2003 Mitsubishi Lancer Rally OZ 2.0 liter

Summary:

Quick, well-handling, boring japanese rally car

Faults:

The oxygen sensors made the "check engine light" come on after about 50 miles, after another 1000 miles or so the light mysteriously disappeared. The dealership said he had to order the oxygen sensor that was faulty so when the problem went away I never bothered to get it changed.

Then at 42150 miles the "check engine light" just came on again, I'm going to take it in today to find out what is wrong.

This car just has no "mojo".

General Comments:

The car handles like you would expect a rally car to.

It is quick and nimble.

You sit very high in this car, giving excellent view.

The car is boring, sterile and has no mojo.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 31st October, 2005

5th Nov 2005, 17:43

Could you clarify your use of the word, 'mojo'. What do you mean by that?

4th Jun 2006, 17:16

Man-power...

5th Nov 2007, 15:17

The initial posting was for a lancer rally, which has around 160bhp. The Lancer which is not rally has a 2.0 with 120hp or so, but the rally lancer has a 2.4L engine.

27th Apr 2008, 11:39

NO.. the 2002 Lancer OZ-Rally edition came with the same power plant as the base Lancer. The "Rally-Art" (Mitsubishi's in-house performance brand/shop), edition did not come out in the US until nearly three years later.

Also.. if you wanted mojo.. get a stickshift.. automatics are for buses and girls.

4th Dec 2009, 14:25

The OZ rally is not a rally car. It's a Lancer with the OZ rally nameplate on it.

5th May 2010, 14:16

If you read up on the Lancer Oz, you would find it's called Oz for the wheel package on it, and Ralli for the suspension on it. The power is the same as any other Lancer 2.4l...

2003 Mitsubishi Lancer OZ Ralley 2.0 i-4

Summary:

Great car, but runs so smooth it's easy to forget maintenence

Faults:

Transmission stopped shifting partially thanks to taking the car off road racing.

From the time I got the car my "check engine light was on" but dealer told me to ignore, I did and it's ran great.

General Comments:

Excellent handling with slight modifications, interior is great, exterior looks great, I love having people stare at my car as I drive by. stock rims look great on the body as well.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 6th October, 2005

17th Jan 2008, 02:18

I to had own a 2003 mits oz rally and loved the car, I had owned it from 2003 with 4 miles on it and traded it in 2007 with 32,000 miles for a 2008 lancer. I never had any problems with car until 1 week before trade in.. my alternator went up in, but other than that I never had a problem and car was driven daily drove and handles nicely... matter of fact though I also love my newer lancer I still love the older one better.

2003 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 8 2.0 turbo

Summary:

A high performance bargain

Faults:

Nothing has gone wrong with this car.

General Comments:

Driven hard, the EVO 8 is awesome. In terms of brakes and handling, this EVO is nearly track ready. Adding just $2K worth ECU programming, down pipe and cat-back exhausts to a stock EVO 8, I can't think of anything under $40K that will touch it on the track in the US.

The turbo has no lag, starts to spool at 2900 rpm, and it'll push you back hard starting at 3300 rpm and levels off at 5000-6000 rpm, there is little point in taking it to the 7000+ rpm red-line without exhausts system upgrades. This is while running 91-octane premium gas. My understanding is that it would do better on 93-octane gas, but 93-octane gas not readily available in Southern California.

The standard 6 speaker AM/FM/CD sound system is pretty good.

The HID headlights are excellent, as an added bonus, they are height adjustable from within the car and the car comes factory stock with additional driving lights.

In terms of daily use, the EVO's gas mileage is not good for a light car with a 4 cylinder engine. (I'm getting 18 mpg combined) It's tuned to run pretty rich (safe). However, I don't think people buy EVO's for the gas mileage. Additionally, the mileage should improve significantly with more aggressive tuning associated with the ECU reprogramming and exhausts system upgrades.

The steering is quick to the point of being a little nervous. This can be tiring for a daily driver for some people.

The stiff suspension is pretty hard on your kidneys on freeway expansion joints at 10-30 mph. A little like a slammed sub-compact with stiff springs.

The sight lines out front are excellent; the large carbon fiber rear wing is located exactly at the height where it interferes with the rear view from the center mirror. The Right side wing support distracts a little bit for over-the-right-shoulder view during right hand lane changes on the Freeway.

The transmission gear ratio and spacing works well, but the shifter is not as good as Honda or BMW, it's a little bit notchy. The clutch is a little bit heavy, but this is to be expected for a performance car.

The Recaro bucket seats are excellent.

The huge Brembo brakes are great. However, the pads are a little noisy, dusty and likely to wear quickly for a daily driver, but brake pads should be easy and reasonably cheap to replace.

The heater, AC and defroster all work well.

I want to be clear; the negatives I have stated above are very minor for people looking for a reasonably priced high performance automobile and should be expected for this level of performance.

This car has an amazing level of performance for not too much money!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 19th March, 2004

26th Feb 2005, 10:57

In response to the brakes. They are quite expensive. Just the pads cost me $185 for the front alone. The tires (as you probably already know) are really expensive and need to be replaced around 10,000 miles. My neighbor works for Mitsubishi and he told me that it is quite common to need tires before that. It's an incredible automobile, but the cost of maintaining this car is up there with cars costing twice as much. I love the car, but it cost a little more to maintain than my previous car- a 1998 BMW M3- which was $48K. I guess that's the price you pay for extreme performance.

6th Apr 2006, 23:58

I would recommend a harder compound tire. That would lengthen the time that you need betwen tire changes. The Advans that come from the factory are as soft as a street tire can be. If you put on low profile tires that had a 40,000 mile guarantee, you're wallet might be a lot happier. Sure you'll get a little less performance from the tires, (you won't be able to take a 90 degree turn at 45 mph with no tire squeal) but unless you get sponsored, any car that has those Advans on will eat them up quickly. You can also get the brake pads for a better price if you do some shopping around. I found front and back pads for $175 with just a little bit of work. They are a little expensive, but it feels like punishment to drive almost anything else.

2003 Mitsubishi Lancer O.Z. 2.0-litre four-cylinder

Summary:

A fun and reliable car to own

Faults:

As of now I have had no problems with the car.

General Comments:

The car is my daily driver and I have put a little over 9,000 miles in six months on the car, but it seems to take this all in stride.

I haven't had to use the manufacturers warranty yet tho I do push the car hard on the weekends.

A new set of tires did help with the handling a great deal.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 19th January, 2004