Mitsubishi FTO

Why buy an old Japanese Coupe, considering the potential minefield of problems associated? The first thing that would usually come to mind.

Considering the current low purchase price of these (which must surely go up, as their "classic" status matures), you are buying into a rare, Sporty, Individual, surprisingly economical and practical, 2 door Coupe.

There IS a back seat, that can seat 2 adults, or child seats. Plus there IS a decent boot, which recently I was able to drop 2 suitcases into, on an airport trip.

At the time of manufacture (1994-2000), features of the FTO were well ahead of their day. Infact even today some features you just dont get on some modern vehicles - such as the 'intelligent' electronic ECU that adapts gear changes on the AUTO gearbox, as it "learns" your driving style, whether you are a cruiser, or the more 'enthusiastic' weekend driver.

Plus even today, considering they are now 13+ years old - they look more racy and youthful than your regular bland hatchbacks on the road, with the sleek lines over the front arches, to the drop off the rear end.

As you would expect, with Japanese reliability, these cars DO just keep on running. Even as an "older" car, there is still extensive availability of spare parts - both brand new original replacement items, also aftermarket tuning parts. These can be sourced from a handful of well trusted Internet auto suppliers, also on EBay, where cars are being split with all parts for sale.

Add to this a handful of Mitsubishi FTO enthusiast forums, so you will never get stuck should you have a problem - or just to chat and exchange experiences with others who also drive these cars.

My FTO - It is used as my daily driver, commuting to work and back, it has never dropped a beat. Plus I'm completely aware that it's an individual, unique and sporty Coupe, with sporting heritage, that brings back that magic every time I get behind the wheel - unlike your regular bland and boring hatchbacks.

In the future I plan to garage mine and keep it as a project car (2nd car), for the weekends.

Dare to be different? Consider an FTO. :-)

I bought my Mitsubishi FTO GPX at the beginning of the year (2013) as a first car, and in all honesty, never want to see it go. The reasons?

1. Looks.

The car is about the best looking car that I've ever seen. Sleek and sporty, especially seeing as mine is lowered a tad with aftermarket rims and I do have more plans for it. If you're looking for a fun project and a real head turner, then look no further then one of these babies.

2. Rare.

There are not many FTO's cruising around, which just adds to it's appeal.

3. Performance. The car handles exceptionally well in all conditions at all speeds. Having raced cars on speedway tracks for several years, none of the cars I've raced compare. The fact that it is front wheel drive enables it to stick to the ground like almost no other, whilst the 2.0L Mivec driven 6A12 V6 engine gives power from idle to the red line at 8000RPM. It becomes exceptionally fun at 5500RPM as the Mivec technology kicks in and power increases on the spot from 125kw (168bhp) to 147kw (197bhp).

4. Fuel economy.

For a car that packs such a punch, if you treat it well and drive casually, there isn't any reason that you can't get 500+km out of the 60L tank.

I have owned the GR for 3 months now, and still wake up and cant wait to go out in the car, to look at its fantastic and to sit in is so comfortable. I really couldn't tell you anything bad about it,

Yes it drinks more fuel than my Nissan primera but thats what I expected but its only about 4 miles less, the cars themselves are that rare that this was one main factor into my purchasing one.

Love the whole idea that it thinks for you if you read into the ECU, for its time this car was well ahead.

Looks of the car never grow old, and the looks you get from others makes you smile to yourself.

Imported on of these myself in Burgandy. Loved the car full of all mod-cons such as electric windows, climate control. Tiptronic gearbox is fantastic, never let me down or played up. Despite its quirky look (i think it was designed with a fish in mind lol) a head turner and can me mistaken for a Jag as it approaches. Nose is very similar. Rare as well. One of the best cars I've driven. Brakes could do with improving although I cant blame driving up the backside of somebody on the car really :)

For so little money you can pick up this real head turner which is becomming more and more rare on uk roads .

Unfortunatly if you want a cheap economical car to run ,this isnt it average mpg is 25-33 .

But what you get is great stylish looks, beautiful handling, electric windows , A/c ,Power steering electric wing mirrors etc .I am currently driving the rare gs model which is an auto ,If you speak to the owners club which is really useful for power and economy the manual is more benificial . Seating is comfy for the driver and front passenger but really no good for adults in the back . The boot is very generous for a coupe head room for taller drivers could be an issue

The car is available in typical colours i.e red, black ,white ,silver, yellow ,burgendy etc .

typical models

are FTO GS 1.8 aprox 125 bhp

FTO GR 170 BHP

FTO GPX 200 BHP

FTO GPR 200+ BHP

My advise is to join the owners club ,take your time and buy from a member who has looked after there FTO . Do not buy if the car has not been undersealed as the car is likely to be rusted away underneath .Also check the inner wings in the engine bay for signs of corrosion . Always query when the timming belt was last done and water pump ? this is aprox a £400.00 job .

Lee Atkinson sunderland

I like every thing about the car except the noise of the rear wheel that i could not repair from any mechanic.

After reading a lot of reviews, i decided to buy mivec version, also tiptronic, 31/12/1994 non cat, I know its not as fast as mechanic gearbox, but I like it, I like everything in her, most I like a sound, feels like old american muscle car. Only down side is rust, even I have sealed bottom it still gets a rust. But i stil very happy about that car. 5 stars

Sold my beloved Caterham 7 and bought a 1999 GPX manual as a cheap, practical second car (toy). I absolutely love it. The power curve above 3000 rpm is beautiful, then at 5500 it becomes quite astonishing. It can be driven placidly around town with no fuss, but is a beast when the MIVEC is on song. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but I think that the FTO is a work of art, from any angle. The kids love it, my wife loves it, even the mother in law likes it! Fuel consumption is reasonable, given the performance of that howling, turbine like, V6 and as a weekend toy she can't be beaten for the price. Magic car.

I have owned my FTO GPX Mivec 24valve in Steel Silver for 1 year now and im more in love with the car than i thought i ever could be.The car came to me with thousands of pounds worth of upgrades and very sensible mods like strut braces,full genuine leather upholstery,silicone blue engine and coolant hoses etc,chrome ind pipe,fuse box cover and lowered with c/overs,big brakes and grooved and vented discs etc,all not too boyracerish if you know what i mean.I dont mind saying that i spent £2550 for the car and with Swinton special insurance,i was on the road and fuelled up for a smidge short of £3000.The first time i started the car i thought there was a problem as it revved way high and settled to tickover at approx 650rpm which felt great along with the stainless mongoose exhaust,which is a popular choice for the FTO.To date i have renewed the ARB bushes to poly ones as these were not fitted for some strange reason (maybe something to do with the shocker conversion and lowering,who knows?)and droplinks,..I plan on undersealing my car again before this winter 2010 and if i get a few dry days i cant wait to get the khan 17" alloys off the car then refurbed in my shed to a high quality finish.I plan to work on one wheel at a time so i will fit the spacesaver and work on the rubdown and prep work at night till im rubbing away with 2000 grit sandpaper and feeling a silky smooth finish ready for the mercedes 'brilliant silver' paint i plan on using,then 3 coats of halfords lacquer (good stuff) and back on the car one corner at a time.I also have the car derestricted but cannot say how fast i was going flat out as i kind of felt like holding on and looking straight ahead,it is a quick one and when the Miv kicks i cannot decide whether the front Toyo proxys are spinning a bit or if the car just veers due to the extra BHP hitting you like a tornado,great pitch change when this kicks in.So...my little negative points..like lots of japanese cars the rust on the rear arches niggled me until i had it taken care of for just under £200 and its a great finish.The headlights can let moisture in but it is quite simply fixed in a number of ways including drilling with a tiny drill to relieve the moisture build up,they can also become marked and whiten but many lads in the owners clubs have used compound and 2000 sandpaper to rub the lamp then buff to improve it greatly,i have done both and they look great.I would recommend taking some hammerite kurust and 1 inch paint brush then painting arount the bonnet grommets and little dinky bits of rubber on the underside of the bonnet then along the little weld lines on the bootlid and generally all the little nooks as they tend to show orange at these points.If you have a few knocks coming from underneath when hitting bumps or potholes this can be a number of things:,droplinks worn,anti roll bar bushes,trailing arm bushes and others on that arm assembly so a good contact is camskill who stock all bushes and links etc.If you want to deaden the roadnoise and rattles and squeeks,a good quick fix for insulation is to buy some materials that will suit where you will be applying the material to.I removed my door cards and applied a product called flashband tape(usually used in construction,chimneys,gutters,seams in brickwork etc, which comes in various widths and is a tenth of the price of some rather expensive products like roadkill or some other nasa approved armoured tank product.Applying this to the inner door skin and then cutting to size pieces to stick over panel holes etc will greatly reduce the resonance produced from vibration and your sound system.Underneath my back seat and stuffed into the rear door card cavities i have....loft insulation then taped into place with 200mm flashband tape which looks and performs outstandingly...one last thing,if you cannot pin down the rattle and knocking noise your car may have then i would suggest you get a tyre centre or garage to check the exhaust bracket that bangs and rattles on small jerky bumps but is difficult to see from the ground when using a jack.This can slip offline when the mongoose stainless system is fitted.Hope you have maybe learned at least one more thing to your FTO knowledgebase from another Mivec lover..drive safe bros and sistas

My fto is a 96 GR (Non-MIVEC) tiptronic in passion red which I have owwned for 8 years. They come with elec windows/mirrors, power steering, digital air-con, fully adjustable seats (Incl. lumbar support) and steering column (Though if buying there are a lot of other mods/extra's available depending on what extra's the original japenes owner decided to pay for when bought new ... so choose carefully and be picky!).

It has two seats at the rear but if like me you like the drivers seat far back to allow plenty of leg room there is no space in rear although, bit of a squeeze I have had 4 adults in my car!

The boot I find is spacious and will happily take a family shop and then some!

Power is reasonable and the drive really is great though a bit harsh/stiff. Mine is a tiptronic gearbox (Switchable between Auto and Semi-auto which allows manual gear change with no cluth). Everyday driving in Auto is great, particularly in town but when the road opens up the semi-box really livens things up! However, manual box is quicker and more fuel efficient but its down to personal preferance.

Reliabilty is typical Japenese, or has been on mine ..... touch wood! Despite being laid up for 3 years a brake overhall (Which it required before being laid up!), new alternator and typical fluid changes, etc she runs like a dream and I use her every day for 40mile round trip to work!

Downsides .... Thirsty on fuel especially compared to newer petrol and especially diesel cars. Not as comfortable as everyday cars (Mondeo's, Vectra's, etc) but they dont handle anywhere as good as fto's and there is very little on market similar (especially for less than £2000!) that will put such a huge smile on your face! Also, insurance premiums can be high so always get a quote before buying, however this is reflected in the price of the car in the first place .... You cant have a car with such great head turning looks, great performance and equipment, now costing as little as they do without any drawbacks!

If you judge car ownership by the size of the smile on your face then the fto is definately the one to go for if you want the all round best on a budget!