1986 Mitsubishi Colt GL 1.6 petrol

Summary:

A good first car that should serve everyone well for most of its life

Faults:

5 cracks on the dash.

Rubber boots need replacing for RWC.

Cracking windscreen.

Rust in rear panel.

Water leaks into spare tyre well due to the only rust spot on the car. :(

General Comments:

Okay, I got given the car in September 2010, and I'm 15, so I haven't driven it yet.

I'll give you the run down on the specs first. 1.6l 4 cylinder carburetted engine has about 58KW of power, and for a small car, that's adequate power.

It has a 4 speed manual with a power and economy lever that you push up for the power option, and down for economy. To all the people who have used the two, they have not found much of a difference. The 4 speed manual makes much better use of the power than the automatic (a friend had one, and they drove the two of them)

The safety aspect of an 80's Japanese car is pretty much non-existent, with the only thing for safety being the side intrusion beams. In this car there are no airbags, there are no pre-tensioning seatbelts, and ABS was something of a dream that only very expensive luxury vehicles would have.

My particular car has a grey interior, which I have to say looks much better than one of its alternatives - brown. The car now has no stereo in it for the moment, as the one that came with it was cheap and nasty and only had a tape, and it would never pick up any radio stations (although it was connected to the antenna). I have got a new Clarion USB headunit for Christmas, which is going to be installed sometime this week. I am also getting new 4" speakers for the front under the dash, 6" in the front doors (possibly) and 6"s in the back (definitely), as well as two subwoofers, an amplifier, and possibly a screen in a home made custom enclosure.

Bodywise, the car is in good condition for its age, with a bit of rust on the back of the car under the brake lights, which lets water leak into the boot. The car is white - at the moment - but a two tone dark grey and silver are looking to be going on it soon.

Mechanically, the car has no faults, although it seems to idle a little low, making the car shake and rattle when it is first started up.

I have just bought 4 stud 1988 Mitsubishi Magna mag wheels for $25 (in a set of 5). They are 15" and they are also going on the car in the next few weeks. I am hoping to paint the inside of the rim silver and chrome the other parts.

The car ran out of rego on the 30th of November, and I can't afford to do it up and register it at the same time, so I am going to do it up and register it in July/August, so I can use it for my L's.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 4th January, 2011