Hello Bricksters,

My 86 240 has 254,000 miles on it and has a lot of wear and tear. She's a beauty and I love her, but being in college and having law school after this, I need something with much less miles and not so many problems. Now, no matter what, I'll keep her, and do some work on her. But, what are your thoughts on a 1992-1995 Mitsubishi Diamante? I've heard they are great cars. If not, what would you guys buy (besides another Volvo)? Thanks a lot guys, I appreciate any help you can give me.

Jason

1986 240DL, 254K, nothing special on her, all original.

I'll drive many things, but NEVER a ricegrinder. I don't recall the Swedes ever bombing one of our naval bases. TB

I always liked the look of the Mitsubishi Diamante, but I promised myself that I wouldn't be part of the US/Japan trade imbalance.

Lately I've seen a few '92 Diamantes at the car auction. They haven't aged well. They have that old plastic smell in the interior, and just don't seem to be holding up well.

I'd buy a Toyota Corrola. I have a 91 corrola wagon with 387000 kM (240000mi) and all I have done are brakes, windshield, thermostat, front suspension, oil, exhaust and a door handle. I have driven the crap out of this car reving it to 5000rpm daily and redlining it at least weekly. Corrola's are inexpensive and reliable

I know the feeling of wanting something new. Although in my case I have put sooo much $$$$$$ into my car that I need to keep it for hmmm... about 45 more years to get the full dollar value out of it. But thats just me. In my mind I think you should fix the one you have or just drop a good rebuilt engine and tranny in it for I'm sure much cheeper that a new car(did I already mention that I had to do this???) but yeah. Ive never seen a Diamante before so I cant help you there. To me a young law school kid should be flying around BYU in a little Honda. That would be a nice car to get and much worth the dollar. I have many friends with a good range of Hondas and they have put far less money in their cars As someone mentioned before why not get a VW. A newer Jetta would be great to drive in and there is a big aftermarket if you are in to that kind of thing. But if you want to look cool around your law buddies than get a GTI, Ive been looking at the GTI and just about any year past 88 is nice and fun to drive, not to mention quick. Whatever you do though try to keep the Volvo. They arent just a slow Grandpa car, they can be little Sweedish rockets if you build them that way, and for the price of a mitsu. you could build up a Volvo and its more rare and more people will notice you!!

Good Luck

Adam

All reliability and cost of ownership issues aside, you should do some research on safety of any vehicle you consider. All these issues will pale when you're sitting in the back of an amulance. It's not really a matter of IF you're going to be in an accident, it's WHEN and WHAT VEHICLE. Unfortunately, you can't choose when, but you can choose which vehicle.

Now having said that, I looked up the '92 Diamante on crashtest.com. It doens't look _THAT_ bad, but it could be better. It has a big ugly red mark for injuries, and no "Excellent" ratings like your Volvo 240 does.

My girlfriend is wanting a newer, nicer car now that we're both out of college and making money. But all the vehicles she's wanting (cute little zippy things) just don't compare in the safety of the old brick I bought her, even without newfangled things like airbags.

Maybe a good option would be to hold off on a new vehicle until after law school and then you can afford a new turbo S60.

If you really must get something else, stay away from the Mitsu. They are known for transmission failures, and the engines are known for becoming oil burners.

Toyota, Honda and even Nissan make sedans that are less flashy than the Diamante and are lots cheaper and easier to run. My prediction is that if you make a compromise you'll be unhappy.

Have a friend that had a 92 Mitsu Dia and he said he hated it 2 months after he bought it, he had it a couple of years and i sold him an 87 760 turbo sedan i had, with the turbo 4cyl intercooled. He's so glad to be rid of the Mtsu and loves the Volvo...... Tom Wasney 240aholic

Edmunds gives an average dealer retail price of $4443 for the std '92 Diamonte, $5376 for the std '92 244. For another $900, all things being equal, I'd pick a 240 in a flash.

What I particularly don't like about Mitsubishi is that back in '92 the guys were still goosing the gals on the assembly line with their air wrenches. ("Boys will be boys" said management!) The problem with that (other than the expensive one you will learn about in law school) is that they were concentrating on THAT and not on bolting the cars together correctly. There is a big black dot for "engine" for the '92 Diamonte in the Consumer Reports "Frequency of Repair" chart..

However, the most important advantage of the 240 is safety, and that advantage is invisible unless you use it.

So I'd say go for a '92 240, even if you're gonna become a lawyer.

:-)

-Whitey

Check out the ratings at edmunds.com

Try a Toyota Camry or a Honda Accord. They're a little more than a Diamante but they don't have quite the status. But they're ranked higher, as I remember. Mitsu has had some questionable issues here and there, which is something to consider.

If you're footing the bill for law school, get something that you don't have to constantly pay attention to (stay away from anything made in Europe).

I drove a late model Audi during college, and thankfully mom and dad were there pouring $2000 here and $3000 there, into that car. I would've been sunk if I was paying.

A Volkswagen from the same year range (92-95) could be a very reliable car that isn't too expensive to buy. My dad bought a '96 Golf new, and he's had almost no work needed on the car, and he's quite hard on it. So far he's only had to change the belts, tires, brakes, and oil, although it needs a coolant and brake flush, and the muffler is showing it's age with some rust (nearly 5 years/70K miles). Also, if you're at all interested in a nice 240 sedan, there's a '93 240 Classic on ebay (Item #561491638).

I think that the other guys have some good ideas...

What is wrong with your 240 specifically? If the body is in good shape and the engine is still strong, there's really no reason not to fix it. That engine should easily go at least another 100,000 miles. If I were you, I'd forget about the Mitsu. and spend the money bringing your Volvo up to snuff. It should be reliable for many years to come if it has been well maintained.

If you're worried about what your law school buddies think about your car...screw them. Don't think about your car as a "status symbol."

The Diamante looks more like "an attorney's car"

Use the money you'd spend to get the mitsu to repair the volvo.

Yeah, i'd repair the volvo too! Some of the Diamante's were made in Australia and exported to the USA (among other places). The basic car is called a Magna over here (the more upmarket model is called a Verada) and I think the Diamante is based on the Verada (they certainly have high equipment levels- to the best of my knowledge). The Australian built cars are high quality, very safe, reliable, blah blah blah. But I think they are as dull as dishwater and wouldn't buy one (okay, I admit, i do tend to dislike Japanese built/designed cars!). I'd either use the Diamante money to repair the Volvo, or sell the volvo and use the combined money to buy a later 240 or 740.