Mitsubishi Lancer (2008 – 2014) Review

Mitsubishi Lancer (2008 – 2014) At A Glance

2/5

+Comes as saloon and a five-door Sportback. Competent and handles reasonably well. Ralliart is good fun.

-Hard to make a strong case for buying one. Sportback is not a looker.

Insurance Groups are between 14–34
On average it achieves 105% of the official MPG figure

Real MPG average for a Mitsubishi Lancer (2008 – 2014)

RealMPG

Real MPG was created following thousands of readers telling us that their cars could not match the official figures.

Real MPG gives real world data from drivers like you to show how much fuel a vehicle really uses.

Average performance

105%

Real MPG

22–59 mpg

MPGs submitted

71

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Ask Honest John

Buying a 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer GS4 1.8 Auto - good idea?

"I've found a 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer GS4 1.8 Auto with 75k on the clock and is going for £5000. I've read your review and I'm querying if the only bad point was the satnav why would it score only a 2. This is the review in question: www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/mitsubishi/lancer-2008 Also is 5k a fair price for it, how low could I haggle for it?"
Hardly any were sold in the UK, which explains the lack of feedback. It gets a 2 because it simply isn't a very good car. Spare parts are hard to get so any problem and the car could be off the road for a while. And I think I told you already that £5k for a 75k mile 2008 isn't cheap.
Answered by Honest John

Can you recommend a sporty car similar to the Subaru WRX hatchback?

"My friend and neighbour is now on the lookout for a sporty replacement for his Nissan X-Trail. He was ready to buy a 2010 Subaru WRX hatchback but is now stuck having, fortunately, read an article I sent him from your site about the engine issues. His budget is £10,000-12,000. The car should accommodate a family of five, have sporty, comfortable performance, but does need to be 4wd. He was originally keen on an Audi but you seem to pay a hefty supplement for the badge and in my experience they can be a "bill waiting to happen" once a few years old. I would be tempted to recommend the old WRX as I had a 2001 model but I know he wants something more recent. Do you have any other suggestions please?"
The seriously quick competitor to the WRX was the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X: www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/mitsubishi/evo-x-2008/ and www.honestjohn.co.uk/road-tests/mitsubishi/mitsubishi-lancer-and-evo-2008-road-test/. But they did a cooled down hatchback version, called the Ralliart: www.honestjohn.co.uk/road-tests/mitsubishi/mitsubishi-lancer-ralliart-2009-road-test//
Answered by Honest John

Can we fit smaller diameter wheels to our Mitsubishi Lancer to improve the ride comfort?

"We have a 2009 Mitsubishi Lancer GS4 diesel with 30,000 miles. We are very pleased with it: well-equipped, economical 55-60 mpg, and comfortable except for the rather hard ride. I have seen that you have sometimes suggested changing to smaller diameter wheels with normal profile tyres. Would you recommend doing this for our car, and, if so, what size? Where can we get quotes for this? What are the implications regarding insurance? Would it incur extra premium for having a modification? "
A GS4 has 18-inch wheels, I guess with 40 or 45 profile tyres. You can go down to 16-inch wheels with 205/60 or 205/55 tyres, depending which match the rolling circumference of the originals. www.tyremen.co.uk can fix you up with a set of TUV-approved Alutec wheels for £335 including VAT, plus the cost of the new tyres. This is a ‘modification’ and you do have to disclose it to your insurer. Depending on how sophisticated or how stupid your insurer's systems are, this may not or may result in an increase in insurance premium.
Answered by Honest John

How reliable is the 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer?

"I am thinking of buying a 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer 1.6 Equipe. Can you give me your view on build quality, dependability and durability please? I am paying £4000 and it has done 24,000 miles."
According to Warranty Direct 2012 statistics, this model is the least likely car built between 1997 and 2009 to suffer expensive problems, so you are onto a good thing.
Answered by Honest John
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