2000 MITSUBISHI MONTERO SPORT Complaints

(1) THE CAR'S CRUISE CONTROL WAS SET AT 65 MPH ON THE FREEWAY. THE TRAFFIC AHEAD BEGAN TO SLOW, AND THE DRIVER APPLIED THE BRAKES. THE CRUISE CONTROL WOULD NOT DISENGAGE; INSTEAD, THE ENGINE PROCEEDED TO ACCELERATE TO COMPENSATE FOR THE APPLICATION OF THE BRAKES. (2) THE DRIVER QUICKLY TURNED OFF THE CRUISE CONTROL. HAD THIS NOT BEEN DONE, IT WOULD HAVE RESULTED IN A COLLISION. (3) THIS IS NOT AN INTERMITTENT PROBLEM. THIS HAPPENS EVERYTIME THE CRUISE CONTROL IS APPLIED. THE CAR WILL BE TAKEN IN FOR REPAIR.*AK

MY COMPLAINT CONCERNS A TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN #TSB-00-23-008, ISSUED NOVEMBER 2000. IN THE BULLETIN, MITSUBISHI MOTORS ADDRESSES THE NEED TO REPLACE THE A/T OIL PAN DUE TO OVERHEATING THAT IS CAUSED BY THE SHALLOWNESS OF THE PAN. JUST PRIOR TO THIS BULLETIN, IN OCTOBER 2000, PRODUCTION VEHICLES WERE EQUIPPED WITH A LARGER OIL DRAINAGE PAN TO ELIMINATE OVERHEATING CAUSE BY THE PRIOR PAN. AFTER HAVING MY 2000 MITSUBISHI MONTERO SPORT GIVEN THE 60,000 MILE SERVICING IN JUNE 2004, I WAS DRIVING OUT OF TOWN AND NOTICED (FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER) THAT THE A/T TEMPERATURE LIGHT WAS ON, SIGNALING THAT THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION WAS OVERHEATING. I PULLED OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD (95 SOUTH - 38 MILES FROM RICHMOND, VA) AND IMMEDIATELY CONTACTED DARCARS MITSUBISHI IN SILVER SPRING, MARYLAND, THE DEALERSHIP THAT HAD JUST SERVICED MY VEHICLE. MY SERVICE ADVISOR, BECKY SUBSEQUENTLY INFORMED ME OF THE SERVICE BULLETIN THAT HAD BEEN ISSUED REGARDING THIS OVERHEAT PROBLEM. SINCE I WAS OUT OF THE AREA, I ALSO CONTACTED MITSUBISHI DEALERS IN BOTH RICHMOND AND FREDERICKSBURG, VA. BOTH SERVICE DEPARTMENT PERSONNEL WANTED ME TO BRING IN THE VEHICLE DUE TO THE SERVICE BULLETIN ADDRESSING THE ISSUE OF OVERHEATING DUE TO THE SHALLOW TRANSMISSION PAN. NONE, NOT EVEN THE DEALERSHIP THAT SERVICED MY CAR, HOWEVER, WERE WILLING TO PERFORM THE SERVICE FREE OF CHARGE SINCE THIS IS OBVIOUSLY A MANUFACTURERS DEFECT. THE FREDERICKSBURG DEALERSHIP EVEN WANTED ME TO BRING THE VEHICLE IN TO BE SERVICED AGAIN SHOULD TRANSMISSION FLUID NEED TO BE CHANGED. THE FACT THAT ALL OF THE DEALERSHIPS ARE AWARE OF THIS MANUFACTURERS DEFECT AND OBVIOUSLY PERFORM THE REPAIR WITH SOME DEGREE OF CONSISTENCY, SCREAMS THE NEED FOR THIS MATTER TO BE COVERED AS A RECALL. THE CONSUMER SHOULD NOT BE REQUIRED TO PAY FOR SOMETHING THAT MITSUBISHI ACKNOWLEDGES CAUSES POTENTIAL DAMAGE TO THE POWERTRAIN; THIS IS APPARENTLY A MANUFACTURERS DEFECT AND SHOULD BE COVERED AS SUCH.*AK

WHILE FOLLOWING ANOTHER VEHICLE THROUGH AN INTERSECTION, THE FRONT VEHICLE CHANGED LANES VERY FAST AND LEFT ME IMMEDIETELY BEHIND A VECHILE STOPPED DELIVERING MAIL. I HIT MY BRAKES BUT NOT BEFORE THE VEHICE BEHIND ME SLAMMED INTO MY BACK END. I, IN TURN, HIT THE MAIL VEHICLE IN FRONT OF ME. MY VEHICLE WAS TOTALED BUT NEITHER AIR BAG DEPLOYED. THE IMPACT WAS SERVERE ENOUGH THAT THE CASING COVERING THE PASSENGER SIDE AIRBAG WAS DISLODGED BUT STILL NEVER DEPLOYED. *LA

CONSUMER WAS TRAVELING ABOUT 55 MPH AND EXPERIENCED A FUNNY LITTLE CHANGE IN PAVEMENT. THE ROADS WERE BAD, AND THE TEMPERATURE WAS FALLING. CONSUMER GRIPPED THE STEERING WHEEL TIGHTLY, THEN LOST SOME CONTROL, AND END UP HITTING A WALL HEAD ON. UPON IMPACT, AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. NO INJURIES WERE REPORTED. *AK

TRUCK HAS HAD A SMELL SIMILAR TO NATURAL GAS IN THE CAB, ESPECIALLY WHEN IDLING. THE FIRST TIME WE BROUGHT IT IN THEY CHECKED AND FOUND NO SMELL. THEN WE BROUGHT IN AGAIN AND FOUND THAT THE CAMSHAFT SEALS WERE LEAKING AND REPLACED HOPING THIS WOULD HELP THE PROBLEM. THE SMELL CONSISTS AND WE NOW HAVE TROUBLE WHEN DRIVING AND THE TRANSMISSION IS SLIPPING IN 3RD/4TH GEAR. BOTH THE DEALER AND MITSUBISHI FEEL THAT THE SMELL IS FROM THE TYPE OF GAS AND IS NORMAL. WE HAVE SWITCHED FROM MOBIL TO SHELL TO MONTORI AND IT HAPPENS WITH THEM ALL. THIS A SEVERE EXHAUST LIKE SMELL AND WE ARE AFRAID THAT IT IS NOT HEALTHY FOR OUR SMALL CHILDREN, AND IT SHOULD NOT BE NORMAL TO DEAL WITH.*AK

WHILE DRIVING AT ANY SPEED AND WHEN DEPRESSING THE BRAKES CONSUMER CAN FELT VIBRATION IN THE STEERING WHEEL. SEARS AUTO CENTER INFORMED THE CONSUMER THAT THE FRONT SHOCKS NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. CHANGED THE FRONT SHOCKS, BUT VIBRATIONS WAS STILL EVIDENT. *AK

I JUST BOUGHT MY MONTERO SPORT 3 MONTHS AGO. WHEN TESTING DRIVING THE VEHICLE I FELT PULLING TO THE RIGHT AND SHAKING AT HIGHER SPEEDS. THE DEALER SAID IT WAS JUST THE TIRES AND THEY WOULD DO AN ALIGMENT. I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE AND BOUGHT NEW TIRES. MY WARRANTY WAS OUT BY THE TIME I FIGURED OUT IT WAS NOT THE TIRES. THIS VEHICLE ALWAYS SHAKES AND FEELS LIKE A FISH OUT OF WATER, AFTER SERVERAL ALIGMENTS IT STILL PULLS VERY HARD TO THE RIGHT WHEN U LET GO OF THE STEERING WHEEL. I WISH THE COMPANY WOULD LOOK INTO WHAT THE PROBLEM IS AND FIX IT. *AK

WHILE DRIVING, THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION TEMPERATURE LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE CONSUMER PULLED OVER TO CHECK THE OWNER'S MANUAL. THE MANUAL STATED TO PULL OVER AND WAIT UNTIL THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION TEMPERATURE LIGHT GOES OFF AND TO PROCEED DRIVING. THE CONSUMER STARTED DRIVING AND THE TRANSMISSION ILLUMINATED AGAIN. THE CONSUMER MANAGED TO PULL OVER AGAIN. *JB THE ENGINE STARTED TO SMOKE AND THE CONSUMER TOOK THE VEHICLE TO AAMCO TRANSMISSION WHO DIAGNOSED THE TRANSMISSION AS BEING DAMAGED AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. UPON COMPLETION OF THE TRANSMISSION, THE VEHICLE CONTINUED TO EXPERIENCE ROUGH SHIFTING. *SC *JB

I NEVER RECEIVED NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER : 01V027000 ISSUED TO MITZIBU. OWNERS IN FEB 2001 WHICH STATES MY VEHICLE HAS NONCOMPLIANT BRAKE VACUUM HOSES. REMEDY WAS TO HAVE DEALER SERVICE CENTER REPAIR THIS PROBLEM; HOWEVER I WAS UNAWARE DUE TO NOT RECEIVING NOTIFICATION. CAN I STILL HAVE THIS FREE SERVICE? IN OCT 2003 I PAID $182.75 FOR BRAKE REPAIRS. CAN I BE REIMBURSED FOR AMT PAID FOR BRAKE REPAIR IN OCT 2003 DUE TO THIS PROBLEM? THANK YOU. *AK

I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE IN DEC OF 2000 I STARTED HAVING PROBLEMS SINCE 6-22-03 I HAVE HAD 4 SETS OF BREAK PADS 2 SETS OF ROTORS, NEW CALIPERS AND THE HARDWARE REPLACED EACH TIME. I ALSO TOOK THE CAR TO THE DEALER WHILE IT WAS STILL UNDER WARRANTY AND THEY TOLD ME EVERYTHING WAS FINE WITH THE BRAKING SYSTEM. SHORTLY AFTER I LOST CONTROL OF MY BRAKES WHILE DRIVING WITH MY FAMILY. I HAVE ABOUT 50,100 MILES ON THE CAR AND I NEED A NEW SET OF BRAKES AGAIN. *LA