2007 Mitsubishi Outlander

I WAS DRIVING AT APPROXIMATELY 5MPH BRAKING TO TAKE A LEFT HAND TURN WHEN I HEARD A LOUD CLUNK AND CAME TO AN ABRUPT STOP. AFTER EXISTING THE VEHICLE IT APPEARS MY FRONT SUSPENSION HAD SNAPPED AND MY DRIVERS SIDE TIRE WAS PUSHED INTO THE QUARTER PANEL HINDERING MY DRIVERS SIDE DOOR AND MY PASSENGER TIRE WAS POINTING TO THE RIGHT. AFTER GETTING IT TOWED TO THE NEAREST AUTO BODY PLACE, I WAS INFORMED THAT THE FRONT SUB FRAME SNAPPED DUE TO RUST. I AM THE ORIGINAL OWNER WHO HAS PERFORMED ALL MAINTENANCE ITEMS, IT HAS BEEN GARAGE KEPT FOR 7 OUT OF THE 9 YEARS OF OWNING THE VEHICLE. I WOULD HATE TO SEE HOW FAST THIS VEHICLE WOULD HAVE FAILED IF I DID NOT PERFORM ANY MAINTENANCE ON IT. WHAT IS VERY TROUBLING IS THE CAR IS ONLY 9 YEARS OLD AND THE NIGHT BEFORE I WAS TRAVELING ON THE HIGHWAY AT 70MPH WITH MY 4 KIDS IN THE VEHICLE. IF THIS WOULD HAVE SNAPPED ON THE HIGHWAY WE WOULD HAVE BEEN LUCKY TO SURVIVE BECAUSE I HAD ZERO STEERING CAPABILITIES.

LEFT FRONT COIL SPRING SHATTERED IN 2 PLACES AT 101K, WHICH IS WELL WITHIN THE 120K/9 YEAR COVERAGE EXTENSION IN TSB-14-33-002. MITSUBISHI WOULD NOT REIMBURSE AS THE REPAIR WAS NOT MADE AT A DEALERSHIP. I EXPLAINED THE CAR WAS VIRTUALLY UN-DRIVEABLE AND HAD NO CHOICE BUT TO GO TO A LOCAL REPAIR FACILITY (NEAREST DEALER OVER 15 MILES AWAY). THE RESPONSE I WAS GIVEN WAS THAT I SHOULD HAVE HAD THE CAR INSPECTED AT A DEALERSHIP PRIOR TO THE SPRING BREAKING, AND THAT I SHOULD ALWAYS BE CHECKING FOR RECALLS AND TSB'S RELATIVE TO MY VEHICLE. TYPICAL TO BLAME THE CONSUMER.

WHILE INSPECTING VEHICLE, DISCOVERED ROTTED FRONT CROSSMEMBER (DRIVER SIDE, METAL FORMING PART MAY HAVE BEEN IMPROPERLY STAMPED RESULTING IN THE METAL BECOMING THINNER AND RUST IT VERY FAST ), WHICH CAN FAIL ANY TIME INVOLVING OTHER STEERING COMPONENTS TO SEPARATE OF THE FRAME WHICH MAY RESULT IN THE LOSS OF STEERING CONTROL AND LEADING IT TO A BIG CRASH OR FATAL ACCIDENT . THERE WERE FEW COMPLAINS ON THIS SITE, REGARDING SAME PROBLEMS ON A DIFFERENT MITSUBISHI MODELS AND ALSO RECALL NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NO.: 06V334000 FOR 2007 MITSUBISHI ECLIPSE AFFECTING 1516 CARS. AS MUCH AS MITSUBISHI USES SAME SUSPENSION COMPONENTS FOR DIFFERENT MODELS OTHER MITSUBISHI VEHICLES MAY HAVE SAME ISSUES. MY MITSUBISHI OUTLANDER 2007 WAS REPAIRED AT MITSUBISHI DEALERSHIP ABOUT MONTH AGO. DURING REPAIR ON FRONT SUSPENSION (FRONT SHOCKS, COIL SPRINGS AND STABILIZERS WERE REPLACED BECAUSE EXTENDED WARRANTY) BUT I WASN'T TOLD ABOUT OTHER EVEN WORSE PROBLEMS. SEE PHOTOS.

THERE IS A CURRENT RECALL (#15V233000) OPEN FOR 2009 AND UP OUTLANDERS, HOWEVER; MY 2007 OUTLANDER IS EXPERIENCING THE SAME SAFETY ISSUE. SEE THE FOLLOWING SUPPORTING LINKS: MITSUBISHI FORUM DISCUSSION SHOWING ISSUE WITH 2007 OUTLANDERS: HTTP://MITSUBISHIFORUM.COM/FORUM/MITSUBISHI-OUTLANDER-10/2007-OUTLANDER-XLS-INTERIOR-CABIN-FAN-NOISE-23886/ OVERVIEW OF COMPLAINTS LEADING TO RECALL: HTTP://WWW.CARCOMPLAINTS.COM/NEWS/2015/MITSUBISHI-RECALLS-DEFROSTERS-HEADLIGHTS-TAIL-LIGHTS-WINDSHIELD-WIPERS.SHTML RECALL #15V233000 INFORMATION: HTTP://WWW-ODI.NHTSA.DOT.GOV/OWNERS/SEARCHRESULTS;JSESSIONID=K79MWL9CZVCPW5QT7JVC7ZQFKN9HWGJTC3BFBKLWLKJZ1CGDHCS4!1946195996?PRODTYPE=V&SEARCHTYPE=PROD&TARGETCATEGORY=A&SEARCHCRITERIA.MODEL=OUTLANDER&STATS=512860%2C7%2C0%2C17%2C12%2COUTLANDER&MAKESTATS=&JSONBASEURL=%2FDOWNLOADS%2FFOLDERS%2F&SEARCHCRITERIA.MODEL_YR=2009&SEARCHCRITERIA.MAKE=MITSUBISHI&SEARCHCRITERIA.PROD_IDS=512860

I WAS DRIVING MY OUTLANDER XLS AWD AT LOW SPEED (~25 MPH ON A SIDE STREET) WHEN I HEARD A LOUD "POP", AND LOST CONTROL OF THE STEERING. I SWERVED INTO THE ONCOMING LANE, BUT WAS ABLE TO STOP THE CAR WITHOUT HITTING ANYTHING OR ANYONE. I REGAINED PARTIAL CONTROL OF THE STEERING, BUT THE STEERING WHEEL WAS NOW NEARLY A HALF-TURN OFF-CENTER AND DID NOT FULLY CONTROL THE CAR'S DIRECTION. THE PROBLEM WAS DIAGNOSED AS A ROTTED SUBFRAME, WHICH SUDDENLY FAILED. WHEN THE SUBFRAME CRACKED, STEERING/SUSPENSION COMPONENTS WERE THROWN FAR OUT OF ALIGNMENT. MITSUBISHI KINDLY REPLACED THE SUBFRAME AT THEIR EXPENSE. THE CAR HAD BEEN IN SERVICE FOR 8 YEARS AND 73,000 MILES AT THE TIME OF THE INCIDENT.

WHEN OPERATING SAID VEHICLE, THERE WAS A LOUD BANG FROM THE LEFT FRONT. UPON INSPECTION, IT WAS DETERMINED THE LEFT FRONT SPRING HAD CRACKED. VEHICLE HAD TO BE TOWED TO NEAREST SHOP FOR REPAIR. WE LATER FOUND OUT THERE WAS WARRANTY EXTENSION FOR THIS PART. HOWEVER WE WERE NOT NOTIFIED BY MITSUBISHI OF THIS KNOWN DEFECT. WE CONTACTED MITSUBISHI NUMEROUS TIMES SEEKING REIMBURSEMENT SINCE PART FAILED UNDER WARRANTY. THEY REFUSED TO PAY. WE MET ALL OF THE RULES AS SPECIFIED UNDER THE WARRANTY EXTENSION NOTICE. MITSUBISHI FAILED TO PAY FOR THIS KNOWN FAILED PART. I TRIED SEVERAL TIMES TO DETERMINE WHY WE WERE NOT NOTIFIED OF THIS ISSUE. MITSUBISHI OFFERED NO HELP.

I WAS LEAVING WORK WHEN I HEARD A LOUD BANG COME FROM THE FRONT END. I PULLED OVER AND COULD SEE THE FRONT COIL SPRING ON MY DRIVERS SIDE WAS BROKEN. I PARKED IT UNTIL I COULD FIGURE OUT WHAT NEEDED TO BE DONE. I FOUND OUT THAT MITSUBISHI EXTENDED THE WARRANTY TO 120000 MILES I HAD 123995. I CALLED THE MITSUBISHI PARTS DEPARTMENT NEAR MY AREA AND THEY HAD A SET, I TOLD THEM I WANTED TO FIND OUT IF MITSUBISHI WOULD HONOR THE WARRANTY SINCE THE MILEAGE WAS SO CLOSE, BEFORE I PAID FOR THEM. IT TOOK MITSUBISHI A COUPLE OF DAYS TO GET BACK TO ME. THEY TOLD ME THEY WOULDN'T DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT. I ASKED IF THEY WOULD PAY FOR THE SPRINGS AND I WOULD DO THE LABOR MYSELF, THEY TOLD ME NO. I CALLED THE PARTS DEPARTMENT BACK THEY HAD ALREADY SOLD THE ONES THEY HAD IN STOCK. IT SEEMS TO BE A COMMON PROBLEM BECAUSE THEY HAD TO ORDER THEM AND THEY WERE ON BACK ORDER (IT TOOK 2 WEEKS TO GET THEM). WHEN THE PARTS FINALLY CAME IN I GOT BOTH FRONT SPRINGS BECAUSE I WAS TOLD YOU SHOULD REPLACE BOTH AT THE SAME TIME. IT WAS A GOOD THING I ORDERED THEM BOTH BECAUSE THE DAY I WENT TO INSTALL THEM, I LOOKED AND NOTICED THE PASSENGER SIDE HAD BROKEN WHILE THE CAR WAS JUST SITTING THERE AND THE CRAZY THING IS BOTH SPRINGS HAD BROKEN IN THE EXACT SAME PLACE. MITSUBISHI MUST HAVE A DATA BASE AND KNOWS PRETTY CLOSE TO WHEN THE SPRINGS ARE GOING TO BREAK AND MADE THE WARRANTY JUST SHY OF WHEN THEY WOULD BREAK. I JUST SEEMS THE ODDS OF BOTH SPRINGS BREAKING AT ALMOST THE EXACT SAME TIME IS ASTRONOMICAL. I KEPT THE SPRINGS IN CASE ANYBODY NEEDS TO SEE THEM. I ALSO LOOKED ON LINE AND FOUND QUITE A LOT OF COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE SAME PROBLEM ALL OVER THE USA AND CANADA AND DOESN'T SEEM TO MATTER IF IT'S IN A COLD OR WARM STATE. MOST ALL OF THE COMPLAINTS WERE AFTER THE EXTENDED WARRANTY HAD EXPIRED. MITSUBISHI SHOULD DO A RECALL BECAUSE IT COULD CAUSE AN ACCIDENT IF IT HAPPENS AT A HIGH RATE OF SPEED.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2007 MITSUBISHI OUTLANDER. WHILE DRIVING AT 5 MPH, THE CONTACT HEARD A NOISE COMING FROM THE FRONT OF THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO DIAGNOSED THAT THE FRONT COIL SPRING, STRUTS, AND SWAY BAR LINKS WERE FRACTURED AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 103,789.

THE YOKE THAT IS PART OF THE FRAME THAT HOLDS UP THE FRONT STEERING ASSEMBLY RUSTED THROUGH AND DOES NOT SUPPORT THE STEERING ASSEMBLY THE WAY IT SHOULD. THE CAR IS ONLY 7-1/2 YEARS OLD AND THIS SHOULD NOT HAVE FAILED. THERE WERE ONLY TWO REPLACEMENTS TO BE FOUND IN THE COUNTRY. ONE WAS A USED ONE FROM THE"SOUTH" SOMEWHERE, AND THE SECOND A NEW ONE FROM A MITSUBISHI WAREHOUSE IN CALIFORNIA. THE ESTIMATE FOR REPAIR IS ABOUT $1400. THE DEALER I PURCHASED THE CAR FROM WAS NO HELP. IT SEEMS THAT SINCE THERE ARE VERY FEW REPLACEMENT PARTS IN THE U.S. THIS MAY BE A WIDE SPREAD PROBLEM FOR THESE VEHICLE. THE REPLACEMENT PART IS USED ON SEVERAL MODEL YEARS OF THIS VEHICLE. *TR