I purchased my FTO in August 2005, from Awesome Imports in Bristol, i had been looking around on the net for one but when i saw this one i knew i had to have it. Deep Burgundy colour, 96 - facelift model and no mods - perfect.
The model I have is a 2ltr DOHC 24v V6 Mivec .200BHP (so the ... Read review
Advantages: Looks, Sound, Power, Driver/Passenger comfort, Disadvantages: Some parts can be pricey, weak link rods on front suspension
...is semi - automatic with mitsubishi technology called INVECS, basically what it means is that when driving the car in manual the car will "remember" when you change gear at a certain RPM and then apply this to the gear change when it is driven in automatic. So, the car will drive in auto like it is being driven manually , and it does a pretty good job at simulating this. Now for the down side of this... if your the sort of driver that likes ... ...expensive,most components are availabe from mitsubishi as a lot of the car is EVO/GALANT.
I recently paid £130 for two front Goodyear F1 tyres fitted/balanced etc so its not that bad for these either.
The car has distinguishable looks and always gets second glances, i had been looking at other sport coupes with my wife prior to the FTO, but when she saw a picture she was sold on it.
I purchased my FTO in August 2005, from Awesome Imports in Bristol, i had been looking around on the net for one but when i saw this one i knew i had to have it. Deep Burgundy colour, 96 - facelift model and no mods - perfect.
The model I have is a 2ltr DOHC 24v V6 Mivec .200BHP (so the manual says)
When sitting in the car for the first time and even now it brings a smile to my face, it is relatively low slung with a good driving position, many people moan about the rear view but i have never found visibility a problem and the added bonus of electric (retractable) mirrors also mean they can be adjusted easily to compensate if needs be.
The performance is good and motorway overtaking will never be a problem. The car is not perfect around sharp corners/bends due to a heavy front end but you will never feel unsafe, country A-roads are fun especially when in manual mode. Get the car up to 3500rpm and the engine changes in to the mivec mode, switch to manual shift and the fun begins, this is where the engine develops the recognisable growl that you may hear on occassions, drop a gear and hit the pedal and a surge runs through the engine developing into a very quick take off...boy racers in their maxed Corsa's/ Puntos cant cope and neither can a lot of other similar coupes... (remember car of the year in Japan and used for racing aswell with very few mods)
The gear box in this model is semi - automatic with mitsubishi technology called INVECS, basically what it means is that when driving the car in manual the car will "remember" when you change gear at a certain RPM and then apply this to the gear change when it is driven in automatic. So, the car will drive in auto like it is being driven manually , and it does a pretty good job at simulating this. Now for the down side of this... if your the sort of driver that likes to redline (not me) the car will remember this and will apply this to auto.....see the problem.... so when you should be gently cruising in the traffic your car will be screaming a lot before changing gear., also before i forget, its a very expensive unit to replace if it goes wrong...some sites say its up in the 4 figures, but i have yet to confirm this., other than this it is a good sturdy practical solution and is pleasant to use, but it will never beat a manual.
Interiors on these cars are typically japanese, lots of black with slight colour on the seats, but all the instruments are laid out well and are clearly marked. The cars were originally supplied with cassette radios but most are sold with CD players due to the radio frequency problem. There are seat-belts all round and if you are fortunate enought to have VERY small friends they may be able to fit in the back seats but myself and my wife bought the car mainly for us and we have no kids.
Boot space is very good considering the size of the car, we can fit in 1 Weeks shopping (about 10 bags ) no problem, although there is no seats that fold down so trips to B & Q and Ikea can be a nightmare, but if you wanted a car that does this easily.....don't buy a coupe! It will fit a buggy if you have kids as i have put my friends in the car before.
A FULL service on these cars will should cost approx £160 and certain parts can be expensive,most components are availabe from mitsubishi as a lot of the car is EVO/GALANT. I recently paid £130 for two front Goodyear F1 tyres fitted/balanced etc so its not that bad for these either.
The car has distinguishable looks and always gets second glances, i had been looking at other sport coupes with my wife prior to the FTO, but when she saw a picture she was sold on it.
The car has got character about it that is lacking in a lot of recent vehicle designs and it certainly stands out from the crowd. It is a pleasure to own and drive (hopefully my wife will feel the same when she passes her test and she takes it for a spin) its not got Skyline power but then again who needs it when our roads are clogged anyway, and its a far superior looking car.
Fuel consumption is approx 25mpg to 32mpg not bad but not great, and unlike other reviews that say it runs on normal unleaded IT DOESN'T. Its an import an runs on OPTIMAX for better smoother running and performance, this car was designed and produced for the japanese market NOT the UK. However you will also increase the time inbeween fill-upsif you use optimax.
Now for insurance... a lot of reviews say that the insurance for this type of vehicle is expensive but i disagree, nowadays insurance is not just based on the vehicle, it depends on your age , occupation, where you live, where the car is parked and many other factors. I admit that it would be more than, say.... a 1ltr Ford Fiesta built in 1986, but it is not a case of re-mortgaging the house, but as i said before, it is different for each individual, as a guideline i am paying slightly more than i did on a Peugeot 1.6 205 Gti built in 1992. Remember that the FTO is a quick car and an import. My advice would be to check as many insurance companies as you can and get a Thatcham approved alarm system professionally installed and certified, it does drop the insurance with some companies. Web sites such as "Confused.com" say that "Admiral.com" don't insure imports....WRONG...... they do, i should know...thats who i am with.
I hope this review is of some use if you are looking into purchasing an FTO, they are a fantastic car and well worth the money and i hope to have mine for a long while yet.
Oh, by the way ..just take a listen to the exhaust note, it will make you want to get your cheque book out and sign on the line straightaway!!
...That car was a Mitsubishi FTO V6 MIVEC.
I purchased mine for £5,300 from Cricketfield Service Station in Essex. Living in Kent and having to travel to Essex to find a good model illustrates that these are pretty few and far between.
However, the car more than makes up for the effort it takes to find one! From reading reviews beforehand I set my heart on getting the 2.0l MIVEC model - manual or tiptronic I wasn't fussy - I just had to have one.
... ...version (for those not in the know, tiptronic offers you a choice between fully automatic or manual gear selection - for the record I used mostly the automatic option). Other notable features of the car included air conditioning as standard, leather trimmed steering wheel, sports seats and electronic wing mirrors - and that wasn't just the mirror itself. One press of a button inside the car causes the wing mirrors to fold themselves in - excellent ...
bluekp 07.07.2006
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Ciao members have rated this car review on average: very helpful Review of Mitsubishi FTO
Importing
I imported this beautiful beast in December 2004, it arrived on car transporter outside my house late one evening which was very exciting.
I had to arrange for registration, MOT and uk conversion which was fairly straight forward.
UK conversion and MOT was done at CMS auto www.cms-fto.co.uk and cost around £200 for rear fog conversion, MPH speedo and derestriction chip, the exhuast was blowing so had a section of that replaced too, after ... ...to note, i had to drive the car to CMS without number plates or being registered in the UK, i did however have insurance. This cuases a fair bit of interest if the police see you, however it is perfectly legal accoring to the DVLA to take a car to be converted and MOT'd in order to get it registered.
Once you have an MOT you can send it off to the DVLA along with the other registration doc's.
Once fully registered i got to try it out properly, ...
andywill23 08.11.2005
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Ciao members have rated this car review on average: helpful Review of Mitsubishi FTO
Advantages: Looks, reliability, great value, seriously fun Disadvantages: Expensive to run
...and supply spares if required. Mitsubishi also support this car at their UK dealers, and can get any parts and service this car as required!!
I have had the car for 6 months now and have nothing but praise. For £5,700 I got a 2.0l, 24V, V6, ABS, Traction Control, Climate control, all electric's, the works, Providing these cars are
serviced as required you will have no problems.
The handling is excellent, you get 0-60 in just under 7 seconds and ... ...limited only by your finances. This car is a real head turner also and I've lost track of the amount of times people want to talk to me about it. Not bad for £5,700.
If possible however, get the 1997 and upwards model which has a 5 speed auto box. The 1995 I have is only 4 speed and this along with the lack of practical space are my only criticisms. ...
andyiacovou 06.12.2004
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Ciao members have rated this car review on average: helpful Review of Mitsubishi FTO
Advantages: Fast, good handling and nice looks Disadvantages: Looks are subjective. Import car. Cramped at back.
But not particularly cheap. Being an import, you have to be weary of a number of things:
1) the service history of the car (unless you can read and understand japanese service history)
2) the cost of insurance
3) the availability of parts.
Saying that, apart from insurance, the other items can be overcome. Buy the car from a good (and trusted) importer. Network with the HUGE online community (check out Smartgroups) and get to know the various ... ...you'll find it a lot easier (and cheaper) to have items replaced on your cars. And because most of these guys are enthusiasts, their advice is free and always honest.
The car itself is very nice to drive, and VERY quick. I owned the GR, but to be honest noticed very little difference in the GPX in terms of speed. The noise the Mivec on the GPX makes is nice to hear, though. I bought my car with relatively low mileage (25k KM / 15k miles) and it ...
faisaluk 12.09.2003
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Ciao members have rated this car review on average: helpful Review of Mitsubishi FTO
Advantages: Elegant curvy body, road handling to glide for, lovely engine noise. Disadvantages: Insurance, fuel consumption.
The first thing to praise about this car is the road handling. At certain speeds on the right road it just glides. Mine is semi auto - thought it would be boring but its not - choice to have fun or relax - quite surprised. Front wheel drive but still exciting. Loads of parts readily avail , help and good advice on the jap forums. Not loads of room in the back but not that bad and for an older car (1996) the interior is still cool. The engine is throaty ... ...imported - bodywork is pristine and less than 40k on the clock cost me £4500. Insurance not great but I dont think petrol is that bad - but then i suppose thats because my other car is a skyline!. Loads of room to modify - I use wraith eng in my area who deal with high performance jap cars. doesnt have to be expensive. Only thing that gets me at the moment is that it sometimes changes down a tad early on a decline when driving in auto. Running at ...
ftobaby 28.08.2007
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Ciao members have rated this car review on average: helpful Review of Mitsubishi FTO
Value for Money
Road Handling
Comfort
Fuel consumption
Looks
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