2009 Mitsubishi Lancer User Reviews

Pros

Good MPG! Comfortable! Sporty!

Cons

Visibility is not as good as it could be.

Purchased As New

I've had this car about a month (w/ sunroof and stereo package). I test drove the Corolla, Mazda 3, and the Lancer (all about the same price) and the Lancer definitely blew the other two out the door. It was so much roomier, stylish and had much better standard equipment than did the other two models. And compared to the other two, the Lancer had a lot more pep when stepping on the gas. I got the CV Transmission w/ the paddle shifters which are only useful for playing around with and for showing off but they are a blast to use. There are very few on the road which adds a touch of uniqueness to the car. The comfort level (seats and roominess) compared to the other two cars that I test drove...there's just no comparison. I'm getting 28-29 mpg hwy and 25ish mpg city. I'm extremely happy with this car.
My friends didn't seem as impressed as I thought they would but hey...with my fingers on the paddle shifters and my sub woofer turned up all the way, I would blow any of them away from a dead stop!...read morehide

Pros

Not many people have this car so you definately stand out from the crowd.

Cons

Fabric gets dirty easily if you have the black interior.

Purchased As New

When deciding on buying a new car, I was torn between a Toypta Corolla S and the Mitsubishi Lancer ES Sport. They were very similar; both had spoilers, reliable good companies, ground effects on them, fog lights and a similar shape to the exterior. I was torn until I looked inside the Lancer and loved how much more expensive it looked and how the car had the Rockford Fosgate Sound system and definately seemed way more sporty than the Corolla S. Hands down the Lancer ES Sport won. I haven't had any problems with the car so far and I absolutely LOVE my Lancer ES Sport!!! You won't be disapointed by this car....read morehide

Pros

Great looking car-Tarmac Black! CVT makes for some high revving fun on back roads. Avg. 27 mile/gal.

Cons

Dark suede like interior hard to keep clean. Dunlop Tires seem to wear poorly.

Purchased As Used

I bought my car in Nov 09 with just over 700 miles. I love the sound system-Rockford Fosgate. The bluetooth is a great addition. It is pretty peppy, but not a street machine by any stretch of the imagination. Even when the car is dirty I get compliments on how attractive it is. After 18K miles I can honestly say I like this car a lot! It's underrated in my book. I take my friends out in it and they all get out impressed by all the gadgets, and the great ride!...read morehide

Pros

Tight chassis. Steering feel. Handling. Sound System. Safety. (airbags/crash tests)

Cons

Need a little more umph. Corrected in '09

Purchased As New

Mine is an '08 GTS. 2.0 a little underpowered. The CVT takes a little getting used to. The paddle sifter brings you to a 6 speed auto which works well.

Upgraded sound is fantastic. The GPS software needs upgrading. (Still trying to figure that one out)

I've read several Yahoo reviews about reliability issues on the Lancer. This month will be the two year mark with the Lancer GTS. I can tell you that I have had no issues what so ever. Zero.

As of this writing, I would, without question, purchase another Lancer....read morehide

Pros

Looks, Sun and sound package

Cons

Everything, the car is horrible

Purchased As New

I got a 2008 Lancer ES. After 2 weeks the car would not start all the time. The car was brought 10+ times to the dealer so they can "try to find the problem." 3 times mitsu tried to fix it and failed.
List of problems.
1- Car woudn't start.
2- Drivers side front window track broke.
3- Car never got over 18 miles per gallon.
4- Car was too slow.
5- Engine is too loud.
6- Paint started chipping, and started to rust.
7- Tires wear too fast.
8- If you drove the car awhile, the brakes must get to hot and fail when you go to stop.
9- After driving the car, when you get out the front end squeaks almost like the struts are bad. Mitsu says thats the way the car is made.
After a year Mitsu agree'd to replace the car. I got an 2009 Lancer GTS in Jan 09. The funny thing is this car is just as horrible as the first one! Driving on the highway the car gets 8.7 miles per gallon (took pictures as proof!). When you get the sun and sound package on the 2009's the package includes the fastkey entry system. It never works! A few people I know own this car, and they have the same problems! Poorly mad car, and if you read reviews, since the Lancer came out in 2002 it has some of the same issues. Do not buy this car. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone....read morehide

Pros

Good Acceleration, Roomy, Excellent Radio (Sun&Sound), Nice Appearance

Cons

Wheels could be bigger but as Joanne Rivers puts it, "Who Cares!"

Purchased As New

I bought this vehicle because my 01 VW Jetta was on it's last limb. Countless problems with that car led me to hate it but still love it (It was a VR6). Barely made it to the dealer. I knew I wanted an import vehicle, but did not like the corolla as much, and the Civic/Accord are great but too expensive.

The ES-Sport is a great ride! If you don't want to shell out for a GTS, but don't like the looks of a base ES, then go ES-Sport! Rockford Fosgate radio is very good. It's not a "build and install a monster system on your own" good, but better than most stock radio systems and has lots of power. Seats are comfortable, plenty of places to store stuff. Plenty of standard equipment.

The only reason I can't give this 5 stars on appearance is because the wheels on the ES-Sport are the same as the ES (some aftermarket wheels will soon change that!). Still has aggresive styling! Comfort is 5 stars, plenty of room for everyone. Performance is very good. It's not a V8 supercharged beast, but will get to speed very well for a 4 cylinder. Will definitely save on gas!. Value is good, but Mitsubishi's resale decline quicker than Toyota's or Honda's, but not as bad as American cars. I expect reliability to be very good for this car and any needed repairs to be much cheaper than the VW Jetta I had!

I am definitely happy with the purchase and will recommend anyone to get one!...read morehide

Pros

speed, power, handling, looks, AWD system, standard features, great space, and did i say looks?

Cons

poor fuel economy in city driving, tires too thin at 215mm, clunky gearbox at low speeds.

Purchased As New

the 2009 lancer ralliart is simply superb, it is nearly perfect!
first the cons...FUEL ECONOMY is poor in city driving if you put it in full automatic mode, it averages only about 14.5mpg. but if you shift manually and go to 5th or 6th gear, it greatly improves to about 18.3mpg. highway driving is about 23-27mpg, depending on how fast you go and how steady the driving is.
the STANDARD TIRES comes in 215mm summer tires, it should have come with all season tires. also the thin tires gets overwhelmed by the car's speed and power, especially when you go fast when taking down a corner. it should have come with at least a 225mm all season tires.
the TRANSMISSION, which is the same as the evolution MR's dual clutch transmission, is a little clunky at low speeds when you shift manually and reacts slow when you're driving slow. but no major complaints here since when you go fast, gearshifts at both full auto or manumatic shifting becomes super smooth, one of the major highlights of the car.
now for the pros, brace yourself, this is gonna be a long one. SPEED AND POWER...this is a very fast and powerful car, especially from 0-60mph i've been timed 4x at the tract 5.4 seconds, it simply has an over-achieving engine.
HANDLING is very good. sure its no Evo X but its right up there with it. it does have a fair amount of body roll even with the anti-roll bars but hey, you gotta sacrifice something to get better ride quality right? its ride quality is is also sublime.
LOOKS, well see for yourself. i never get tired of looking at my car, in fact, i have a major crush on my car lol. but seriously, its a major headturner, i get a lot of compliments for it.
AWD SYSTEM is fantastic, its the Evo IX's but if you read about the older Evo, there was really no complaint about its awd system. in it you can choose tarmac, gravel, and snow mode depending on driving conditions. just awesome.
STANDARD FEATURES are substantial and very impressive but i'm not gonna get into that cos there's too many great things to mention.
GREAT SPACE. for a compact car, it sure is very roomy and spacey inside. people who stand over 6 feet tall can seat comfortably in the back. the car has great headroom too. front seats space are substantial for people of great height too. driving position is perfect.
overall to me, this car is the best in its class, it simply has everything its competitors has and more. yeah the mazda speed3 is faster and more powerful but its butt ugly and has a very low ground clearance. the chevy cobalt is faster with more power too, but how hard is it to give a car a lot of power? very easy for a manufacturer right? the cobalt has just the sorriest build quality i've ever seen in a car and not to mention all the cheap materials its made out of. c'mon people, why do you think GM is going bankrupt?
the only respectable competition for the ralliart is the subaru wrx. yeah its faster too, but only because its more powerful and 200lbs lighter. if it has the same weight as the ralliart with its current wrx power, it would be slower even if its more powerful. i have to admit though, the WRX does have a small edge in value. but it doesn't get the ralliarts awesome transmission, it just comes with a simple and traditional 5speed manual, which is a pain when you're stuck in traffic. the biggest edge the ralliart has over the subaru is its looks. the subaru is just plain ugly, not as bad as the mazda but still plenty ugly. you wont get compliments the way it looks that's for sure.
bottom line, if you ever think about buying a turbocharged car for under 30 grand, look no further. get the ralliart, i guarantee you wont regret it....read morehide

Purchased As New

I bought my 2008 mitsubishi lancer gts for my first car. The first few months were great, because it sat in my driveway throughout the winter. Once I started driving it, the sides of the body kit leading up to the door on both sides of the back started turning white. Now the paint all over the car is turning white & getting chipped, I will wash it and it doesn't look like I did a thing to it in years. I took it to the dealer - they did NOTHING. Then, my sub blew. So the dealer had to put in a new one. Then the track in my driver side window broke & my window sounded like it was shattering every time I put it down. I've gone through tires like nothing else. Almost 3 sets. The tires last maybe a year, then you have to buy all new (not to mention, they're ridiculously expensive). My navigation system doesn't do what it should - if I type in to "avoid route", it will take me to that exact location I said I didn't want to be by. Now I'm having issues with the sub AGAIN, the stitching in the back seats are coming undone (and I rarely even have people back there). Overall, if I knew this car would be so terrible, I would have gotten something different....read morehide

Pros

looks good

Cons

bugs in the a/c unit

Purchased As New

The Lancer is the perfect car to show off to all your friends, just don't take it out on the road. The car handles like a tractor, the engine has no muscle to it. Trust me you are better off buying a garbage truck. I have a 2008 Lancer GTS and I wish I could drive it off a cliff and never see it again. Let tell you that my car has been in the shop 10 times in the last year, don't be fooled by the good looks you will hate yourself. I wish I had my old 96 corolla back....read morehide

Pros

Getting shock everytime I get out of the car, on 1st gear car will swirve out of control

Cons

Good gas mileage, looks good, fast,

Purchased As New

I bought the 09 Lancer last year
Great car except for the fact you get shocked every time you get out of the car if your engine is running. And the worst is even with warranty; Mitsubishi dealership will charge you money to check on the problem even though they already know about the problem
Stay away from Cherry Hill, NJ dealer for Mitsubishi. They are all about the money, not service.
Mitsubishi Repairs will cost you even though it's no problem through your faults...read morehide