@Johnson Long the JDM version of the Galant had the GDi engine and different taillight design. If I had a 1999-2003 Galant, I would probably swap out the USA taillights with the JDM ones.
If you listen to him on MotorWeek today he sounds exactly the same it's just amazing, John Davis is a legend. They really need to ramp up their Channel though they should have millions of subscribers, I think more in-depth longer reviews👌💯
To everyone who applaud john davis, i agree. I have watch motorweek since 1992. Other car host show have come and go, but john davis still here, thats what make him a legend.
@Kazak Thranduil I'm guessing that you own the AWD Japanese version VR4 with the 2.5 liter DOHC Twin Turbocharged V6 that produces more than 300 hp. Am I right?
My buddies and I rented one of these in Phoenix in the winter of ‘00, and drove it to Denver. Back then we didn’t much care for speed limits, so with four guys and all their luggage, we set the speedo at 115. All those low spots in the highway, would send sparks flying!😅 it was a great little rental.
I was born in 98, ever since i could remember these cars in person as a kid i knew i would own one. This generation is beautiful. It ended up being my favorite daily driver I'll ever own, and i never see myself getting tired of walking outside to see my shiny black 03 gtz outside. 206k miles on the v6 and counting, it just doesn't care. I plan on starting to hoarde the rest of these that i see go for sale because they're getting rare. I'll never be over this platform.
I loved Mitsu, and miss the 90s. There were a wonderful "small brand", the AMC of Japan. These cars designs aged well and look lightyears better than the hidious designs of today we're suffering through.
I haven't seen those cars on the road for a long time, I remember when they used to be everywhere back in the 2000s and early 2010s, I can't remember the last time I saw one.
Right about this time, Mitsubishi started their infamous zero, zero, zero plan. Basically, you could put down zero money, and make no payments for something like 18 months. Surprising nobody except the executives at Mitsubishi; this led to a disaster. Lots of people never paid. The brand has never recovered from that. Not that it didn't have enough other problems.
As a kid growing up in the 80's and 90's, I became fond of Japanese sedans (and wagons, too) like the Legacy, Accord, Maxima, Camry, 626, and Galant. My family mainly had Accords during that time period, but I always had respect for (or even envied, in the case of the Maxima and V6 Camry haha) the others despite being a Honda fan at heart. Accord aside, the 1990 Legacy, 1987 Camry, 1989 Galant (especially the 91-92 VR-4), 1989 Maxima, and 1988 Mazda 626 were some of my favorite cars back then. There's just something about the design language of that era of Japanese cars that I loved then and still appreciate today. After that, I feel that the magic was gradually lost over the course of the late 90's and into the 2000's when almost all of them blew up in size and became bloated (I think the Maxima might be the worst offender with its 2004 redesign, yeesh that thing was a mess). They basically lost their sleek, low-profile, compact, and distinctly-Japanese character in order to accommodate ever-growing American asses. Such a shame. This generation of the Galant was one of the last cars to carry on that traditional Japanese spirit into the 2000's before being replaced by a bloated, "Americanized" monstrosity in 2004. Though I've always thought it was a handsome car, I do remember feeling that it looked a bit dated at the time. That makes sense now as I recently learned that it was released in Japan way back in 1996, or 2 years before it reached America. They should've kept the Japanese interior though, as what we got would've looked right at home in a Chrysler product of the time. Still, I really liked this car when it came out and think it's a shame that I never see them anymore. Were they just not reliable? Or were not many of them sold? Also, I could never figure out why this car (with the V6) was so slow compared to the Accord and Camry that had similar amounts of power. In 1998, the Accord and Camry hit 60 in 7.6 and 7.9 seconds, respectively, in a Car & Driver comparison test. The quickest they could manage with a 1999 Galant GTZ was 8.6 seconds, while one earlier test car took 9.3 seconds (the same time as Motor Week). It's not like it weighed that much more than a comparably-equipped V6 Accord or Camry. It may have had a bit taller gearing than they did, but not enough to add 1-1.5 seconds to its 0-60 time. What gives?
I have 2001 version of this - 230k miles- still runs. My only gripe - paint peeling off and dashboard cracking - had to retire after ac died. The best car i ever had - smooth shifting 4 speed transmission. Not zippy but enough to get you from point a to point b .
The 1988 was very roomy inside and had a really cool dashboard. I liked it better than the Accord and Camry. The 88 Mazda 626 was my second favorite. Seems the 88 626 aged best...and this Galant aged well too.
The design still looks clean and handsome to me. I got to drive one on a road trip and found it very comfortable, quiet, and smooth. The 4cyl. engine was very peppy. This car is more appealing to me than any midsize sedan sold in 2022. I prefer the trimmer size of 90s midsize cars and the attractive, no-nonsense interior. Also, beige! So tired of cheap-looking monochromatic black or gray interiors in today's cars. It's so played out.
These always reminded me of the BMW 5-Series of the same era, from a passing glance. The Galant is more sleek and trim in the body, though. I came very close to buying one (used) as my first car when I was 19. It just happened to be a few thousand above my budget, sadly. I fell in love with it when I took it for a test drive, and it had a deep metallic red paint job. I instead ended up with a 1999 Volkswagen Jetta with faded blue paint and a bent antenna. 🥴 This was in 2010, btw.
We need this car back. Mitsubishi has mostly been forgotten in North America now ever since they stopped selling the Lancer and Eclipse. The only car we sell here in the US and Canada is the subcompact Mirage G4 and hatchback. And their boring crossover SUV's. At least Mexico has the cool L200 pickup we need and the Pajero Sport and Xpander.
Even worse, both Mirage variations come with Jatco CVT transmissions. Used exclusively in Nissan vehicles, today. And unfortunately sold to other brands to use in their cars too. Basically the trans. is absolute garbage! Known for completely breaking down right around 40K miles. Fixing it is actually more expensive than replacing it. And as a tans., it is NOT cheap to replace. There's a Nissan Sentra rental car sitting in my garaged parking spot with over 53K miles on it. So yeah, I'm a bit nervous. Hope it just runs reliably for the next 3 or 4 days while I use it as a commuter vehicle. Can't wait to get my V6 Mazda 6 back from the dealership service center. (No major issues. They're just backed up with work. The nearest Mazda dealership to theirs went out of business. So they get double the number of usual appointments.) Still, could be worse. Thankfully the rental agent didn't try to give me a Hyundai. Would rather have trans. breaking down than a car that sets itself on fire!
The last time Mitsubishi came out with a competitive product. We have a 2003 Galant as our first car when we moved to the state. The car still looks great at 2007 when we bought it. Sucks it was our learner beater.
Father had one of these for a few years. Looked really nice, was TOTAL JUNK. Headgasket went around 75k, and then transmission was done by 90k miles. Switched to a 4runner and kept it 10 years and 200k miles without a single problem...didn't even change the timing belt.
My buddy got this car brand new as a gift from his parents back when we juniors in highschool. I think it was a V6. It looked great, it drove great. And it never broke down much.
This generation Galant and Eclipse were the last of hurrah forr Mits. While reliability was beginning to wain they were still well rounded cars. The 2000's were where Mitsubishi lost its way.
Only because you got a cheapo chrysler platform with a mitsubishi body. The 8th gen the rest of the world got was completely different and much better. And I'm not even talking about the VR-4. That's also something we got and you didn't :P
Mitsubishi is leaving so much on the table by not investing more in the automotive industry they were once a credible brand with a full line up of cars that had racing, rally and off road pedigree. I would love to see Mitsubishi make a comeback
I always liked this generation. I thought the V-6 felt plenty powerful, though the 9.3 second 0-60 seems a little slow. Wonder if the California emissions hobbled its power a bit.
Fitting that this was uploaded the day before my birthday, because I was driven home from the hospital in one of these when I was born. So needless to say, this era of Galant is very special to me.
Loved this car. I had the 2001 V6, and put a Injen Cold Air intake, where the filter was down by the wheel well, and this thing sounded mean when flooring it.
Euro and JDM also got the Legnum and both could be had as a VR4 model. I'm thinking about saving up for a Legnum VR4, though they can be hard to find/import.
20+ years ago my friend is high school had this and then he slapped on one of those ricer fart cans… he suddenly went from unnoticed dork to obnoxious dork 😅. Regardless of his tastes I thought the Galant was very nice!
Nearly bought one during it's last model year run before it was completely re-designed. There was just something about its styling that was so incredibly good. So much so, that Dodge and Alfa are using the front-end styling from this Galant in their new Hornet for 2023.
Always love the styling and interior of the Galant, but reports of oil burning and transmission issues turned me off. I also had the Ram 50 and yes it had the oil issues. Yet sometimes I miss it.
Indeed Isuzu was making strides in the 80's and 90's, but coopetition from other Asian manufactures ate into their market segment.. Isuzu pulled out of the states back in 2009, then just a few years later Suzuki pulled out their auto lineup in 2012. Still can get an Isuzu NPR cabover trucks also known as ELF in other parts of the world. Or rebadged GMC W-series or Chevrolet 3500-5500. I see quite a few of those around; guess GM and Isuzu still have an agreement for their trucks on distribution that goes back a long way into the 1980's. I sort of like the look of their cabover trucks, somehow look fun to drive. The view out the massive windshield must be fantastic for visibility.
I used to like this generation Galant when came out see one in mint condition around most times. They were some good cars had nice styling also liked the newer models.
They knocked it out of the park on the 8th gen Galant exterior. Too bad the interior and mechanicals were so dumbed down for the US market. The 7th gen at least had a nice interior, if not the interesting performance options from overseas. These rusted pretty bad, and like most Mitsus from that era were used up quick and thrown away due to high maintenance costs and their horrible financing scheme.
Sad to say that the V-6 engine in the video is far more interesting than anything Mitsubishi is producing today. Should put it in the Outlander and it would be a move up!
I feel sorry for USA because you didn't get all the things that made the JDM/EU Galant a legend. The SLA suspension setup was cutting edge and infact superior to most cars today. The INVECS-II autobox was brilliant. You had all this taken away and then even your dashboard and stuff downgraded. Even the looks of your model were turned way down, though at least it appears elegant still
This was the EXACT car my dad had growing up, same color and everything (although i think it had cloth seats) it was a great car, but it always annoyed me how the logo in the grill (which i called the snowflake) didn't fit with the chrome triangle inset. I always thought "if only they put the snowflake upside down it would fit perfectly" lol, such was the mind of a five year old...
Mitsubishi has an opportunity in todays market to capture some significant share. All other automakers have vacated the small cheap pickup market. If Mitsu introduced a new small pickup the size of and old Chevy S10 with a 5 spd manual with a starting price around 14K they couldn’t make them fast enough.
