Overview & Reviews

Mitsubishi has built its brand in the United States with a selection of cars and SUVs that tend to offer above-average performance and style. The parent company has its roots in producing commercial vehicles for its home market of Japan.

A Japanese word meaning "three diamonds," Mitsubishi was founded in by Yataro Iwasaki, a descendant of samurais, in the early 1870s. The company's initial focus was on shipping, but it quickly diversified into areas such as mining and ship repair. In 1917, Mitsubishi unveiled the Model A, Japan's first series production passenger car.

It wasn't until 1960, with the launch of the compact Mitsubishi 500, that the company began producing passenger vehicles on a large scale. That decade also saw the launch of other Mitsubishi light passenger vehicles like the 360 Van and 360 Pickup. The company also distinguished itself on the racetrack during this decade, taking top honors in Japan's Grand Prix.

Mitsubishi's automobile production arm was officially spun off into a company of its own with the establishment of Mitsubishi Motors Corporation in 1970. The company's Colt made its way to American shores in 1971, the same year in which Chrysler purchased a 15 percent stake in the new company. However, the Colt wasn't sold under the Mitsubishi name, but rather under the Dodge brand, reflecting Chrysler's interest in the company. By the end of the decade, Mitsubishi was producing more than 1 million cars per year.

In 1982, Mitsubishi began selling cars in the U.S. under its own name. Through the '80s it offered a variety of cars for the states, including the subcompact Mirage, turbocharged Starion sports car and midsize Galant sedan. Mitsubishi hit its stride in the '90s, thanks to the popularity of the Eclipse sport coupe and 3000GT sports car in the U.S. and the turbocharged Lancer Evolution in other parts of the world.

Chrysler made the most of its partnership, as it used Mitsubishi platforms under many of its models. The Eclipse, in particular, was a key vehicle produced by the Diamond Star Motors partnership. In 1998, Chrysler merged with Daimler-Benz to become DaimlerChrysler. Mitsubishi's partnership continued with DaimlerChrysler for a few years but was financially terminated by 2003.

The new millennium has been a struggle for Mitsubishi. Its vehicles have grown stale with consumers and sales have wavered. At one point the company was forced to admit that it had systematically covered up vehicle defects in Japan. On the upside, though, the company's compact, high-performance sedan, the Lancer Evolution, has been a continuing success in the United States. Going forward, Mitsubishi plans to revitalize its brand by developing environmentally friendly vehicles (such as its all-electric "i" hatchback) that are still fun to drive.

User Reviews:

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  Best Looking Car Ever - 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer
  By SpartanHelios - March 16 - 9:10 pm

  This is my first new car and I cant think of a better vehicle to ride in. The car has the best character lines I have ever seen. I would highly recommend this vehicle to anyone even considering a Civic, Corolla or a Scion. The most bang for your buck in this class period.

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  Good Car! - 2003 Mitsubishi Eclipse
  By Javi - March 16 - 10:00 am

  Great Car, though I would probably recommend the GT or GTS for the bigger engine.

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  Great looking / performing car for the price - 2000 Mitsubishi Diamante
  By farazrehman - March 14 - 7:30 pm

  I purchased my 2000 Mitsubishi Diamante last August for two main reasons, its price and features. I couldnt find a similarly equipped toyota Camry or Honda Accord for my $9,500 budget. A few months later, the heater core O-ring failed and coolant started leaking into the vent system. The fix was costly, about $1,100 but the car has been running without a problem since. The Diamante has lots of power under the hood, the acceleration is good but the transmission gets confused sometimes i.e. downshift may not happen immediately when you need a quick boast. The interior is quiet and its ride quality is somewhere between good and excellent. The Diamante is clearly more biased towards comfort and doesnt handle as well as my previous Mazda Millenia

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  Good bang for your buck - 2000 Mitsubishi Eclipse
  By TimBrod - March 13 - 2:00 am

  I have 60000+miles on mine. Overall good car. Few problem but covered through recall or warrenty. (EXTERIOR) Should consider 7+in wheels so there are more tires to replace with. Metal gas cap should be standard on GT. (INTERIOR) I make several 700 mile trips and and drive 1 hr to work each day and Im 63". Comfort is good overall. More leather would be nice and something to stop the noise from all the plastic in the dash. I average 27mpg. I would most likely buy this car again. Other considerations would be WRX and Celica in the same price range.

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  Good for commuting - 2004 Mitsubishi Lancer
  By Tunnel - March 1 - 9:23 pm

  I am not sure how I ended up with this Lancer, but I dont consider it a mistake. You can find them used very cheap. Mine has been perfectly reliable. Get the 5-speed manual, because it will remind you of its bread-and-butter nature, and, ultimately, the reason you bought it in the first place. We could all finance better cars; you dont buy a Lancer because you necessarily -want- one (except of course the Evo). You buy a Lancer because you found a good deal.

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  eclipse gt - 2001 Mitsubishi Eclipse
  By luke - February 24 - 10:00 am

  over all very nice car. Got 40k on it. Drives nice. Very fast and sporty. gets attention. Quiet, and nice to drive. Problems if any so far is the paint. Had to buy some touch up pain. Mitsubishi should use batter pain quality and make the seats more comftable. Over view much better then the 99 cougar and Honda prelude. Traded my 99 prelude had to many problems to list.

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  Had an 08 Now 09 - 2009 Mitsubishi Lancer
  By idlewanderlust - February 22 - 5:33 am

  Traded in my 08 Lancer GTS for the 09 GTS, this is a much improved Lancer over the year. The HP gain is nice but what really helps is the torque gain. The care will actually pull you from a stop and has the needed thrust when entering the highway.

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  Fun to Drive, NOT to Fix - 2000 Mitsubishi Eclipse
  By Eclipsin50 - February 22 - 5:26 am

  I bought my 2000 Eclipse GT used with 43000 miles on it. I didnt have the car a month before I started having major problems. The car has always run hot, even with replacing the thermostats twice, Ive replaced the transmission, the sunroof has never worked properly, dashboard cracked when it was cold outside, both power window motors have been replaced,and many smaller things as well. I would NOT recommend an Eclipse to anyone

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  Not bad, but could be better - 2002 Mitsubishi Lancer
  By Jenny Lou - February 19 - 6:13 pm

  Well, I purchased my Lancer just over a year ago. As far as reliability, it has been doing pretty well. There has been no major problems, other than bad rotors. However, the interior is not holding up, everything is slowly falling off. The paint job is horrible, it looks like I have two different paint colors on one side. I rotate my tires with every oil change and check my alignment, yet it still shakes on the freeway horribly. It is not a bad car, its still really fun to drive. I love the 5-speed transmission and I got it at a really good price too.

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  Needs Paint... - 2006 Mitsubishi Endeavor
  By kc - February 17 - 9:43 pm

  My wife was pregnant and we were looking for an SUV. We must have gone everywhere and test driven every model made. When we test drove the Endever I was shocked to find how quiet it is. It was like driving the Acura or BMW. The one bad point is that I have had the vehicle repainted twice because they refuse to paint the whole thing. I found that the paint was bleaching in the sun. My wifes sister also had to have hers repainted as well, because of the same problem! The dealer is a pain to work with as well, so now I have a vehicle that paint does not match on. I am trying to fix the problem.