Faults:

None... It's still new.

General Comments:

Love this car. Shame this will be the last year for the Lancer outside of Asia. These Lancers are true gas and go cars. 300k miles is doable, due to the simplistic nature of the Lancer... No timing belt, or direct injection to fuss with. The 2.0 Lancer has a timing chain and is port injected. No expensive repair bills due to the 10 year, 100k mile power train warranty.

These last Lancers are old tech Japan. Maybe that's why sales have been SO poor on these cars. Everyone wants a car that drives itself. If you are SO clumsy that you need lane departure and adaptive cruise control, then maybe an electric scooter is more up your alley? For the sake of us who drive for a living?

I haven't had any issues yet, but can confirm what others say about the cheapish interior and paint. I knew that before I bought the car. Just wanted something good on gas, reliable, and cheap. The 5 speed trans was a little awkward when new, but after 3500 miles, it shifts like butter.

With the $3500 in rebates, this car was a steal at $15k new. Only gripe about the ES model was lack of satellite radio from the factory. A new 10.1 inch Android stereo solved that issue. I love the way this car corners and brakes. Very sporty feeling. Wish I could have afforded the $40k EVO, but let's face it, finances and maturity dictated a base model.

All in all, I would buy another base Lancer if this one were wrecked by a driver looking on his or hers phone. :(