Mitsubishi Carisma
The Mitsubishi Carisma was Mitsubishi's European family car of the late 1990s and early 2000s, co-developed with Volvo and built alongside the Volvo S40 at the NedCar factory in the Netherlands. It went on sale in the UK at the end of 1995 as a hatchback, with the saloon following in 1996; a 1.9-litre turbo-diesel arrived in May 1997 and the direct-injection 1.8 GDI petrol later that year. About 47,243 were sold in Britain between 1996 and 2004, so it was once a familiar used buy, though few survive in good order today. An autumn 1999 facelift tidied the exterior and interior, and Parkers describes the Carisma as well equipped and above-all reliable, if bland to drive. Engines are the 1.6 and 1.8 petrols plus the 1.9 diesel, mostly with manual gearboxes. As 20-plus-year-old family cars, condition matters far more than specification: rust, brake-pipes and age-related emissions failures are the real purchase risks.
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Common Faults & Reliability
These are the most common documented problems for the Mitsubishi Carisma, sorted by their typical impact and frequency.
Corroded brake pipes
medium severityCorroded brake pipes are the most common MOT advisory on the UK Carisma fleet, recorded on 35.3% of all tests in one DVSA-data analysis, with a further 7.0% of tests carrying structural-corrosion notes. Salt and water corrode the thin-walled pipes, especially at the rear axle, and a badly corroded or burst pipe means loss of a brake circuit - an MOT failure and a serious safety issue. Sticking rear brake callipers, which squeal even with the pedal released, are another known Carisma brake complaint. These are now 20-year-old cars: assume nothing about the brake system until you have seen it.
Structural corrosion of sills and subframes
high severityDVSA-based analysis records corrosion and structure as the clearest problem area for the Carisma, with 86.5 structural notes per 100 MOT tests and wording such as 'prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength'. Sills, subframes and mounting points rot from the inside out, and corrosion near seat-belt anchorages is an immediate MOT failure. Surface rust is cosmetic; perforated sills or a soft subframe are expensive to weld and can make the car uneconomic. Any Carisma bought without a recent underside inspection is a gamble.
Carbon build-up on the 1.8 GDI engine
medium severityThe 1.8-litre GDI direct-injection petrol was designed for superunleaded; on ordinary fuel it builds carbon in the throttle body and combustion chambers, causing erratic idle, misfiring and lack of power, and What Car? warns of engine-failure risk around 60,000 miles if ignored. BreakerYard lists blocked GDI throttle bodies as a known Carisma fault, curable by cleaning the throttle body, while neglected examples can need far more extensive work. Ask which fuel the seller used and listen for a lumpy idle when cold.
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