Mitsubishi Carisma review
Discussion
As a former owner I thought of writing a review of the Mitsubish Carsima GLXi (P reg 97 model,1.6 Petrol,Manual) that I owned just for old times sake
Inherited the car from my uncle in when it was 11 years old with 105k miles on the clock
The car was rock solid in reliability and clocked up-to 159k miles 5 years later when it was written off due to someone smashing the sunroof and insurance would pay for a new replacement as it cost more than the cars value
I used to get 34-36 mpg combined and the best was 520 miles from London to Lampeter in Wales and back
the only issues I had during my 6 years of ownership was
1)reverse gear bush played up a bit when I got it and was sorted out by the mechanic for £ 30
2)Starter motor packed up and had to be replaced and the mechanic (at that time) messed the wiring and as a result the alternator died hence new alternator
3) Original clutch lasted till 124k miles
4)Original exhaust was replaced at 134K miles
Other than that it was just tyres and batteries
All in all it was a very reliable car (not the most fun one ) and a good workhorse,since its a 97 model AC was not a standard feature
I wonder if any PH members have had this model and their experiences
My father had one. A 1997 GL TD hatchback in red.
Bought as an ex Demo from Donnellys Dungannon.
Went to 145k miles with no mechanical faults other than that of my father's making...
He left the lights on one night and drained the battery, cue much swearing the next morning and an attempted jump start from our fourtrak, mixed up the polarity of the leads and fried the ecu... £1400 lesson learned the hard way..
It was the noisiest car I remember when cold, the Renault 1.9Td engine was rough as a badgers backside when cold, you couldnt get at two of the heater plugs without taking the injectior pump off, hence they where never changed.
Steering was very vague, very litte feedback and the gearbox selector bushings where made from marshmallows.
Couldnt see out-of the back of the car due to the angle of the rear window.
In all it was a mishmash of EU parts bin parts to get round the Japanese import quotas, that was made too cheaply and without care to ever be considered a good car.. Just bland a to b transport.
Bought as an ex Demo from Donnellys Dungannon.
Went to 145k miles with no mechanical faults other than that of my father's making...
He left the lights on one night and drained the battery, cue much swearing the next morning and an attempted jump start from our fourtrak, mixed up the polarity of the leads and fried the ecu... £1400 lesson learned the hard way..
It was the noisiest car I remember when cold, the Renault 1.9Td engine was rough as a badgers backside when cold, you couldnt get at two of the heater plugs without taking the injectior pump off, hence they where never changed.
Steering was very vague, very litte feedback and the gearbox selector bushings where made from marshmallows.
Couldnt see out-of the back of the car due to the angle of the rear window.
In all it was a mishmash of EU parts bin parts to get round the Japanese import quotas, that was made too cheaply and without care to ever be considered a good car.. Just bland a to b transport.
My Mum had a Carisma once.
The only fun I ever had with it was using it to test the structural integrity of my by then defunct 'Gateway 2000' Pentium 60 Tower PC.
Managed to get the car to climb on top of the tower lain on its side with the help of a thick wooden plank. The tower would not give way. Applied more pressure with bodyweight (eventually several mates' bodyweight) on the front wing of the car.
It then collapsed and tightly clung to the tyre like a wheelclamp. It was extremely hard to extricate the car from its death grip. Involved lots of revs in reverse and eventually it was spat out with a bit of wheel arch lining.
In a close run contest, Pentium 60 beats Carisma. Who knew?
Edited to add: It was the 1.8 petrol, automatic. It could be persuaded to wheelspin with judicious revs in neutral followed by a drop into drive. Often accompanied by a screeching noise and a huge jolt. This is not to be recommended.
The only fun I ever had with it was using it to test the structural integrity of my by then defunct 'Gateway 2000' Pentium 60 Tower PC.
Managed to get the car to climb on top of the tower lain on its side with the help of a thick wooden plank. The tower would not give way. Applied more pressure with bodyweight (eventually several mates' bodyweight) on the front wing of the car.
It then collapsed and tightly clung to the tyre like a wheelclamp. It was extremely hard to extricate the car from its death grip. Involved lots of revs in reverse and eventually it was spat out with a bit of wheel arch lining.
In a close run contest, Pentium 60 beats Carisma. Who knew?
Edited to add: It was the 1.8 petrol, automatic. It could be persuaded to wheelspin with judicious revs in neutral followed by a drop into drive. Often accompanied by a screeching noise and a huge jolt. This is not to be recommended.
I once rode in the back of one of these, which was being used as a minicab.
The driver and I sat in silence for a good five minutes before I asked; "what car is this?"
Despite being a car geek of enormous proportions, I had no idea what I was sitting in.
ETA: I may have had one or two small sherries... Possibly.
The driver and I sat in silence for a good five minutes before I asked; "what car is this?"
Despite being a car geek of enormous proportions, I had no idea what I was sitting in.
ETA: I may have had one or two small sherries... Possibly.
Yes we had one in our family from brand new in 1997 to its departure to the scrappage scheme in 2009. It was a 1.6 Carisma Sport model with funky wheels and a wooden steering wheel.
Had a squeak in it from new from the rear panels somewhere, gearbox bushes used to wear out quickly but it was a great car. We abused ours from when it was new, both my sis and me used to drive it from new when we were teenagers, it went to uni with me occasionally, my sis occasionally etc etc and when my Dad got a new car in 2003 my mum took it over. It had a dent in the roof from when we were using it as a van during a few house refurbs.
Problems were a new clutch in 2005 and a new battery a year or so later. That was it.
Excellent on fuel, massive boot, ultra reliable, comfortable and even when we didn't bother MOT'ing or using it for its final 2 months before the new motor arrived it still started first time and sounded as smooth as ever with its 155k miles as it went to the dealers on their trailer. Even the AC was ice cold on that last day!
I still miss it now.
Had a squeak in it from new from the rear panels somewhere, gearbox bushes used to wear out quickly but it was a great car. We abused ours from when it was new, both my sis and me used to drive it from new when we were teenagers, it went to uni with me occasionally, my sis occasionally etc etc and when my Dad got a new car in 2003 my mum took it over. It had a dent in the roof from when we were using it as a van during a few house refurbs.
Problems were a new clutch in 2005 and a new battery a year or so later. That was it.
Excellent on fuel, massive boot, ultra reliable, comfortable and even when we didn't bother MOT'ing or using it for its final 2 months before the new motor arrived it still started first time and sounded as smooth as ever with its 155k miles as it went to the dealers on their trailer. Even the AC was ice cold on that last day!
I still miss it now.
Francy555 said:
....Just bland a to b transport.
That probably sums it up.Carisma: an adequate car that was adequate to the task. It would fit in really well at this show
Horsetan said:
Carisma: an adequate car that was adequate to the task. It would fit in really well at this show
That is probably fair. My parents had a 1995 1.8 GLS Auto. Being an early one, there were a couple of production line teething issues that affected it. Mostly plastic bits that cracked because they'd been over-tightened.Once those early issues were out of the way the reliability was brilliant, right up to a couple of years ago when they sold it. It was north of 150k miles and the engine was still very sweet. IIRC the drag coefficient was 0.29, and it would do about 38mpg at motorway speeds. The ride, handling and steering weren't great, but it cruised well.
The later GDI (gasoline direct injection) was a bit too far ahead of it's time - they weren't reliable engines.
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