2002 MITSUBISHI LANCER — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 145 complaints · 4 recalls
Most-reported system: VISIBILITY (23 complaints · 15.9%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 30
  • Fires 1
  • Injuries 21
  • Deaths 2
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NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Component Problem Distribution

Share of owner complaints filed for each vehicle system (unaffected by sales volume)

Component Problem Distribution VISIBILITY appears in 23 of 145 owner complaints (15.9%) in this vehicle snapshot. VISIBILITY: 23 complaints, 15.9% of reports VISIBILITY 23 · 15.9% AIR BAGS: 19 complaints, 13.1% of reports AIR BAGS 19 · 13.1% · 19 crash reports POWER TRAIN: 18 complaints, 12.4% of reports POWER TRAIN 18 · 12.4% · 1 crash reports SERVICE BRAKES: 15 complaints, 10.3% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 15 · 10.3% · 3 crash reports ENGINE: 13 complaints, 9.0% of reports ENGINE 13 · 9.0% · 1 fire reports SUSPENSION: 12 complaints, 8.3% of reports SUSPENSION 12 · 8.3% · 1 crash reports STEERING: 10 complaints, 6.9% of reports STEERING 10 · 6.9% · 1 crash reports VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL: 7 complaints, 4.8% of reports VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 7 · 4.8% · 2 crash reports FUEL SYSTEM: 6 complaints, 4.1% of reports FUEL SYSTEM 6 · 4.1% UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 92 complaints, 63.5% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 92 · 63.5% · 15 crash reports 1 fire reports 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

UNKNOWN OR OTHER is an NHTSA classification artifact and is always listed last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
VISIBILITY 23 15.9% 0 crashes · 0 fires
AIR BAGS 19 13.1% 19 crashes · 0 fires
POWER TRAIN 18 12.4% 1 crashes · 0 fires
SERVICE BRAKES 15 10.3% 3 crashes · 0 fires
ENGINE 13 9.0% 0 crashes · 1 fires
SUSPENSION 12 8.3% 1 crashes · 0 fires
STEERING 10 6.9% 1 crashes · 0 fires
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 7 4.8% 2 crashes · 0 fires
FUEL SYSTEM 6 4.1% 0 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 92 63.5% 15 crashes · 1 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Problem & Recall Timeline

Observed complaint volume and manufacturer recall actions over time

Problem & Recall Timeline Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Jan 2002; the first recall shown was reported in Sep 2004. 2002-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2002-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2002-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2002-Q4: 12 owner reports 12 2003-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 2003-Q2: 7 owner reports 7 2003-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2003-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2004-Q1: 6 owner reports 6 2004-Q2: 7 owner reports 7 2004-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2004-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 2005-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2005-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2005-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 2006-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2006-Q2: 6 owner reports 6 2006-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2006-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2007-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 2007-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2007-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 2008-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2008-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2008-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2008-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 2009-Q1: 6 owner reports 6 2009-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2010-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2010-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2010-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2011-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2011-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2011-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2011-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2012-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2012-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2012-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2013-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2014-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2014-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2014-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2015-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2016-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 2016-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2017-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2017-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2017-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2018-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2018-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2019-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2020-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2020-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2021-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2022-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 Owner reports Jan 2002 Apr 2022 Recall campaign 04V428000 ◆ Recall campaign 04V428000 Recall campaign 06E038000 ◆ Recall campaign 06E038000 Recall campaign 09E025000 ◆ Recall campaign 09E025000 Recall campaign 16V458000 ◆ Recall campaign 16V458000
  • Campaign 04V428000 was reported 958 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
  • Campaign 16V458000 was reported 4,991 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
2002-Q1 Owner reports 3
2002-Q2 Owner reports 2
2002-Q3 Owner reports 1
2002-Q4 Owner reports 12
2003-Q1 Owner reports 5
2003-Q2 Owner reports 7
2003-Q3 Owner reports 2
2003-Q4 Owner reports 2
2004-Q1 Owner reports 6
2004-Q2 Owner reports 7
2004-Q3 Owner reports 3
2004-Q4 Owner reports 3
2005-Q1 Owner reports 2
2005-Q2 Owner reports 1
2005-Q3 Owner reports 4
2006-Q1 Owner reports 2
2006-Q2 Owner reports 6
2006-Q3 Owner reports 2
2006-Q4 Owner reports 4
2007-Q1 Owner reports 5
2007-Q3 Owner reports 2
2007-Q4 Owner reports 3
2008-Q1 Owner reports 1
2008-Q2 Owner reports 4
2008-Q3 Owner reports 1
2008-Q4 Owner reports 3
2009-Q1 Owner reports 6
2009-Q2 Owner reports 2
2010-Q1 Owner reports 2
2010-Q2 Owner reports 2
2010-Q4 Owner reports 5
2011-Q1 Owner reports 3
2011-Q2 Owner reports 1
2011-Q3 Owner reports 3
2011-Q4 Owner reports 2
2012-Q1 Owner reports 1
2012-Q2 Owner reports 1
2012-Q4 Owner reports 1
2013-Q2 Owner reports 1
2014-Q1 Owner reports 1
2014-Q2 Owner reports 1
2014-Q3 Owner reports 1
2015-Q3 Owner reports 1
2016-Q3 Owner reports 4
2016-Q4 Owner reports 2
2017-Q1 Owner reports 2
2017-Q2 Owner reports 1
2017-Q3 Owner reports 2
2018-Q1 Owner reports 1
2018-Q4 Owner reports 1
2019-Q2 Owner reports 1
2020-Q1 Owner reports 1
2020-Q2 Owner reports 1
2021-Q1 Owner reports 1
2022-Q2 Owner reports 1
Recall campaign 1 04V428000
Recall campaign 1 06E038000
Recall campaign 1 09E025000
Recall campaign 1 16V458000
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (4)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

  1. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 04V428000

    Report date
    Component:
    EQUIPMENT
    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.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 06E038000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    WITHOUT THE AMBER REFLECTORS, THE VEHICLE WILL BE POORLY ILLUMINATED, POSSIBLY RESULTING IN A VEHICLE CRASH WITHOUT WARNING.
    Remedy:
    ALFAOTTO WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND REPLACE THE HEADLAMPS FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON MAY 10, 2006. OWNERS MAY CONTACT ALFAOTTO AT 626-656-2992 OR VISIT THEIR WEBSITE AT WWW.ALFAOTTO.COM.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  3. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 09E025000

    Report date
    Component:
    EXTERIOR LIGHTING
    Consequence:
    DECREASED LIGHTING VISIBILITY MAY RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    DOPE, INC. WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER A FULL REFUND FOR THE NONCOMPLIANT COMBINATION LAMPS. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 28, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT DOPE, INC. AT 1-626-272-1798.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  4. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 16V458000

    Report date
    Component:
    SUSPENSION
    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.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Complaint Narrative Explorer

Verbatim owner-reported defect narratives from NHTSA public records

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-08-21
Safety incident filters
Showing 0 of 145 complaints · page 1 of 6

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EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Estimated Ownership Cost

EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates

Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot 2026-08-21
Supported range: 1,000–60,000 miles per year
Supported range: $1.50–$10.00 per gallon
55% city45% highway
Estimate unavailable

EPA fuel-economy data is unavailable for this vehicle.

No estimate is shown when required EPA values are unavailable.

 Open Ownership Cost Calculator →

Adjacent Model Years

Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Methodology & Data Integrity

Data sourced from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Snapshot date: 2026-08-21.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources