Mitsubishi Diamante Sedan 2000

• Recall 41258 [USA]: This does not meet the requirements of the standard.
  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.
  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.
  the manufacturer's petition which requested that nhtsa determine this fmvss noncompliance does not create an unreasonable risk to motor vehicle safety was partially denied on january 26, 2005. Therefore, this manufacturer is obligated to conduct an owner notification and remedy campaign.Customers can also contact the national highway traffic safety administration's auto safety hotline at 1-888-327-4236.

• Recall 34816 [USA]: If the tether strap is improperly installed to the tether anchor, the child safety seat may not be sufficient restrained. in the event of a crash, the child could be injured.
  Certain sport utility and passenger vehicles fail to comply with federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 225, "child restraint anchorage systems." the owner's manual does not contain a step-by-step description for headrest adjustment when installing a child restraint system (crs) tether strap.
  a letter outlining the problem will be sent to owners along with a sticker containing the correct instructions as well as instructions on where to affix the sticker in the owner's manual. The recall began on march 29, 2004. Owners should contact mitsubishi at 1-888-648-7820.
  mitsubishi recall no. Sr-04-002.Customers can also contact the national highway traffic safety administration's auto safety hotline at 1-888-dash-2-dot (1-888-327-4236).

• Recall 7463 [USA]: If the screw head breaks off, the parking brake shoe retainer clip can become dislodged and could result in the parking brake dragging and/or failure of the parking brake to properly hold. seizure of the parking brake shoe, especially on wet or snow covered roads, could result in lockup of one of the rear wheels.
  Vehicle description: passenger vehicles. The head of the screw that holds the retaining clip for the parking brake shoe can become brittle and break off.
  dealers will replace the retaining clip screw and in the process inspect the rear brake system of any possible related damage. Any related damage that may be found will also be repaired.
  owner notification began june 30, 2000. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact mitsubishi at 1-800-222-0037. Also contact the national highway traffic safety administration's auto safety hotline at 1-888-dash-2-dot (1-888-327-4236).

To ensure accuracy and for your safety, it is recommended to do a free VIN recall check here or here [USA] - UK - Canada.

Bulletins are notices put out by manufacturers in conjunction with the NHTSA to notify the public of manufacturing issues or changes.

Common OBD Error codes specific to this vehicle.

• P0174 [2] System too Lean (Bank 2)
• P0171 [1] System too Lean (Bank 1)

2000 mitsubishi diamante. Consumer states vehicle surged forward. *tgw the consumer stated when leaving a parking lot and attempting to pull into traffic, the vehicle barely moved at 5 mph, even though he was pressing on the accelerator and the rpm was not moving. After going about 1/4 of a mile, all of a sudden the vehicle jumped into gear and the vehicle lurched forward. The next day, a representative from mitsubishi went to the consumer's workplace and examined the vehicle. The representative stated the throttle cable needed to be adjusted and suggested the consumer take the vehicle to the dealer. The consumer stated the dealer never received any information to order a new cable and the his vehicle still has not been fixed. *jb

For over 2 years now i have had problems with an odor in my 2000 diamanti and the defogger never seemed to work on the windows. A couple of weeks ago i saw something leak onto the passenger side rug but didn't' t guess that this could have something to do with the heater core. Upon taking it to my dealer i was told this was hole in the heater core that had to be fixed immediately because it was dangerous and hazardous to my health to breath the fumes that were coming out of the core. The cost would be approximately $1200. I noticed i often had headaches when i drove long distances but was very concerned when my grandchild became very car sick (which had never happened before) upon riding in my car. I still didn't associate the heater with our problems. I think this is very dangerous and something should be recalled on these. I resent that after only 40,000 miles i must spend $1200 on something that is obviously a mistake on mitsubishi's part since it is not a wear factor. *tr

Sudden heater core gasket leak, instantaneous fogging of all windows, causing a severe driving hazard, especially when it happens at highway speeds. *tr

Front windshield fogs up, strong smell of anti-freeze, can't clear the fog with defogger, read potential risks to health because of the contact to anti-freeze fumes. *jb

My wife and i noticed antifreeze odor coming in through vents. When our windows would fog, our defroster wouldn't work. Then our passenger side floor was soaked with antifreeze. We took the car to the dealer, our heater core was leaking. Cost was $1300 to repair. Mitsubishi should be held responsible!! Too many complaints. *tr

Heating core is leaking antifreeze onto other components under the dash; strong smell of antifreeze within the car; windows fog up upon using any of the ventilation systems. *nm

I currently have what is described to be a "heater core failure" in my 2000 mitsubishi diamante. I have been made aware that this issue is fairly common amongst diamantes. Any time i turn on the heater, my automobile is filled with a noxious odor that i'm lead to believe might be detrimental to my health. I am also unable to defrost my windows because of this problem. This causes a dangerous driving condition as i'm forced to constantly wipe the windshield with a paper towel.*jb

Vehicle check engine light came on and locked into third gear. Noticed smell of coolant inside drivers compartment and hazing of the windshield. Brought vehicle to dealer to have problem improperly diagnosed and had to have it re-tested two weeks later. Heater core leakage has caused damage to the ecu and now both have to be replaced. Total cost of repair for both was $3,357.62. Coolant fumes are very toxic and cause a significant health risk and ecu failure could easily result in a very serious accident on the highway or elsewhere. The "fogging" of the windshield is a visibility hazard as well caused by the hot coolant in the defrost vents. *jb

The heater core has failed for the second time. I purchased the car from a dealer with 54,000 miles on it and after 500 miles the heatercore is fried. The worst part is that when i went to the mitsubishi dealership to get my remote reprogrammed i got the printout of all the previous service that was done on it. The heater core was already replaced at 24,000 miles!!! Does this mean that i will have to spend around $1,000 every 25k miles that i drive the car??? Mitsubishi, please address this problem! Regarding to the problem itself... I got all the usual symptoms - the windshield was fogging up, there was a strong smell of the antifreeze in the car and now there's a pool of antifreeze by the passenger's seat. This cannot be good for my respiratory system... Antifreeze is a poison. I've had some problems with my lungs before and if it gets worse after this problem, mitsubishi will look at a huge lawsuit. *nm

Dt: consumer has 2000 mitsubishi diamante whose gas tank leaks consumer took vehicle to dealer, and dealer found gas leakage, but could not find any hole in the gas tank. *ak

The fumes of antifreeze fogged up the windows severely, reducing visibility of the driver. It was raining one night and my windows all of a sudden got foggy. I turned on the defroster, which made my windows even foggier. The poor visibility caused me to run off the road into the grassy median. I was out of town when this occurred. In doing research on this problem i found that it was common all diamantes (92 -2001). In many cases, the driver is not aware that this is a severe problem. The antifreeze will started leaking on the passenger?S side area. Causing more strong smell of toxic antifreeze. I believe this to be a safety issue. *ak

We have a five-year-old mitsubishi diamante. For the last week, my husband, scott has smelled a sweet smell in his car and had a problem with the windows fogging. Tuesday morning he started losing forward power when driving to work on i480. He noticed that his dashboard transmission lights were acting funny so he called our mitsubishi dealer. The service people asked if he had noticed that the windows were fogging or if he smelled any anti-freeze coming from the heater. Scott was astonished that the sweet smell was antifreeze. The service advisor said that most likely it's because that diamante has experienced heater cores leaking into the passenger compartment and dripping onto the transmission computer. This is why he was losing power while driving on i480. One of my concerns is what health problems can come from driving in an enclosed environment while the heating system is mixing antifreeze fluid in the air that my husband is breathing while commuting to work. Later on that same tuesday, the service advisor called him and said that their service manager spoke directly with the regional mitsubishi service representative and he said that the heater core was too far out of warranty to be covered based on 36,000 mile warranty. The transmission computer, while covered up to 84,000 miles, would also not be covered because the failure was due to antifreeze dripping on the computer causing it to fail. *jb

Windows fogging up, heater not working, anti-freeze leaking into the passenger side floorboard. *ak

Windows fog constantly and i can not get them defrosted. Smoke and smell of antifreeze comes into cabin of car. Took to dealer a year ago and was told nothing was wrong, car now has 98,000 miles and they are telling me it will cost 672.00 to replace the heater core. I have found several complaints about the same issues. I became ill in january of this year, the doctors (4 of them and three hospitals, ct scans, etc) could not figure out what it was. Turns out it was breathing the fumes in my car. At that time, the smoke only appeared a couple of times, but now it has increased considerably. I think it's sad that mitsubishi will not repair this problem, nor have they corrected it.*ak

The windows kept fogging up, defroster was did not clear it up, 0 visibility, when defroster was on there was a strong smell of antifreeze. When car was driven for more then 30 min once shut of smoke was coming out of the dash board vent by windshield.*ak

About two months after buying a 2000 diamante; in oct, 2004, i started to notice thick fog on the windsheild that wouldn't go away by using the de-fogger and when using the heater, i would also notice strong smell on anit-freeze comming out from the vent. Upon inspection, the dealership described the problem as faulty o-ring in the heater core. The fix was costly, around $1100.00 however the car has been problem free since then. *ak

2000 diamante malfunction, especially in cold or wet weather gas pedal sticks, requires additional pressure to overcome. *bf the dealer was unable to duplicate the problem. *sc

An anti freeze and smoke odor was coming into the cabin of the vehicle through the air vents. Dealership indicated this was caused by a problem with the heater core gasket, and needed to be replaced. The entire dashboard has to be taken apart to replace the part. This was a common problem with these vehicles. *ak *sc

The heater core failed and leaked on the floor board. The consumer would smell chemical fumes. The mechanic repaired the problem twice, but the consumer is still having the same problem. Please provide more information. *jb

Strong antifreeze smell and vapors coming through the vents. Especially when the heater is turned on. Windows are fogging constantly. The car started overheating and have to refill antifreeze. Service center said antifreeze is leaking and evaporating and they heard about this problem before. *ak

For several weeks it was becoming increasingly difficult for me to clear the windshield on my car and i attributed it to hot, humid weather. Coming back on the freeway one evening it suddenly became much worse and my husband and i tried many different combinations of cool/warm/fresh air to be able to see out of the window, but it never fully cleared. It was dangerous to drive under those conditions, but we made it home. There was a whitish film beginning to form on the window, visible in daylight. What was in the fumes that formed the film i am afraid to imagine. Several days later as i was driving my son to school we both noticed a white, cloudy smoke coming from the vents directly in front of us. We kept the windows down to avoid breathing in the fumes. The next day i took my car to the dealership and was told the gaskets adjacent to the heater core had failed. It cost $5.10 for the replacement part, but the repair cost total $560.00 because they had to remove the entire dash to replace the o-rings. My car was in the shop for a full day. I'm also concerned because i've since learned that the anti-freeze leaking from the "worn-out" rings dripped down onto my car's computer. What potential damage could have occurred to the computer, is it ok now, and could it have caused a major accident if the computer failed.*ak

Noticed faint smell of anti freeze in oct 2003. Had problems with defroster clearing windows, very hard to clean. Noticed passanger side floor carpet is soaked with anti freeze. Obviously a problem with the heater core or the hose(s) which connect to it are leaking. Car has 60000 miles, and is well maintained. This heater core leaks directly over computers which, as far as i know, control the engine - and could cause it to act unpredictably or cut out altogether when driving. Heater core gasket was the problem according to dealer and i have had it fixed. *ak

Dealer replaced the heater core at 37,000 miles, and at 80,000 miles the heather core failed again. Consumer found two technical service bulletins pertaining to this problem.*ak in both incidents, the windshield became foggy on the inside and the defrost fail to clear it. Mechanic stated the o-ring failed. When this occurred, antifreeze leaked into the engine parts. The anti freeze got heated and evaporated. It then seeks through the vents onto the windshield. Consumer noted this posed two safety hazards. Repairing dealer stated they alone has seen this problem several times. *ph *nlm

Windows were not clearing properly and smell of anti-freeze was very strong. Upon calling the mitsubishi dealer, i was told, it's probably the heater core. I ask if this is normal for a car less than three years olds with approximately 40,000 miles. The service manager told me, well to give you and idea, i just replaced one last week. I was told vehicle is out of warranty, cost to repair $650.

Heater core on 2000 mitshubishi diamante failed and fogged up my windsheild. While driving home the night of the failure, a deer jump in front of my car and caused 4 grand in damage. I had to pay for the heater core at the dealership.*ak

We have a 2000 mitsubishi diamante with 32k miles on it. Car is still under factory warranty along with an extended warranty we have purchased. After the first couple of thousand miles we noticed a "pulsing" feeling in the brakes as well as an intermittent abs warning light flash. We made the dealer aware of this so they replaced all 4 at approx. 11k. Less than 10k after that we noticed the same problem and took it into a closer dealer to where we live, they replaced the brakes again. Now again about 10k the brakes are having the same problem. The vehicle abs light came on a couple of times and the car is ?Pulsing? When applying the brakes and is worn out again. I spoke to mitsubishi customer service agent who is the dealer rep. Debbie krumboltz. She originally agreed to take care of the brakes after i met with her about the issue. When i made the appointment to have the repair done she denied agreeing to the repair? I in turn called mitsubishi motors and spoke to a person in the escalated compliant division named lisa, she would not give her last name and basically told me that the case is closed and mitsubishi is not going to do anything about it. I explained to her that this has been an on-going problem and the abs light is still an issue and that the brakes ate wearing out too fast and it is a safety issue. She did not care she again told me that there is nothing that they are going to do, she would not let me talk to a supervisor or anyone above her at mitsubishi and told me that that is the final answer and hung up on me twice. This is a safety issue. We feel that we are being ignored by mitsubishi and when i told them as a customer that had dropped 30+ thousand dollars on a car that is still under factory warranty to have this type of problem and a safety issue at that to be told ?Case closed?? Is the worst service and resolve i have ever experienced. Please help? Thank you

I purchased the car used from a mitsubishi dealer, a month or so later i noticed a maple syrup type smell. The proceeding months the problem got worse and noticed that my windshield kept fogging up. I took it to my local repair guy who gave me an estimate of one thousand dollars to replace the heater core and informed me that if i dont i could have a computer failure because it is right under the heater core which in turn may cause an accident due to loss of control. My passenger side carpet is now soaked with coolant and the smell is horrible coming from the vents. I have heard that the coolant is toxic and can cause problems in your respiratory system which concerns me even more.*ak

Nar 02/10/2003. The consumer had a new heater core installed in the vehicle. The consumer believed there was a defect because the vehicle was only 3 years old. *jb

The vehicle jerked as if it was going to shut off and sometimes it completely shut down intermittently. *ts *jb

The vehicles door latches failed. The dealer was notified. *nlm

After being stopped a couple of minutes because of a passing train, when proceeding, the car would not move more than, probably, 5 mph. Noticed a smell coming in, like oil burning. Didn't see no smoke coming out of hood. Check engine light came on. Parked car and got out to see black smoke coming from behind the car. Turned off engine and tried to turn on to move car, it wouldn't turn on again. Had car towed to dealer. It happened right before entering freeway, thank god.*ak

My gas tank does not vent properly - the car has a detination problem and has exploded on four occations with a force that rocks the car. I don't want to get in it anymore, nor does my family. It has been in the shop for 25 days. *ak

The vehicle was experiencing problems with the brakes. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who ignored the problem and denied service. *nlm

The heating system on this vehicle has failed repeatedly on this vehicle. Ususally this is only a minor inconvenience. There have been two instances where it was dangerous. Once was in a heavy rain, where the defroster failed, the other was just recently in a rain/snow mix. The interior of the windshield completely fogs up making vision to the road and oncoming traffic very poor. I have had a "chip" replaced twice under warranty and will try again. *ak

Vehicle involved in a head on collision at 30 mph, vehicle that impacted my vehicle was travelling at 25 mph. The entire front of car including bumper was destroyed by the 55 mph impact. Neither airbag deployed. The driver airbag appears to have begun to deploy, but did not.*ak

The first incident occurred on 2/20/2001. Estimated speed was 35 mph. The ignition fuse blew and the entire car went dead. I was not using any other electrical component in the car at the time (i.E. Radio, lights, etc). Towed to dealer who determined the problem. They kept it for several days and the problem did not reoccur. A few days after i got the car back, the very same thing happened. This was on 2/28. Again towed to the dealer. Again replaced the fuse. Again kept it for a week and drove it continually with no problem. I got the car back on friday, 3/9. On sat. 3/10, after having driven 65 miles at about 75 mph, i was driving in town at about 45 mph. The fuse again blew. I had a replacement fuse, which i had requested from the dealer, and replaced it myself. I am taking it back to the dealer today, 3/12.*ak

A boom noise has been coming from fuel pump. Vehicle has been in 7 times with no remedy found. Dealer said gas cap was expanding and collapsing. On 3-16-01 gas cap/ fuel pump and fuel gauge were replaced. On 3-16-01 valve and fuel tank assembly were replaced; on 3-23-01, dealer replaced fuel system cleaner kit, and fuel gauge assembly again, and 3-28-2001 gas cap and pressure relaease valve were replaced. *ak *jb

Driver rear ended another vehicle at 30 to 35mph, and neither driver's side nor passenger's side airbags deployed. Dealer has not seen vehicle. *ak

The windshield wiper completely failed while driving in the rain. According to the dealer engineer who inspected the unit, the wiper motor failure occured and the motor must be replaced. The compelte failure of the wiper was very dangeours while driving in the rain. A question needs to be raised if there is any fundamental defect in the wiper motor; it shouldn't fail only after driving 2000 miles.

On two occassions, this 2000 diamante shook violently, belched blue smoke out the exhaust, lost considerable power, filled the interior with hazardous fumes and the service engine light came on. These two life threatening events happened at a little over 4000 miles and 12000 miles. My telephone number is 760-323-0704, your questioaire allows one to view all info before sending but does not allow adding information that one might have missed.*ak

While making a right turn (in partivularly off a major highway) the car wilstall - no power, brakes, or power steering. Numerous complaints have beent odealer and they have mmentionedthta this is a problem with thevehicle but cannot be fixed. Please note that with the car stalling at such speeds, getting rear ended is inevitable in particular with trucks. *ak

Cannot hear horn inside the car how can you expect anyone else to, it only has one horn prevouis years had two. *ak

Tires extremely noisy since about 2,000 miles. Tires severely cupped after 5/6,000 miles. Ride extremely loud, with great deal of vibration. Since about 12,000 miles, extreme cupping of all four tires plainly visible. Tires at all times at mitshubishi recommended pressure, and rotated every 5,000 miles. No impact damage to any tire, or rim. No scuffing of sidewalls, or punctures. Tires apparently cupped from the start. Car purchased new, with 3 miles. Dealer cannot explain cause for severe cupping, but refuses to replace tires. Also contacted mitsubishi motor, who tells me that they have had some complaints on these tires. No one seems to want to accept responsibility. Concerned that tires may suddenly fail, es they are severely cupped (all 4) and ride with great deal of noise and vibration. Dealer claims problem not with auto, since properly aligned. Tires are balanced, and at proper inflation. Now becoming concerned for safety, and upset that dealer and mitsubishi doing nothing to correct condition. *ak (dot number: tox82jm250 tiresize: p215/60r16)

All four passenger door windows are distorted. This impairs driver's vision, and makes things look like wrinkled. *ak

While driving abs light illuminated and the brakes failed. Vehicle was towed to the dealer, who determined that the abs chip malfunctioned, and had to be replaced. *ak

While traveling between 55-70mph and trying to pass another vehicle transmission would go into neutral position, pressing on accelerater would cause it to skip to 3rd gear, sometimes hitting gear downshift real hard, vehicle shakes, would hit neutral first before going into correct gear, had taken vehicle to dealer, vehicle was test driven, and nothing found placed on diagnostic, no problem codes appeared. *ak transmission goes into neutral instead of third and goes into neutral when down shifting, this has almost caused a head on collision, consumer also states while going downhill, he shifted into third gear and vehicle went faster. *slc

Consumer stated can smell and see the vapors of antifreeze coming from vents of vehicle when vents are turned off. Took to dealer and dealer indicates was tsb on the faulty heater gaskets on vehicle.*jb

Intermittent when making right turns vehicle stall dealer has been contacted. Please provide further information. Ts