Faults:

As the car has only 28000km on the clock, you wouldn't expect any problems - and there haven't been any!

General Comments:

This car is ridiculously under-rated in every respect. After driving the Falcon, Commodore and Aurion, I didn't expect much from the 380. How wrong I was.

Although I've always disliked front-drive cars, the 380 handles with confidence. It feels very rigid and composed on any surface. It goes surprisingly hard, too. It might have less grunt than the others, but the thing really moves! The gearbox is a smooth shifting delight with perfectly stacked ratios. The engine even has a sweet growl to it and returns reasonable, if not outstanding, fuel economy. It will run on e10, but I have found this to be false economy.

I love the external styling (it grows on you), but the interior is mildly disappointing. It's by no means poor, but some of the plastics feel a bit rubbish. The blue dash lighting looks awesome! Stereo is too boomy on the factory settings and needs a fiddle to get right. Great once set, though.

A few minor quibbles - you can't turn off air vents individually and you sit very low in the back. Also the boot is a funny shape. Big enough, but has raised a few choice words from me when we've packed the 380 full. Needs a few more storage spaces in the cabin.

Exceptionally well featured for the price - Bluetooth, climate, sunroof, 17" alloys, parking sensors, 5 year roadside assist warranty, the list goes on.

A fantastic, rock solid, top value car. If only more people knew. I love this car!

Faults:

Nothing yet. Have only had the 380GT for 4000km's.

General Comments:

Hell, it is a fast one. Our old car (Vx Calais) was adequate, but this beats it hands down and really has you back in your seat. Especially using the 5 speed Sport-Tronic Auto we got 0 - 100 in 7.2 seconds, which is exeptional for a heavy, large V6 (non-turbo) vehicle.

Any way, comments. The interior is very well finished. Plastics are high quality and have been fitted well. There are no rattles at all, the dash looks very nice at night when it is all lit up electro blue. The colour screen atop the dash is very good and quite Peugeot like in functions and appearance.

The audio system is very very bassy and delivers superior clarity to any other car I have driven; I would like more than 8 speakers as stock, perhaps they'll add 2 or 4 in series II? Umm what else? The steering wheel audio controls seem weirdly placed, but you get used to them and they are actually more logical as you don't have to move your hand from the driving position.

Parking sensors work well, leather 'sculpted' seats are the best I've ever experienced, and the memory seat works well. The electro matic mirror is very unique and makes night driving a hell of a lot safer, as it dramatically eliminates any glare from other vehicles.

The car handles amazingly, for a FWD it is very well channelled power and is superior to both the Commodore and Falcon (mind you the Commmodore is a VERY dated car now).

What does the car need?

I would like Automatic Stability Control, and rear adjustable head restraints for all 3 seats.

The ability to turn the side and rear airvents off.

Auto lights should be standard (the VX Calais had them!) and they should include something like auto wipers.

Possibly a subwoofer? And a metallic black centre console.

Sat nav would be nice in replacement of the colour screen instead of dismantling the dash.

The dash (speedo, etc) should be the high-contrast type that the old Mitsu's use to have, or like the new LEXUS IS250, and it is powerful, but for 50k I would like a MIVEC or VVT-I engine.

Very fast car, and amazing engine and gearbox. Brakes are the best out of any car and are actually fully ventilated. The car is perfect, and on start up it has a very cool animation on the centre screen.

Bluetooth system is very handy (no more fines for talking with my mobile in hand while driving!). It is very clear and has a powerful microphone, so the other person can hear you loud and clear. Very useful integration.

And hey.. you HAVE to go and drive one and see how amazing they are to drive. It is the best car I have ever owned, and you will probably feel like driving one after you have driven one! Honestly, it has to be driven to be appreciated, you will seriously be running from your Camry Falcon or Commodore once you have driven it. It is just in one word... amazing. And with a 5/10 warranty and free servicing included, reliability won't be a problem.

Final comment: Well done Mitsubishi for creating Australia's best car. And once others drive it, I'm sure they'll agree. This is my first Mitsubishi ever and I'm sure I'll continue to buy them in the future.