled "jhardin43" , to say:

The optimum time to ask is *before* you buy one. However, (and just to annoy bughat), I have a '97 Diamante with >143,000 on it, and it starts right up every time. I had the timing belt changed at 120000, and it has given me zero problems.

The only fly in my ointment is that there is some special transmission fluid that is only available to Mitsubishi dealers, so if you want the transmission serviced, you are pretty much locked into going to a dealership for it. Other than that, I have no real complaints.

I may be wrong, but believe Mitsubishi transmissions were designed (and possibly are manufactured by) Chrysler. I know my 1991 300GT automatic used Chrysler ATF+3, which used to only be available from the Chrysler dealer, but subsequently became available at auto parts and discount stores. Chrysler improved the ATF+3 and are now selling ATF+4, which is a synthetic trans fluid that is supposed to be better and last longer. ATF+4 is pretty much directly backward compatible with ATF+3 and up until last year was also only available at the dealer. The good news is that ATF+4 is now being sold at our local Wal-Mart, but it is still a bit pricey at ~$4/quart. That said, it is the ONLY fluid to use for Chrysler transmissions since using anything else could cause major transmission problems and incur major expense.

Bob

According to Quaker State customer service the ATF+3 is not fully compatible with the Diamond SP which is available only at the stealership. I did a lot of homework on this before I changed the fluid in my daughter's '00 Mirage. I chose to pay the extra for the Diamond just to play it safe.

To reference the OP's question, as far as reliability goes, other than maintenance items, the total repairs due to breakage have been a stainless hose clamp to secure a loose heat shield on the exhaust and the spring gizzy that flips open the fuel door. The total is under $5.