2002 Mitsubishi Diamante

THIS IS THE SECOND TIME I AM COMPLAINING ABOUT THE SAME PROBLEM. THE END OF JUNE 2006 I DROVE TO WORK AND REACHED DOWN TO PICK SOME STUFF UP OFF THE PASSENGER SIDE FLOOR MAT. IT ENDED UP BEING SOAKED. AT FIRST I THOUGHT SOME WATER HAD COME IN BECAUSE THE PAST FEW DAYS OUR AREA HAD TORRENTIAL RAINS. WHEN I GOT HOME THE NEXT DAY I TOOK UP THE FLOOR MAT TO DRY IT OUT AND NOTICE ALL THE LIQUID UNDER IT WAS GREENISH YELLOW. IN MY MIND I WENT CRAZY BECAUSE THE SAME THING HAD HAPPENED TO ME A YEAR AND 2 WEEKS EARLIER. ONCE AGAIN THE HEATER CORE BECAME FAULTY AND POURED THE ENGINE COOLANT INTO THE PASSENGER SPACES. WONDERFUL, SINCE MY WIFE WAS 8 MONTHS PREGNANT, GREAT FOR HER TO BE BREATHING THOSE CHEMICALS. I HAVE TO SAY I WAS FORTUNATE THAT IT DIDN'T LEAK ON ANY OF THE COMPUTER COMPONENTS, LIKE HAS HAPPENED TO OTHERS, ESPECIALLY WHILE I WAS DRIVING. WOULD HAVE DEFINITELY CAUSED A SAFETY ISSUE. IT JUST BLOWS MY MIND THAT I HAVE HAD TO PAY FOR THE SAME SERVICE TWICE IN ABOUT A YEAR, ON A CAR THAT HAS LESS THAN 80,000 MILES ON IT. I REALLY HOPE THE NHTSA LOOKS INTO MAKING THIS A RECALL ISSUE, BECAUSE IT IS JUST HAPPENING TO TOO MANY CONSUMERS. JUST IMAGINE ALL THOSE PEOPLE WHO DON'T EVEN KNOW THEY CAN FILE A COMPLAINT. YES, I KNOW THERE WERE NO DEATHS OR INJURIES IN MY CASE, BUT WHEN THE COOLANT LEAKS ON THE COMPUTER BRAIN OF THE CAR, IT COULD BECOME A REAL ISSUE IF DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY OR NAVIGATING CROWDED STREETS IN TOWN. THE POWER STEARING OR ANTILOCK BRAKES WOULD SHUT DOWN IF THE COMPUTER CRASHED FROM GETTING WET.

I PURCHASED A USED 2002 MITSUBISHI DIAMANTE IN AUGUST 2005. THE CAR HAD 45,000 MILES ON IT. IN OCTOBER WHEN I STARTED TO USE THE HEATER I COULD SMELL AN UNUSUAL SMELL INSIDE THE CAR. IN JANUARY OF 2006 MY BROTHER RODE IN THE CAR AND TOLD ME THE SMELL WAS ANTI-FREEZE. I WENT ON THE INTERNET AND INSTANTLY FOUND OUT THAT THIS MODEL CAR HAS A PROBLEM WITH THE HEATER CORE O-RINGS FAILING. THE SMELL IN THE CAR GOT REAL BAD REAL QUICK AND I HAD TO HAVE THE LEAKING O-RINGS REPAIRED. I WOULD GET SICK FROM THE SMELL AND HAD NO CHOICE BUT TO HAVE IT FIXED. I BROUGHT THE CAR TO A MITSUBISHI DEALER AND HAD THE REPAIR DONE FOR $650.THE CAR HAD 48,000 MILES ON IT WHEN THE REPAIR WAS MADE. THAT IS ALOT OF MONEY FOR PROBLEM THAT MITSUBISHI SHOULD HAVE CORRECTED. *JB

HEATER CORE (AND POSSIBLE EFFECT ON TRANSMISSION ISSUES) GOING UP BEFORE ITS TIME (AND THIS KNOWN TO BE A PROBLEM ON THE DIAMANTES FOR OVER 3 YEARS OF THE MODEL) AND CAUSING ANTIFREEZE FUMES AND SMOKE TO FILL MY CAR FOR MONTHS UNNOTICED EXPOSING MY FAMILY AND SELF TO NAUSEOUSNESS, HEADACHES, NOT TO MENTION EXPENSE OF REPAIR ON A RELATIVELY NEW VEHICLE. *NM

MY WIFE AND I OWN A 2002 MITSUBISHI DIAMANTE VR-X. THIS PAST JUNE 2005 I STARTED NOTICING THE CAR WAS OVERHEATING WHEN I WOULD STOP AT LIGHTS OR IN TRAFFIC. AT FIRST I FIGURED IT WAS THE REALLY HOT WEATHER WE WERE HAVING. AFTER A DAY OR SO I NOTICED THE ENGINE TEMPERATURE WOULD FLUCTUATE EVEN AT HIGHER SPEEDS, SO I PULLED INTO A GAS STATION AND CHECKED THE COOLANT. IT WAS LOW. I BOUGHT SOME COOLANT AND FILLED UP THE RESERVOIR THINKING I HAD FOUND MY PROBLEM. THE NEXT DAY I NOTICED I WAS HAVING PROBLEMS AGAIN AND CHECKED THE FLUID LEVEL, IT WAS LOW AGAIN. I KNEW SOMETHING WAS WRONG THEN AND I TOOK IT TO MY MECHANIC. LOW AND BEHOLD I COME TO FIND OUT THAT THE ANTIFREEZE, WHICH IS POISONOUS, HAS LEAKED ALL OVER PASSENGER SIDE FLOOR AND WAS TOLD THAT IT PROBABLY HAD BEEN BLOWING OUT OF THE VENTS ALSO. THIS WAS VERY DISCONCERTING NOT JUST FOR THE HEALTH OF MY WIFE AND MYSELF, BUT ALSO BECAUSE WE HAD, AT THE TIME, A FIVE MONTH OLD WHO ALSO HAD BEEN BREATHING THIS POISON. I PRAY WE DON'T END UP HAVING ANY RESPIRATORY PROBLEMS, ESPECIALLY MY DAUGHTER, FROM THIS IN THE FUTURE. WHAT ENDED UP BEING THE PROBLEM WAS THE HEATER CORE CORRODED AND WAS LEAKING INTO THE CAR. MY MECHANIC SAID THIS IS NOT SOMETHING THAT SHOULD HAPPEN TO A CAR WITH ONLY 50K MILES. ACTUALLY, THEY SAID IT GENERALLY SHOULD NEVER HAPPEN TO A VEHICLE. I COME TO FIND OUT THAT THE LEAK IS JUST ABOVE THE CARS COMPUTER SYSTEM. FORTUNATELY THE LEAK DIDN'T AFFECT THESE ELECTRONIC COMPONENTS. I SEE FROM THE HTTP://WWW.MYCARSTATS.COM WEBSITE THAT THIS PROBLEM IS VERY PREVALENT AND I'M SURE IT HAS HAPPEN TO OTHERS THAT DON'T KNOW WHO TO CONTACT ABOUT THE PROBLEM. IT ENDED UP COSTING ME $1300 TO GET IT FIXED. THE PROBLEM LIES BEHIND THE DASHBOARD WHICH ENDS UP CREATING A LOT OF LABOR CHARGES TO FIX THE PROBLEM. I HOPE THAT THERE IS SOMETHING DONE BY THE ODI IN RESPONSE TO THIS COSTLY, UNNECESSARY PROBLEM. *NM

THIS HEATER CORE LEAKS DIRECTLY OVER COMPUTERS WHICH CONTROL THE ENGINE - AND COULD CAUSE IT TO ACT UNPREDICTABLY OR CUT OUT ALTOGETHER WHEN DRIVING. *AK * ANTI-FREEZE CONTAINS ETHYLENE GYLCOL WHICH CAN CAUSE SERIOUS RESPIRATORY DAMAGE * THE LEAKING ANTI-FREEZE CAUSES A FILM TO FORM ON THE WINDSHIELD, WHICH CAN CAUSE THE WINDSCREEN TO FOG UP SUDDENLY, OBSCURING THE VIEW OF THE ROAD AND POTENTIALLY CAUSING A COLLISION IT WILL COST ME MORE THAN 900.00 TO REPAIR THIS ITEM, PLUS THE COST TO REPLACE MY CARPET AND TO CLEAN THE INTERIOR OF MY VEHICLE. PLUS I DO NOT KNOW IF I WILL EVERGET RID OF THE SMELL AND THIS WILL MOST LIKELY LOWER THE RESALE VALUE COSTING ME EVEN MORE IN THE LONG TERM.I WOULD EXPECT THIS KIND OF THING TO HAPPEN TO A CAR THAT IS MORE THAN 10 YEARS OR OLD. BUT IN A CAR THAT WAS MADE IN 2001 AND HAS ONLY 54,000 MILES AND WAS SERVICED REGULARLY AT THE COMPANY'S OWN DEALER SERVICE CENTER IS ABSURD. I FOLLOWED ALL THE MANUFACTURERS SERVICE INTERVALS AND AM BEING TOLD THAT THIS USUALLY HAPPENS WHEN THE COOLANT IS NOT CHANGED, THIS MAKES ME QUESTION THE DEALERS' AND MANUFACTURERS' COMMITMENT TO SAFETY. I AM SAVING THE PARTS THAT ARE BEING REPLACED AND WILL MAKE THEM AVAILABLE FOR INSPECTION IF NEED BE.