2004 Mitsubishi OUTLANDER: complaints, problems and recalls

THE OUTLANDER HAS THE TENDENCY TO DRIFT TO THE LEFT. A QUICK CHECK ON THE WEBSITE REVEALED MANY CAR OWNERS FACED THE SAME PROBLEM. IT IS IDENTIFIED TO THE ACTUATOR LATCH MECHANISM OF THE STEERING MECHANISM. THIS PROBLEM US WELL KNOWN TO JAPAN & ASIA. I AM EXTREMELY SURPRISED THAT IT IS NOT KNOWN TO US AT ALL. ALL THE TIME, I HAVE TO TURN THE STEERING WHEEL SLIGHTLY TO THE RIGHT TO KEEP THE SUV STRAIGHT!!! *AK

Owner-reported narrative. 900 miles reported. Look up ODI 10051213 at NHTSA ↗

WHEN DRIVING IN THE SNOW, THE CONSUMER LOST POWER STEERING, WHICH MADE IT DIFFICULT TO CONTROL THE VEHICLE. THE CONSUMER CONTACTED THE DEALER, HOWEVER THE DEALER COULD NOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM. *AK THE VEHICLE WOULD DRIFT TO THE LEFT OR RIGHT WITH LITTLE MOVEMENT OF THE STEERING WHEEL. *SC *JB

Owner-reported narrative. 200 miles reported. Look up ODI 10057458 at NHTSA ↗

CONSUMER COMPLAINED ABOUT A STEERING PROBLEM. THE STEERING IS PULLING TO THE RIGHT. *AK

Owner-reported narrative. 200 miles reported. Look up ODI 10074061 at NHTSA ↗

(1) STEERING IS LOOSE. VEHICLE WOULD DRIFT EITHER TO THE LEFT OR RIGHT. EXCESSIVE VIBRATION EVEN THOUGH THE DEFECT DID NOT CAUSE ANY ACCIDENT OR NEED ANY PARTS REPLACEMENT, IT IS IMPORTANT THAT THE MANUFACTURER DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT. THIS IS A WELL-KNOWN PROBLEM IN ASIA. I AM SURPRISED NORTH AMERICA IS NOT NOTIFIED. *LA

Owner-reported narrative. 2,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10078297 at NHTSA ↗

ON 10/17/04, I WAS WAS REAR ENDED. THE CAR SPUN AROUND AND THE AIR BAGS DID NOT OPEN. MODEL MITSHUBISHI OUTLANDER 2003. MY BODY JERKED AGAINST THE FRAME OF THE STEERING WHEEL. YES! I HAD MY SEAT BELT ON.*AK

Owner-reported narrative. 20 miles reported. Look up ODI 10096469 at NHTSA ↗

I WAS DRIVING MY WIFE'S 2004 MITSUBISHI OUTLANDER TO THE AIRPORT LAST NIGHT TO PICK UP MY KIDS. WHILE DRIVING 60 IN THE MIDDLE LANE, MY FRONT TIRE BLEW OUT. I FORTUNATELY WAS NOT HIT WHEN MY CAR PULLED TO THE RIGHT AND I PULLED OVER. THEY HAVE YOKAHAMA TIRES. THE CAR ONLY HAS 22000 MILES AND WE HAVE ROTATED THE TIRES. WHEN I CHECKED THE FRONT TIRES, THEY ARE COMPLETELY WORN. SEEMS IMPOSSIBLE. I CALLED DON HERRING MITSUBISHI IN PLANO TX TO SEE WHAT THEY WOULD DO AND THEY JUST PUSHED IT OFF ON THE TIRE COMPANY AND SAID I'D HAVE TO FIND A RETAILE…

Owner-reported narrative. 22,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10104698 at NHTSA ↗

UPON LIGHT ACCELERATION, WITHOUT ENGAGING A GEAR CHANGE, ENGINE? WILL LOSE COMPRESSION/POWER, TACH FALL 500-700 RPS AS SPEEDOMETER RISES. ENGINE TICKS. INTERMITTENT WIPERS SPEED DECREASES WHEN VEHICLE AT STOP, AIR CIRCULATION FAN SPEED DECREASES WHEN VEHICLE AT STOP, BRAKES MAKING NOISE. DESPITE REPEATED ATTEMPTS TO CONTACT DEALERSHIP AND MANUFACTURER, NO ONE RETURNS MY CALL. *JB

Owner-reported narrative. 500 miles reported. Look up ODI 10107717 at NHTSA ↗

FAILURE OF TURN SIGNAL / EMERGENCY HAZARD LIGHTS. RELAY SWITCH BURNED OUT. CAR HAS 39000 MILES AND IS 20 MONTHS . OLD DEALER AND DISTRIBUTOR CLAIM NOT THEIR PROBLEM. I CLAIM IT IS A SAFETY PROBLEM AND SHOULD BE COVERED UNDER WARRANTY.*JB

Owner-reported narrative. 39,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10137213 at NHTSA ↗

Reported: 2003-11-03 (November 3, 2003)

ON CERTAIN SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES LOCATED IN THE CARIBBEAN, DUE TO A SOFTWARE PROGRAMMING ERROR IN THE ELECTRONIC TIMING AND CONTROL SYSTEM (ETACS), WHILE USING THE INTERMITTENT WIPER MODE, THE INTERMITTENT WIPER SWEEP TIME INTERVAL MAY INCREASE AS MUCH AS 6.8 SECOND BETWEEN WIPER SWEEPS.

Consequence: IF THIS OCCURS DURING SEVERE WEATHER AND DURING VEHICLE'S HIGH-SPEED OPERATION, THE DRIVER VISIBILITY WOULD BE REDUCED, WHICH COULD LEAD TO A CRASH.

Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE ETACS MODULE. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN NOVEMBER 14, 2003. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT MITSUBISHI CARIBBEAN AT 1-800-981-0452.

Reported: 2004-04-26 (April 26, 2004)

CERTAIN SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES MAY HAVE BEEN EQUIPPED WITH DEALER-INSTALLED TRAILER HITCH WIRING HARNESS AND CONTROL MODULE. THE ELECTRONIC CONTROL MODULE CAN OVERHEAT.

Consequence: OVERHEATING OF THE TRAILER HITCH WIRING HARNESS MODULE COULD RESULT IN A FIRE.

Remedy: OWNERS ARE BEING REQUESTED TO STOP USING THE HARNESS UNTIL A NEWLY DESIGNED REPLACEMENT IS PROVIDED AND CAN BE INSTALLED BY THE DEALER. THE RECALL BEGAN ON MAY 28, 2004. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT MITSUBISHI AT 1-888-648-7820.

Reported: 2004-09-01 (September 1, 2004)

CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES FAIL TO CONFORM TO THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 208, 'OCCUPANT CRASH PROTECTION.' THE BILINGUAL ENGLISH/SPANISH REMOVABLE AIR BAG WARNING LABELS AFFIXED TO THE DASH AND TO THE SUNVISOR DO NOT MEET THE SIZE REQUIREMENTS OF THE STANDARD.

Consequence: THIS DOES NOT MEET THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE STANDARD.

Remedy: MITSUBISHI CARIBBEAN WILL MAIL A CUSTOMER NOTIFICATION LETTER CONTAINING A WRITTEN DESCRIPTION AND A GRAPHIC OF THE BI-LINGUAL DASHBOARD AIR BAG WARNING LABEL. IN ADDITION, ALL CURRENT 2000-2004 NATIVA OWNERS WILL ALSO RECEIVE REPLACEMENT AIR BAG ALERT LABELS FOR THE SUN VISORS. THIS RECALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN DURING MARCH OR APRIL 2005. THE NOTIFICATION TO THE NATIVA OWNERS IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN DURING APRIL OR MAY 2005. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT MITSUBISHI CARIBBEAN AT 1-787-251-8715.

Reported: 2016-06-23 (June 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: 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.