Faults:

There is little that has gone wrong with the car that wouldn't go wrong with most other cars of its age. I have had to replace the valve cover gaskets three times, but I attribute this to the mechanics and that they were aftermarket parts. The third time, they were replaced at a Mitsubishi dealer, and there has been no leakage since.

The only other thing was the turn signal stalk cracked, which is something I have never experienced on any car I've owned. But, it was in Florida, and car interiors are like ovens in the summertime. About 3 years ago, I purchased a set of factory wheels, as the wheel covers kept cracking, and one of them kept falling off. Although the new wheels are from a newer Galant, I get lots of compliments on them.

General Comments:

Having sold cars for a major used car chain, I got to see firsthand which vehicles had the most and least complaints. I researched many sources for what vehicles were reliable, and what issues they had. My two final choices were a 2000 Honda Accord, which had 64K miles on it in 2009, and the Mitsubishi Galant, which had 32K miles on it, and was the one I purchased.

I like the way the car handles, and the 3.0L V-6 packs quite a punch, so the car has absolutely no problem getting out of its own way. There is a slight amount of body lean, but after replacing all four struts, and the rear springs, it is vastly improved.

The manufacturer recommends 91 or higher octane, and it seems to perform better, but 87 is acceptable.

I would say that after nearly 11 years of ownership, I am a satisfied customer, and that Mitsubishi is first on my list when the time comes to replace it.

Faults:

An unknown clunking noise from the front end when braking or accelerating; possibly the ball joints. Mechanics checked the car, and could not point out the problem. Absolutely no effect on ride or handling of the car though. Seems to be typical on these Galants.

Original tires lasted me 62k miles.

Brakes about 70k miles.

The second set of tires was a bit better than the original Goodyears, and they are still under the car.

O2 sensor went out at 142k miles, when I took it to get my smog certificate (yeaaah, boomer).

Watch for the blower motor. Do not change the temperature or select vents when the fan is running on speed 3 or 4, or the heater unit will start being noisy or let you down. It has not done it to me, but maybe it will sooner or later.

General Comments:

OK, there is a question which asks will you buy a car like this again? The answer is yes, I did buy another one, and recommended it to another friend of mine, and he got one too.

The first car I bought, is a 2002, and I got it in 2004 when it had 27k miles on it, and I was stupid enough to pay $2000 on extended warranty for 5 years or 100,000 miles. On other words, I kinda flushed $2000 of my money into a toilet.

Anyhow, in 2008, when it had 98k miles, I found another 2003 model with 89k miles. Gave up mine to my father and bought the other one. As I am writing this, both of them have about 144k miles on them.

Were I to go back in time, yes I would purchase them any day of the week.

I travel a lot, and the car has been very dependable, and I helped it a bit, so I don't have to maintain it as often. I use Mobil 1 extended performance oil, which is good for 15k miles (I keep it for 11k-12k miles, and it's cheaper than regular oils.), and use long lasting Bosch Fusion for the sparks, and have this million mile guaranteed air intake. So literally I only put gas in it, and drive it everywhere anytime.

The car has a soft ride, and a very good weight balance. So it is comfortable, and it does handle more than adequate. There is a little road noise on highway, which is not very loud. The car also is somewhat light, and on highway you can feel the crosswinds, and yes it sometimes pulls the steering a little more than let's say a Jetta.