Likes
- Huge range of variants and models to choose from
- No nonsense, simple and practical used car option
- Refined and responsive power plants
- Decent ride and handling
Used Mitsubishi Lancer (CJ) review
2007 - 2015
Dislikes
- Build quality and reliability can vary widely between examples
- Paint wear and tear is becoming an issue across the range
- CVT drone and reliability can vary greatly
- Not as convincing as others at this price point
Stuff you should know
The Lancer nameplate has been on – and off – the Aussie landscape since the early 1980s, with some early examples having now traded hands in the used market with long and patchy providence. It’s renowned as one of the most archetypal of affordable grocery getters and for good reasons: they’re generally cheap and, being fairly well-built with Japanese origins, deserve their reputation for reliability.
The ninth generation, or CJ, was the last. At least for most markets such as Australia (Lancer lives on in some questionable form in Asia). It arrived in 2007 and formally exited in 2017. According to one popular general knowledge website, Mitsubishi Australia stockpiled as many as it could get right before the death knell, that coincidentally marked the passing of the much-loved Evo performance cult car.
As a surrogate replacement for the defunct 380 and, to an extent, Magna, it was important car and it sold a bucketload, at times in the top ten by volume in Oz. Today, the ‘boxiest’ Lancer ever is ripe for used picking, still fairly fresh and somewhat contemporary, still priced nicely for value in dependability.
The mainstream versions stuck true to a time-honoured formula: four or five doors, front drive, equipped to pander to needs more than wants and sized generously enough to double duty as a small family hauler. The CJ, for its part, is longer, wider and a fair bit roomier than its forebear, with a bit more semi-Euro flair in styling for what was once one of motoring’s blandest designs.
It launched in three trim levels: base ES (from $21k), mid-strength VR (from $25k-ish) and a sport-infused VR-X (from $29k). You could have a choice of five-speed manual or, at around $2300 extra, a CVT auto.
The cheapy ES did bring mod cons such as air-con, a CD player, cruise control and power windows, while the step up to VR added a CD stacker, climate control, alloy wheels and auto wipers and headlights. The VR-X plies 18s, sports seats and bodykit, Bluetooth and high-end audio.
Power throughout the range comes from a tried-and-true ‘4B11’ 2.0-litre naturally aspirated four with a decent 113kW and 198Nm that runs on cheap 91RON with pleasing mid-seven-claimed fuel economy. Worth a mention is that the manuals are quite a bit quicker in performance than the CVTs.
Sedan lobbed first with Sportback hatches arriving in 2008 and before long Activ, Aspire, RX, SX versions and even sticker packs such as the Olympic Edition (of that year) would surface.
Of course, the halo variants were the turbocharged, all-wheel-driven Evolution models, offered in five-speed manual or six-speed dual-clutch forms in regular or MR trim levels, priced between $60k and just over $72k.
The Evo X deserves its own long-form overview, the 217kW/366Nm sedan-only breed the last of a long line of rally-bred head-kickers if without quite the mojo, or the cred with diehards, that its predecessors had and continue to enjoy.
Sat between the Evos and the bread and butter was the Ralliart, available from MY09 in sedan or hatch body styles, its 177kW and 343Nm turbo four with DCT and AWD offering spirited, WRX-rivalling performance for a palatable $43k price.
More choice? Again for MY09, the top end of the range – VR-X and new flagship Aspire ($35k) – was offered with a larger-capacity 2.4-litre naturally aspirated four good for 125kW and 226Nm. Both grades bring high levels of equipment though the Aspire’s extra $1700 ask brought leather trim and other goodies. That said, reversing cameras and sat-nav didn’t make appearances in the CJ Lancer until 2012 and 2013 respectively.
A good five-year warranty and solid five-star ANCAP safety rating ensure Lancer remains popular while the nameplates lobbed – such as GSR – and left. Specs and equipment were constantly changed and updated as the CJ mature and its fast-aging underpinnings soldiered on.
So while the late-gen stuff struggled to stack up new close to its 2017 demise, there’s a vast choice of CJ Lancer options on the used market. And the naturally aspirated stuff, in particularly, represents uncomplicated, reliable and sound motoring as used propositions today.
What goes wrong
- Many models are suffering from the paint peeling or fading and are quite susceptible to stone chips even in terms of the front wheels flicking rocks up onto various body panels.
- There are reports that the tail lights on specifically 2011 examples have been known to actually catch fire
- In terms of keyless entry equipped models, the key does not respond well to being in close contact with mobile phones or anything producing a magnetic field. Some owners have found that electronic interference from other sources like a phone will wipe the key’s electronic data if the key is in your pocket or bag next to your phone. It should be noted a revised key is available.
- The air conditioning is known to have issues, when cold is selected it may not blow cold air. Sometimes this just needs re-gassing but the blower or fan motor can also have some issues as well. This can be labour intensive to fix.
- The leather seats are known to wear quite quickly, most notably the foam that makes up the base of the seat. They can be reupholstered but sometimes the cheaper option is to replace the seat all together.
- Engine wise, the 4B11 and 4B12 were the modernised replacements for the tried and tested 4G63 family of engines. It’s a lighter and more powerful engine and overall, properly maintained units are fairly reliable.
- They can suffer occasionally from MIVEC (Mitsubishi Innovative Electronic Control) solenoids playing up and some earlier models can have timing chain and tensioner complications. A timing chain kit can be purchased for around $350 (AUD) and takes a few hours to install, all up (including oil and filter replacement) should cost less than $1000 to resolve.
- The ABS control module or ABS pump is a very common problem with these Lancers. In Australia, at the moment the genuine Mitsubishi replacement unit is around $2800, or at least it would be if you could actually get one as they have been on back order almost indefinitely. In some cases they can be repaired for around half that amount or you could try sourcing a second hand unit however that can be tricky as it’s critical to match part numbers or it will not work properly.
- The Jatco CVT transmission does have quite a bad reputation for being unreliable but when serviced correctly, statistically the actual number of serious issues they have when compared to the huge numbers of these cars on Australian roads suggest otherwise.
- The recommended service intervals for the transmission under normal conditions is every 90,000kms and the recommended service intervals for for adverse conditions is 45,000kms. What many don’t realise is that stop start city traffic
- Many models are suffering from the paint peeling or fading and are quite susceptible to stone chips even in terms of the front wheels flicking rocks up onto various body panels.
- There are reports that the tail lights on specifically 2011 examples have been known to actually catch fire
- In terms of keyless entry equipped models, the key does not respond well to being in close contact with mobile phones or anything producing a magnetic field. Some owners have found that electronic interference from other sources like a phone will wipe the key’s electronic data if the key is in your pocket or bag next to your phone. It should be noted a revised key is available.
- The air conditioning is known to have issues, when cold is selected it may not blow cold air. Sometimes this just needs re-gassing but the blower or fan motor can also have some issues as well. This can be labour intensive to fix.
- The leather seats are known to wear quite quickly, most notably the foam that makes up the base of the seat. They can be reupholstered but sometimes the cheaper option is to replace the seat all together.
- Engine wise, the 4B11 and 4B12 were the modernised replacements for the tried and tested 4G63 family of engines. It’s a lighter and more powerful engine and overall, properly maintained units are fairly reliable.
- They can suffer occasionally from MIVEC (Mitsubishi Innovative Electronic Control) solenoids playing up and some earlier models can have timing chain and tensioner complications. A timing chain kit can be purchased for around $350 (AUD) and takes a few hours to install, all up (including oil and filter replacement) should cost less than $1000 to resolve.
- The ABS control module or ABS pump is a very common problem with these Lancers. In Australia, at the moment the genuine Mitsubishi replacement unit is around $2800, or at least it would be if you could actually get one as they have been on back order almost indefinitely. In some cases they can be repaired for around half that amount or you could try sourcing a second hand unit however that can be tricky as it’s critical to match part numbers or it will not work properly.
- The Jatco CVT transmission does have quite a bad reputation for being unreliable but when serviced correctly, statistically the actual number of serious issues they have when compared to the huge numbers of these cars on Australian roads suggest otherwise.
- The recommended service intervals for the transmission under normal conditions is every 90,000kms and the recommended service intervals for for adverse conditions is 45,000kms. What many don’t realise is that stop start city traffic is regarded as adverse conditions and therefore servicing the transmission every 45,000kms is essential if you want it to last.
- We should also mention, these Lancers have received a long list of various factory recalls, some of them regarding some genuinely safety issues so if you are in the market, please make sure any factory recalls have been resolved.
- Many models are suffering from the paint peeling or fading and are quite susceptible to stone chips even in terms of the front wheels flicking rocks up onto various body panels.
- There are reports that the tail lights on specifically 2011 examples have been known to actually catch fire
- In terms of keyless entry equipped models, the key does not respond well to being in close contact with mobile phones or anything producing a magnetic field. Some owners have found that electronic interference from other sources like a phone will wipe the key’s electronic data if the key is in your pocket or bag next to your phone. It should be noted a revised key is available.
- The air conditioning is known to have issues, when cold is selected it may not blow cold air. Sometimes this just needs re-gassing but the blower or fan motor can also have some issues as well. This can be labour intensive to fix.
- The leather seats are known to wear quite quickly, most notably the foam that makes up the base of the seat. They can be reupholstered but sometimes the cheaper option is to replace the seat all together.
- Engine wise, the 4B11 and 4B12 were the modernised replacements for the tried and tested 4G63 family of engines. It’s a lighter and more powerful engine and overall, properly maintained units are fairly reliable.
- They can suffer occasionally from MIVEC (Mitsubishi Innovative Electronic Control) solenoids playing up and some earlier models can have timing chain and tensioner complications. A timing chain kit can be purchased for around $350 (AUD) and takes a few hours to install, all up (including oil and filter replacement) should cost less than $1000 to resolve.
- The ABS control module or ABS pump is a very common problem with these Lancers. In Australia, at the moment the genuine Mitsubishi replacement unit is around $2800, or at least it would be if you could actually get one as they have been on back order almost indefinitely. In some cases they can be repaired for around half that amount or you could try sourcing a second hand unit however that can be tricky as it’s critical to match part numbers or it will not work properly.
- The Jatco CVT transmission does have quite a bad reputation for being unreliable but when serviced correctly, statistically the actual number of serious issues they have when compared to the huge numbers of these cars on Australian roads suggest otherwise.
- The recommended service intervals for the transmission under normal conditions is every 90,000kms and the recommended service intervals for for adverse conditions is 45,000kms. What many don’t realise is that stop start city traffic is regarded as adverse conditions and therefore servicing the transmission every 45,000kms is essential if you want it to last.
- We should also mention, these Lancers have received a long list of various factory recalls, some of them regarding some genuinely safety issues so if you are in the market, please make sure any factory recalls have been resolved.
Should you buy it?
With so many different models and varieties available, buying one really does depend on the specific example you’re looking at.
We’d obviously avoid any Lancers with a sketchy history or showing huge kilometres, as with so many examples populating the used market, a perfectly serviced and low kilometre example will be just around the corner and will be worth every cent of the few extra dollars it’ll be asking.
There really is a Lancer to suit nearly everyone’s budget and requirements and yes, ignoring the Ralliart and Evo models, it is a bit of a boring and bland thing, and yes you should probably buy a Corolla, Hyundai i30 or Mazda 3 instead, but find a good one and it’s a tentative yes from us, they can be a solid no nonsense nugget of a car.
But before you hand over your cash, make sure you get it to a qualified mechanic and have a full pre-purchase inspection carried out as the build quality between examples can vary, let alone what any previous owners may have subjected them to.
With so many different models and varieties available, buying one really does depend on the specific example you’re looking at.
We’d obviously avoid any Lancers with a sketchy history or showing huge kilometres, as with so many examples populating the used market, a perfectly serviced and low kilometre example will be just around the corner and will be worth every cent of the few extra dollars it’ll be asking.
There really is a Lancer to suit nearly everyone’s budget and requirements and yes, ignoring the Ralliart and Evo models, it is a bit of a boring and bland thing, and yes you should probably buy a Corolla, Hyundai i30 or Mazda 3 instead, but find a good one and it’s a tentative yes from us, they can be a solid no nonsense nugget of a car.
But before you hand over your cash, make sure you get it to a qualified mechanic and have a full pre-purchase inspection carried out as the build quality between examples can vary, let alone what any previous owners may have subjected them to.
Should you buy it?
With so many different models and varieties available, buying one really does depend on the specific example you’re looking at.
We’d obviously avoid any Lancers with a sketchy history or showing huge kilometres, as with so many examples populating the used market, a perfectly serviced and low kilometre example will be just around the corner and will be worth every cent of the few extra dollars it’ll be asking.
There really is a Lancer to suit nearly everyone’s budget and requirements and yes, ignoring the Ralliart and Evo models, it is a bit of a boring and bland thing, and yes you should probably buy a Corolla, Hyundai i30 or Mazda 3 instead, but find a good one and it’s a tentative yes from us, they can be a solid no nonsense nugget of a car.
But before you hand over your cash, make sure you get it to a qualified mechanic and have a full pre-purchase inspection carried out as the build quality between examples can vary, let alone what any previous owners may have subjected them to.
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Disclaimer
Please note that pricing information is subject to fluctuations in the automotive market.
Information correct as of May 27, 2024.
The advice provided on this website is general advice only. It has been prepared without taking into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. Before acting on this advice, you should consider the appropriateness of the advice, having regard to your own objectives, financial situation and needs.
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