1993 Mitsubishi Mirage Problems: Seat belts (72 Complaints)

The most-reported problem on the 1993 Mitsubishi Mirage is Seat belts (72% of 72 owner reports). There are 3 safety recalls. Check the VIN and inspect Seat belts — this is the NHTSA file, not a score.

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-09-07 72 complaints · 3 recalls

What problems show up on the 1993 Mitsubishi Mirage?

52 of 72 filings named Seat belts (72% of the file). That is what owners wrote, not a shop diagnosis of the vehicle in the driveway.

Second is Engine (5 reports).

There are 3 official safety recalls on this year. They were filed about Seat belts. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov — a campaign on this page can still be open on a specific truck.

The 1992 has 15 reports on file; this year has 72. Older years collect more reports just by being on the road longer. If you need a fairer comparison, use the equal-time view.

What to check before you buy a 1993 Mitsubishi Mirage

A useful visit to this page takes five minutes. YearTell does not score years and cannot see the vehicle in front of you.

  1. Look up the VIN for open recalls at nhtsa.gov. This year has 3 campaigns on file below.
  2. Seat belts. Check that every belt latches, retracts and that related recalls are closed.
  3. Engine. Have a shop check for oil consumption, coolant leaks, rough idle and unusual engine noise.
  4. Electrical. Have a shop scan for stored codes and check battery, charging and any warning lights that stay on.
  5. Skim a few owner reports below for Seat belts. Look for the same symptom repeating.
  6. Take that list to a mechanic. Do not turn the complaint total into a score.

What owners reported

System named most often: Seat belts 52 complaints · 72.2% of the file
Crashes, fires, injuries and deaths in those filings:
  • Crashes 2
  • Fires 0
  • Injuries 1
  • Deaths 0
All Mitsubishi Mirage years →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-09-07 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.

Which systems owners named

Share of owner complaints filed against each vehicle system. These shares are not adjusted for how many vehicles were sold.

Which systems owners named Seat belts (SEAT BELTS) appears in 52 of 72 owner complaints (72.2%) in this vehicle snapshot. Seat belts (SEAT BELTS): 52 complaints, 72.2% of reports Seat belts (SEAT BELTS) 1 crash reports 52 · 72.2% Engine (ENGINE): 5 complaints, 6.9% of reports Engine (ENGINE) 5 · 6.9% Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM): 2 complaints, 2.8% of reports Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM) 2 · 2.8% Transmission / driveline (POWER TRAIN): 2 complaints, 2.8% of reports Transmission / driveline (POWER TRAIN) 2 · 2.8% Body / frame (STRUCTURE): 2 complaints, 2.8% of reports Body / frame (STRUCTURE) 2 · 2.8% Brakes (SERVICE BRAKES): 1 complaints, 1.4% of reports Brakes (SERVICE BRAKES) 1 · 1.4% Steering (STEERING): 1 complaints, 1.4% of reports Steering (STEERING) 1 · 1.4% Tires (TIRES): 1 complaints, 1.4% of reports Tires (TIRES) 1 · 1.4% Unclassified NHTSA leftover: 30 complaints, 41.7% of reports Unclassified NHTSA leftover 1 crash reports 30 · 41.7% 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

“Unclassified NHTSA leftover” is not a car part. It is a filing bucket and always sits last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
Seat belts (SEAT BELTS) 52 72.2% 1 crashes · 0 fires
Engine (ENGINE) 5 6.9% 0 crashes · 0 fires
Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM) 2 2.8% 0 crashes · 0 fires
Transmission / driveline (POWER TRAIN) 2 2.8% 0 crashes · 0 fires
Body / frame (STRUCTURE) 2 2.8% 0 crashes · 0 fires
Brakes (SERVICE BRAKES) 1 1.4% 0 crashes · 0 fires
Steering (STEERING) 1 1.4% 0 crashes · 0 fires
Tires (TIRES) 1 1.4% 0 crashes · 0 fires
Unclassified NHTSA leftover 30 41.7% 1 crashes · 0 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-09-07 Open source record

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

When reports and recalls showed up

When owners filed reports, and when recall campaigns showed up.

When reports and recalls showed up Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Jan 1995; the first recall shown was reported in Apr 1997. 1995-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 1995-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 1995-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 1995-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 1996-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 1996-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 1996-Q4: 6 owner reports 6 1997-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 1997-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 1998-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 1998-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 1999-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 1999-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 1999-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 1999-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2000-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2000-Q2: 6 owner reports 6 2000-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2000-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2001-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2001-Q2: 6 owner reports 6 2001-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2001-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2002-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2002-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2003-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2003-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2004-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2004-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2004-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2005-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2006-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 Owner reports Jan 1995 Jul 2006 Recall campaign 97V063001 ◆ Recall campaign 97V063001 Recall campaign 97V073001 ◆ Recall campaign 97V073001 Recall campaign 06E065000 ◆ Recall campaign 06E065000 Investigation PE96006 ● Investigation PE96006 Investigation EA96015 ● Investigation EA96015
  • Campaign 97V063001 was reported 813 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
  • Campaign 97V073001 was reported 625 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
1995-Q1 Owner reports 3
1995-Q2 Owner reports 1
1995-Q3 Owner reports 2
1995-Q4 Owner reports 1
1996-Q2 Owner reports 3
1996-Q3 Owner reports 3
1996-Q4 Owner reports 6
1997-Q2 Owner reports 1
1997-Q4 Owner reports 1
1998-Q1 Owner reports 1
1998-Q4 Owner reports 3
1999-Q1 Owner reports 5
1999-Q2 Owner reports 2
1999-Q3 Owner reports 3
1999-Q4 Owner reports 2
2000-Q1 Owner reports 2
2000-Q2 Owner reports 6
2000-Q3 Owner reports 3
2000-Q4 Owner reports 5
2001-Q1 Owner reports 2
2001-Q2 Owner reports 6
2001-Q3 Owner reports 1
2001-Q4 Owner reports 1
2002-Q1 Owner reports 1
2002-Q2 Owner reports 1
2003-Q2 Owner reports 1
2003-Q3 Owner reports 1
2004-Q1 Owner reports 1
2004-Q2 Owner reports 1
2004-Q4 Owner reports 1
2005-Q2 Owner reports 1
2006-Q3 Owner reports 1
Recall campaign 1 97V063001
Recall campaign 1 97V073001
Recall campaign 1 06E065000
Defect investigation 1 PE96006
Defect investigation 1 EA96015
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-09-06 Open source record

Safety Recalls (3)

Official campaigns. Each one says what could go wrong and what the dealer was told to fix.

In short, these campaigns were filed about Seat belts.

  1. Recall campaign 06E065000

    Safety recall 06E065000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    LACK OF AMBER SIDE REFLECTORS IN THE LAMPS WILL DECREASE LIGHTING VISIBILITY TO OTHER DRIVERS AND MAY POSSIBLY RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    AJ MOTORSPORT WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER REIMBURSEMENT FOR THE LAMPS. THE RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 31, 2006. OWNERS MAY CONTACT AJ MOTORSPORT AT 626-618-2026.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. Recall campaign 97V063001

    Safety recall 97V063001

    Report date
    Component:
    Unclassified NHTSA leftover
    Consequence:
    IN THE EVENT OF A CRASH, THE SEAT OCCUPANT MAY NOT BE PROPERLY RESTRAINED.
    Remedy:
    DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE DOOR LATCH SWITCH.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  3. Recall campaign 97V073001

    Seat belts

    Report date
    Component:
    Seat belts (SEAT BELTS)
    Consequence:
    IN THE EVENT OF A CRASH, THE SEAT OCCUPANT MAY NOT BE PROPERLY RESTRAINED.
    Remedy:
    DEALERS WILL INSTALL A NEW REPLACEMENT GUIDE RAIL.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-09-07 Open source record

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

What owners actually wrote

Short excerpts from the public NHTSA file. Look for the same symptom repeating.

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-09-07
Safety incident filters
Showing 10 of 72 complaints · page 1 of 3
2006-09-11Seat belts (SEAT BELTS)Unclassified NHTSA leftover
NHTSA ODI 10167908
CrashFireInjuryDeath
1993 MITSUBISHI MIRAGE, NHTSA RECALL 97V073001 MITSUBISHI RELUCTANTLY PERFORMED RECALL. MOTORIZED SHOULDER BELT STILL WOULD NOT WORK. WAS TOLD TO MANUALLY LATCH AND UNLATCH SHOULDER BELT TO ANCHOR (EMERGENCY PROCEDURE). SHOULDER BELT BECAME FRAYED BECAUSE OF RUBBING ON A GUIDE WHILE MANUALLY USING THE SHOULDER BELT. DEALER SAID VEHICLE IS "UNSAFE". REQUESTED REPLACEMENT OF SHOULDER BELT AND OFFERED TO PAY LABOR. MITSUBISHI REFUSED. APPROXIMATE COST OF REPAIR IS $300- $400. DEALER PAPERWORK AND MITSUBISHI CORRESPONDENCE AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST.
2005-05-31Seat belts (SEAT BELTS)Unclassified NHTSA leftover
NHTSA ODI 10123702
CrashFireInjuryDeath
MOVING SEATBELT WOULD STICK IN CORNER AT BACK OF DOOR WOULD NOT MOVE COMPLETLY TO BACK OF DOOR. COULD OPEN DOOR AND CLOSE AND SEAT BELT WOULD WORK PROPERLY, NOW SEAT BELT IS STUCK IN THE CORNER OF DOOR AND THERE IS A GRAY CABLE STICKING OUT AND BELT WONT MOVE AT ALL FORWARD OR BACKWARD
2004-11-17Seat belts (SEAT BELTS)Unclassified NHTSA leftover
NHTSA ODI 10089271
CrashFireInjuryDeath
THE AUTOMATIC SEAT BELT CABLE CAME OF IT'S TRACK. THIS RESULTED IN THE SEAT BELT FAILING TO RETRACT. ALSO, THE PLASTIC COATING OVER THE CABLE CAME OFF. THIS OCCURRED AFTER THE DRIVER'S SIDE GUIDE RAIL RECALL 97V073001 WAS PERFORMED. THE DEALERSHIP HAS BEEN CONTACTED. *JB *SC
2004-06-14Seat belts (SEAT BELTS)Unclassified NHTSA leftover
NHTSA ODI 10076142
CrashFireInjuryDeath
RECALL REPAIRS FOR DRIVER'S SIDE GUIDE RAIL 97V073001 FAILED, AND THE DEFECT RECURRED. *AK
2004-03-23Seat belts (SEAT BELTS)Unclassified NHTSA leftover
NHTSA ODI 10057994
CrashFireInjuryDeath
AUTOMATIC SEAT BELT ON DRIVER'S SIDE CAME OFF THE HINGES, CAUSING THE DRIVER NOT TO BE PROPERLY RESTRAINED. THE SEAT BELT MOTOR WAS REPLACED LAST YEAR FOR THE SAME PROBLEM. *AK *JB
2003-09-23Seat belts (SEAT BELTS)
NHTSA ODI 10040411
CrashFireInjuryDeath
SEAT BELTS MALFUNCTIONED. PARTS HAVE BEEN REPLACED; HOWEVER, PROBLEM STILL EXISTS.*AK
2003-05-06Engine (ENGINE)
NHTSA ODI 10017102
CrashFireInjuryDeath
MY 16 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER WAS DRIVING HER CAR LATE ON FRIDAY NIGHT AND IT STALLED OUT IN A RURAL AREA. WE HAD IT TOWED TO OUR MECHANICAL AND THINKING IT WAS THE FUEL PUMP. HE INFORMED ME THAT THE CAM SHAFT HAD SPLIT. HE SAID THAT THIS IS VERY UNUSUAL. UPON FURTHER RESEARCH I HAVE LEARNED THAT MITSUBISHI HAS BEEN AWARE OF THE FACT THAT WITH THE MIRAGE THERE CAN BE A PROBLEM WITH STALLING DUE TO AN ENGINE SHAFT DEFECT. WHEN I CALLED MITSUBISHI ALL THEY SAID WAS THERE WERE NO RECALLS ON THAT AND BECAUSE THE CAR IS A 1993 WITH 103,000 MILES THERE IS NOTHING THEY WOULD DO. I STRONGLY FEEL THIS IS A WARRANTY ISSUE NO MATTER HOW OLD THE CAR IS OR HOW MANY MILES IT HAS. THIS IS NOT SOMETHING THAT PREVENTATIVE MAINTENANCE OR NORMAL AND ROUTINE CARE COULD HAVE PREVENTED. IT IS A SERIOUS MATERIAL DEFECT. *NLM
2002-06-14Seat belts (SEAT BELTS)
NHTSA ODI 763089
CrashFireInjuryDeath
I RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE VIA MAIL & BROUGHT MY CAR TO THE LOCAL MITSUBISHI DEALER. THEY DID SOME WORK ON THE AUTOMATIC SHOULDER BELT. I DO NOT BELIEVE THAT ENOUGH WAS DONE. NOW THEY REFUSE TO DO ANY MORE "GOODWILL" REPAIRS AT NO CHARGE. THIS IS MY SAFETY AT RISK. I EVEN TOOK IT AND PAID FOR IT MYSELF TO ANOTHER SERVICE CENTER AFTER ANOTHER FAILURE. I HAVE WRITTEN REPORTS OF THIS. I ALSO HAVE COPIES OF WHAT I WAS TOLD IS A "SILENT RECALL" WHERE THE OWNER IS NOT NOTIFIED. KEEP IN MIND, BEFORE I TOOK IT FOR SERVICE TO THE FIRST PLACE, THERE WAS NEVER A PROBLEM. ALL THE PROBLEMS HAVE DEVELOPED AFTER THE DEALERSHIP WORKED ON THE CAR. THIS HAS BEEN EXTREMELY FRUSTRATING TO ME AND A LONG PROCESS. NOW THEY REFUSE TO DO ANY FURTHER WORK FOR FREE. I STILL HAVE THE PROBLEM AND IT IS MY SAFETY THAT IS AT RISK. PLEASE ASSIST AS SOON AS YOU CAN.*AK
2002-02-11Engine (ENGINE)
NHTSA ODI 758102
CrashFireInjuryDeath
THE FIRST HEAD GASKET WAS REPLACED ON 3-8-1999 @30,886 MILES. THE SECOND HEAD GASKET WAS REPLACED ON 1-24-2002 @ 55,691 MILES. THEY WOULD NOT HELP COVER THE COST BECAUSE IT WAS LONGER THAN ONE YEAR EVEN THOUGH THERE WAS ONLY 24,000 MILES ON THE HEAD GASKET. I HAVE KEPT ALL RECEIPTS ON MY VEHICLE AND HAVE KEPT UP WITH ALL THE REQUIRED MAINTENANCE. THERE MUST BE SOME DEFECT INVOLVED.*AK
2001-10-10Seat belts (SEAT BELTS)
NHTSA ODI 753074
CrashFireInjuryDeath
THE AUTOMATIC SEAT BELT QUIT WORKING AND THE CABLE CAME OUT ON THE DRIVER SIDE AND THE AUTOMATIC SEAT BELT ON THE PASSENGER SIDE STARTED STICKING HALF WAY IN THE TRACK.*AK

Frequently asked questions

What are the most common problems on the 1993 Mitsubishi Mirage?

Owners named Seat belts most often — 52 of 72 reports (72%). That is the NHTSA file, not a diagnosis of every vehicle.

Are there recalls for the 1993 Mitsubishi Mirage?

NHTSA lists 3 safety recall campaigns. They were filed about Seat belts. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov; a campaign on this page can still be open on a specific vehicle.

What should I inspect before buying a 1993 Mitsubishi Mirage?

Look up the VIN for open recalls. Check that every belt latches, retracts and that related recalls are closed. Then skim owner filings for the same symptom and take that list to a mechanic.

Does a high complaint count mean I should skip this year?

No. Counts are reports people chose to file and they are not adjusted for sales volume. YearTell does not publish scores or a list of years to skip. Inspect the vehicle.

EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record

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 2026-09-07 Open source record

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

Source: NHTSA ODI / recalls, snapshot 2026-09-07. YearTell is not a government agency.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources