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2006 Mitsubishi Lancer

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 27.

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How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

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Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

All reported categories

Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

23 reports with mileage · 14 unknown

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Air Bags. Review the 16 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Suspension. Review the 9 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Structure. Review the 5 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

5 crash reports0 fire reports2 injury reports

Exterior Lighting complaints

4 reports
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Mileage unknown · Sep 11, 2019
Air BagsExterior LightingUnknown Or Other

AFTER THEY CHANGE THE AIRBAGS FROM THE WARNING LIGHTS IS ON AND DEALERS CAN'T FIGURE OUT WHAT THE PROBLEM?

NHTSA ODI #11254805

Mileage unknown · Jan 29, 2018
Exterior Lighting

OVER TIME THE VEHICLES ORIGINAL HEADLAMPS HAVE FADED TO A POINT WHERE IT IS AFFECTING DRIVER VISIBILITY. THIS WAS NOT THE CASE WITH GLASS FIXTURES MANY YEARS AGO. I HAVE NOTICED THIS ISSUE ON MANY AUTOMOBILES SINCE THE ADOPTION OF PLASTIC HEADLAMPS. BASED ON PERFORMANCE, IT IS OBVIOUS PLASTIC HEADLAMPS ARE CAUSING ISSUES WITH VI…

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OVER TIME THE VEHICLES ORIGINAL HEADLAMPS HAVE FADED TO A POINT WHERE IT IS AFFECTING DRIVER VISIBILITY. THIS WAS NOT THE CASE WITH GLASS FIXTURES MANY YEARS AGO. I HAVE NOTICED THIS ISSUE ON MANY AUTOMOBILES SINCE THE ADOPTION OF PLASTIC HEADLAMPS. BASED ON PERFORMANCE, IT IS OBVIOUS PLASTIC HEADLAMPS ARE CAUSING ISSUES WITH VISIBILITY AND SHOULD BE BANNED OR AT LEAST EXAMINED FOR A BETTER SOLUTION.

NHTSA ODI #11065649

Mileage unknown · Feb 19, 2017
Air BagsExterior Lighting

HEAD LIGHTS LAMP REPLACED TWICE AND STILL NOT WORKING LIKE SUPPOSE TO, SOME TIME ONE LIGHT, HIGH BEAM NO WORK AT ALL.

NHTSA ODI #10955509

85,000 miles · Apr 25, 2009
Electrical SystemExterior Lighting

HEADLIGHTS KEEP FAILING. WAS PULLED OVER AFTER HAVING JUST REPLACED A BULB AND NOTIFIED THE BULB WAS OUT AGAIN. BLAMED THE SHOP THAT REPLACED THE BULB, AND HAD THEM PUT IN ANOTHER. THEN WHEN DRIVING A LONG DISTANCE DRIVE, AS I BEGAN TO GET DARK, ANOTHER MOTORIST FLASHED ME TO NOTIFY ME THAT I DID NOT HAVE HEADLIGHTS ON, EVEN THO…

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HEADLIGHTS KEEP FAILING. WAS PULLED OVER AFTER HAVING JUST REPLACED A BULB AND NOTIFIED THE BULB WAS OUT AGAIN. BLAMED THE SHOP THAT REPLACED THE BULB, AND HAD THEM PUT IN ANOTHER. THEN WHEN DRIVING A LONG DISTANCE DRIVE, AS I BEGAN TO GET DARK, ANOTHER MOTORIST FLASHED ME TO NOTIFY ME THAT I DID NOT HAVE HEADLIGHTS ON, EVEN THOUGH THEY WERE IN THE ON POSITION. BOTH LOW BEAMS HAD GONE OUT AND WOULD ONLY WORK ON HIGH BEAMS. I WAS LUCKY THAT THE MOTORIST NOTIFIED ME, AND THAT THE LIGHTS DID NOT BLOW AFTER DARK WHILE I WAS DRIVING. THIS IS A HUGE SAFETY CONCERN. TOOK TO SHOP, DIAGNOSTIC WAS RUN AND 1ST THOUGHT WAS THE ECU FOR HEADLIGHTS, ORDERED PART, INSTALLED AND 30 SECONDS AFTER RUNNING LIGHTS, BLEW THE NEW ECU PART. CURRENTLY ONLY 1 HEADLIGHT WORKS, AND ONLY ON HIGH BEAMS. SOMETIMES IT DOES NOT WORK EVEN ON HIGH BEAMS. IF UNPLUGGED & PLUGGED BACK IN, ONLY THEN WILL IT WORK, BUT ONLY ON HIGH BEAMS. THERE IS SOME SORT OF ELECTRICAL MALFUNCTION, BUT MECHANICS HAVE BEEN UNABLE TO DETERMINE THE PROBLEM. TAKING BACK AGAIN MONDAY 4/27 FOR ANOTHER ATTEMPT TO FIND THE PROBLEM. IN THE MEANTIME, I CONTINUE TO HAVE TO DRIVE AN UNSAFE VEHICLE, WHEN CIRCUMSTANCES REQUIRE ME TO DRIVE AFTER DARK. ALL MITZUBISHI DEALERS & SERVICE IN MY TOWN HAVE GONE OUT OF BUSINESS AND THE CLOSEST DEALER IS 2 HOURS AWAY. I CANNOT AFFORD TO 1. TAKE THE TIME TO DRIVE IT DOWN. 2. GET A RENTAL CAR WHILE THEY TRY TO FIGURE OUT THE PROBLEM. I HAVE PURCHASED NUMEROUS BULBS PRIOR TO KNOWING THERE WAS AN ELECTRICAL ISSUE, AND HAVE SPENT HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS ON DIAGNOSTICS & ATTEMPTED REPAIRS. NONE OF THE OTHER ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS OF THE CAR HAVE FAILED. ONLY THE HEADLIGHTS. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10266706

Official recalls

4

18V220000 · Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module

Apr 5, 2018

Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) is recalling certain 2004-2006 Mitsubishi Lancer vehicles that previously received a like-for-like passenger side frontal air bag inflator under recall 15V321 as interim remedy. Also recalled are 2004-2006 Lancer vehicles located in Guam or Saipan that previously received or never received a new inflator under 15V321 or 17V569. These passenger side frontal air bag inflators may be susceptible to moisture intrusion which, over time, could cause the inflator to explode in the event of an air bag deployment.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger's frontal air bag, the inflator could explode with metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants potentially resulting in serious injury or death.

Remedy: MMNA will notify owners, and dealers will install a final replacement passenger side frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on April 26, 2018. Owners may contact MMNA customer service at 1-888-648-7820. MMNA's number for this recall is SR-18-005.

17V569000 · Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module

Sep 14, 2017

Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (Mitsubishi) is recalling certain 2004-2006 Lancer and Lancer Evolution vehicles and 2004 Lancer Sportback vehicles. These vehicles are equipped with a passenger side frontal air bag that may be susceptible to moisture intrusion which, over time, could cause the inflator to rupture.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants potentially resulting in serious injury or death.

Remedy: Mitsubishi will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with a different inflator, free of charge. The recall began on October 12, 2017. Owners may contact Mitsubishi customer service at 1-888-648-7820. Mitsubishi's number for this recall is SR-17-001. Note: This recall supersedes recall 15V-321.

16V458000 · Suspension:front:control Arm:lower Arm

Jun 23, 2016

Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) is recalling certain model year 2002-2007 Lancer, 2004 Lancer Wagon, 2003-2006 Lancer Evolution, 2003-2006 Outlander and 2007-2013 Outlander V-6 vehicles originally sold in, or ever registered in, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin and the District of Columbia. In the affected vehicles, the front lower control arms may detach due to the front cross member corroding from salt water exposure such as from road salt use.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: A detached front control arm can result in the loss of control of the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: MMNA will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the front cross members. Depending on the level of existing corrosion, either a sealing/anti-corrosion agent will be applied or the front cross member will be replaced with a new one that has a sealing/anti-corrosion agent applied to it. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began January 2017. Owners may contact MMNA customer service at 1-888-648-7820. MMNA's number for this recall is SR-16-003.

16V334000 · Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module

May 23, 2016

Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) is recalling certain model year 2006-2007 Lancer and Lancer Evolution vehicles manufactured June 29, 2005, to June 19, 2007, equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules, and used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating air bag deployment, these inflators may rupture due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

Remedy: MMNA will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on July 19, 2016. Owners may contact MMNA customer service at 1-888-648-7820. MMNA's number for this recall is SR-16-002.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.