Mitsubishi Colt (2004 - 2013) 1.3 Elegance 5d (2006/06) Owner Review

What does this car say about you?

I don't go for style over substance.

What do your friends / family / neighbours think of the car?

Cute, loveable, but full of plastic. Garage says Mitsubishi let down good mechanicals with their interiors. I say I'm glad because if they did both that well, I wouldn't be able to afford to buy one!

Would you buy this car again and why?

Yes. It hasn't been any trouble so far, fingers crossed it stays that way.

What are you likely to buy next?

Keep the Colt and its new partner may well be a 4x4 because we're probably moving to the middle of nowhere and might need one for the winter.

Type of dealer you bought from?

Didn't buy from a dealer

Did you buy this car new?

No

What price did you pay?

£4,500

When did you buy the car?

January 2011

Did you get a good deal and why?

Car supermarket gave us reasonable money for the corpse... uh, Citroen. They knew we were at the limit of our budget and the salesman made no attempt to bleed us dry with "extras". Reasonable price because although 5 years old, the car had basically been to the shops once a week, washed and polished. It looked brand new.

Is there any special reason why you bought this car?

My wife had a Citroen C3. If that doesn't say everything you need to know, then you've never owned a C3.

What was the dealer like?

I think they were pretty glad to be flogging a car. The recession was biting hard after Christmas and there was barely a soul around. They were friendly enough, but didn't really seem to have much about them, if you know what I mean. Nice but dim.

What's it like to drive?

Not bad at all! Very good on local roads, holds the road well and if you treat it well you can just about muster 50mpg average. It can do motorway trips, but it would be unfair to criticise it for not being the ideal motorway car because it was never intended to be one. Fuel economy does drop off significantly on long motorway trips: about 40mpg is what you can hope for here.

What's it like to park?

Wife loves it. I'm not so good, because it's a petrol car and I'm used to driving a diesel. So much easier to stall a petrol car! Also, I'm looking for the catch when parking it, I can't believe it really is that easy.

Have you had any problems with the car?

Needed new front discs soon after buying. Mitsubishi 1.3 petrol of this age has a chain and not a cambelt, so no cambelt to change. Only got one key with the car: dealer wanted a small fortune (just under £200) but our local independent garage managed it for under 50 quid. Back seat squeaks, but we solved that with a strategically placed towel. You'd think the plastic interior would be a haven for irritating rattles, but no.

What's most practical about your car?

Bigger boot or more rear legroom? You get to choose every journey. Massive door mirrors mean you can see just about everything behind you.

Favourite gadget, option or accessory?

The remote for the radio/CD. It's hidden on the back of the steering wheel. Car supermarket didn't know. We didn't know because we never expected to get one. Then a month after we bought it, my wife was parking the car, just touched behind the steering wheel and the radio came on. We were playing like kids for days after. Which probably makes us rather sad people...