Consumer Complaints


Fail datemilesoccurencesPurchase date
POWER TRAIN
11/09/2008480001
 2003 mitsubishi lancer evolution. loud grinding noises coming from the transmission within a few thousand miles. cars under 8 thousand miles having to replace clutches and transmissions. gears popping into neutral. dealership accepted warranty and is currently working on the car. car was returned a 2nd time to be looked at again. *tr
POWER TRAIN - CLUTCH ASSEMBLY
04/20/200626000503/08/2006
 I bought my 2003 mitsubishi evo shortly after returning from a tour in iraq in 2006, after a short time of driving the car i noticed a grinding sound coming from the car when i let the clutch out in 1st gear, and now reverse as well. i bought the car under original factory warranty and went as far as to purchase the platnum extended warranty. after replacing thousands of dollars in parts on my car it has come down to the clutch, which is a wear item and not covered. the more disturbing portion of this is that i was told on my second visit to the dealership for this problem that the car was sold to me with an aftermarket clutch, and that should have voided the original factory warranty in the first place, to include my extended warranty as well. now i am stuck with this problem and have to look for legal assistance. *tr
11/03/200648956107/18/2006
 Vehicle was bought used. still has remaining factory powertrain warranty. vehicle had clutch problems when i took delivery of vehicle in july. dealer was informed of problem immediately after test driving vehicle. dealer protested a replacement. had service records pulled for vehicle. clutch was replaced under warranty for first owner. dealer replaced disc and pressure plate. left assembly line throwout bearing on vehicle. stated that it is a non-wear item. throwout bearing failed to disengage causing disc friction material to be spun some time back. dealer was informed of this incident. again, protested replacement stating it is a non-warranty item. clutch is considered a wear item, even thought it is the integral link in the powertrain assembly. clutch completely failed and left this author stranded 45 miles from home, on this date. dealer again notified and once again, i was denied a claim. *jb
05/21/200515750112/24/2003
 Clutch failed at 16k miles after 18 months of ownership. the dealer offered to examine it for possible warranty coverage, but because of participation in autocross events, the warranty claim would have been denied. however, autocrossing did not contribute any significant wear to the clutch any more so than normal every day driving. as a 25 year, seasoned driver of manual transmissions, this was the first clutch i've ever had fail on a vehicle. based on feedback from other evo owners, via the evolutionm.net web site, i replaced the clutch with a non-stock clutch due to the inherent weakness of the stock part. *nm
02/15/200530000404/26/2003
 Since i have had my 2003 mitsubishi lancer evolution viii i have had 4 problems related to the drivetrain. first at 1300 miles, my clutch went out. it was not warranted even though the mitsubishi warranty said 12000 miles or 12 months. then again at about 14000 miles the clutch failed again, and it was still not a warranty problem. finally at about 30,000 miles around the middle of february this year the center differential blew, causing the entire transmission to fail. fortunately that was warranted, although i still had to pay for a third clutch. i was with out my car for over a month while i had to wait for the dealership to find a transmission to replace mine. *jb
05/25/20051
 Clutch started slipping after 12,000 miles. not covered under warranty.
08/01/200410000103/31/2003
 Premature clutch failure. *ak
11/20/200411000205/15/2004
 Mitsubishi evolution clutch failure, i bought a 2003 lancer evolution 8, i had it for less then 5000 miles before the clutch started to wear down, i brought it to the dealer for warranty work, they accepted the warranty work, adding that they should have charged me 1500$ for the repair because it was abuse, now the car is at 10,000 miles doing the same thing, i use this car to go to and from work only, since i have two cars, now they wont even take my calls, if i mention lancer evolution clutch to any mitsubishi warranty department, they cut me off in the middle of a sentence and saythe clutch wear is caused by abuse, sir there is no problem with the clutch it is your fault! then proceed to hang up on me. im tired of this, and im not going to pay up to 1900 for a problem they caused. my car is now in operable! 3 days after the clutch started slipping! *jb
10/26/2004299510/12/2004
 The clutch in my 2003 mitsubishi evolution failed having 2995 miles on the vehicle. the vehicle had 600 miles on it when it was purchased. we had it repaired at the dealer at a cost of $950. they paid for 20% of the repairs because of the mileage on the vehicle prior to being sold.
08/01/20043200104/28/2004
 I purchased a new 2003 mitsubishi evolution viii with about 300 miles on april 28th 2004. approx. 3 months later i noticed that the clutch started to slip in second gear. i then proceeded to take it to the dealership where i was told that the clutch was blown. at this time i had appox. 3200 miles on my new vehicle. i was then told that i would have to have a replacement clutch put in and that for them to even look at the clutch it would cost $500 for them to drop the parts needed to confirm this problem, which i thought was ridiculous because i was at trhe mercy of the dealership and mitsubishi's sub-par replacement part. i had my car towed to a local performance shop where they instructed me to replace the clutch with a more durable and well know act race dics. in doing the repair also the flywheel seemed to be damaged so that was replaced as well. the car was not ever raced or ever abused or driven to any extent of wearing parts excessivly. this i feel is known negligence of sub-par parts used in this vehicle.*ak
11/27/2004109/06/2004
 2003 mitsubishi lancer evolution was purchased new 84 days ago with 1200 dealer test drive miles. clutch failed at 4500 miles. i have called mitsubishi and the dealership, both refuse to cover the clutch under warranty. this appears to be a common problem and mitsubishi consistently blames the consumer. i have not mistreated the car. the dealer drove the car harder than i ever have while on the test drive. *ak
07/08/2004107/01/2004
 Clutch slipping at less than 10,000 miles. car is not raced nor abused.*ak
08/20/20041
 Bought my 2003 evo on august 18th 2004...on august 20th the clutch went out with only 14k miles, i had just broke 150 miles in the 2 days....found out the clutch wasnt warrantied but the dealer i bought it off of felt bad and agreed to pay for it to get fixed...i didnt lose anything out of the deal but readin some of these complaints and seein mitsu says we all drive our cars too hard, thats a lot of ppl!! but so what if we do, the car is made to drive fast, it should have the clutch in it to be able to take the power and handle the awd.....if this one goes out, im puttin in a double disk so i wont have to worry again...mitsu's warranty policy on aftermarket parts sucks too. *ak
07/27/200415500102/10/2004
 Just with talking to the dealership for my 2003 mitsubishi evolution they are telling me mistubishi is doing nothing about the clutch failure problem . they are stating that it's all of us drivers faults. and there appears to be lots of complaints.*ak clutch is slipping. no failure yet. nothing has been done yet. waiting to hear more.
06/06/20042770105/29/2004
 Clutch failure after 2778 miles of driving a 2003 mitsubishi lancer evolution viii. purchased new vehicle (used broker jim estrada autobroker 602-683-2120) from mark mitsubishi with 1586 miles. after driving 1192 addtional miles the clutch started slipping. returned car to mark mitsubishi to find that clutch problem is not covered by auto warranty. after researching nhtsa website i found 13 similar failures of clutch problems with same result with dealers. there are now 30 reported incidents. i tried to have problem repaired under warranty but was told it was my problem. while negotiating repair my daughter was told by salesperson he knew of clutch problems with this model car. i was also told by this same salesperson that they had problems. his reply when asked why buyer is not informed was that i should do my homework. i do not think a new car should have a problem at 2778 miles of driving. mitsubishi had troubles with their truck clutches sending one of their excutives to jail in japan. i had to pay $889.89 to have clutch replaced. *la
05/15/200429571
 The clutch on my 2003 mitsubishi lancer evolution viii went out after only 3000 miles. mitsubishi refused to replace it under warranty saying it was due to customer abuse. when asked to cite a reference to suggest customer abuse they simply said that the clutch had gone out. after talking to many people on internet forums about their evolutions it would appear this is an extremely common problem, and mitsubishi has made every person pay out of pocket for the repairs. *la
05/15/20041
 I purchased a 2003 mitsubishi lancer evolution 8 from antwerpen mitsubishi in randallstown,md and i could not have asked fo a better buying expierence,that is untill my clutch started to slip....i bought it only 3 months ago w/183 miles on it(even though the contract said it had 83 miles on it)and at about 2200 miles my clutch started to slip so i took it to the dealership .i fought with the service manager for days and they just denied the claim stateing that i would have to pay 350.00 to have the clutch inspected to even see if it could be warrented but according to the service manager it was more then likely due to abuse and it would not be coverd i am not going to sit here and let mitsubishi steal from us i believe they put a cheap clutch in the car to lower the cost of production to keep the price of the car down something must be done about this so now i am forced to pay over $1000.00 to have a real clutch put in so if you other evo owners out there feel like i do contact a lawyer like i am going to to asap!!!*ak
04/01/20043000102/21/2004
 Premature clutch wear on new vehicle. experiencing clutch slippage at 3000 miles. this problem has been noted by many other drivers of the same vehicle. the manufacturer (mitsubishi) has not equipped the vehicle with a strong enough clutch. *nm
06/17/20043200102/28/2004
 The clutch went out on my 2003 mitsubishi lancer evolution that i bought new and has 3200 miles on it. *jb
06/01/200425001
 The vehicle was taken to the dealer because the consumer thought there was a transmission problem. upon further examination the dealer found that the clutch needed to be replaced. *jb
06/01/200412195112/14/2003
 On june 1st the clutch failed completely it was composed of the clutch slipping and then exploding. this car was not abused and from the 3rd day i bought the car the clutch was slipping. i tried to get the factory to do somthing about it then but had no luck. i was told i was going to have to pay for it out of pocket. i ended up paying for the clutch replacement out of pocket anyway now they are threatening to void my warranty because i didnt replace it with their stock replacement! after the clutch replacement the transfer case and transmission is giving me troubles after only 700 miles. the dealer that i had the clutch repair done then refered me to another dealer to have the car fixed. it has developed a high pitched whine that starts about 40mph it sounds like a wwii bomb shelter warning siren. this has been a miserable experience!*ak
06/03/2004
 Powertrain: clutch assembly. *ak
04/16/20041
 My clutch just goes out at 2k and mitsubishi doesn't want to replace it because they say its burn. *ak
03/31/2003103/29/2003
 I've had a throw out bearing metal to metal rubbing noise from the day i bought my 2003 mitsubishi evolution viii. i went back to the dealer to ask if i should be concerned. i was straightforward told not to worry unless the noise gets worse. since then my clutch has begun to chatter in cold weather violently, and occationally in warm or hot weather. my pedal throw has been very far from the floor from day one and i just assumed this was the nature of the car. i later found from a former employee of the exact same dealership that upon receiving the very first shipment of evolutions, both vehicles received were taken out and driven by all the managment and employees at the dealership and violently abused and pressed further then they were ment to be used for. i have two separate people with matching stories who worked at the same dealership tell me that my car was one of the two vehicles which they took out for a joy ride. so my clutch problem is either a: a defective design, or b: abuse fro mthe dealership. *ak
06/05/20047972101/05/2004
 Clutch failure. *ak
12/22/20039250103/10/2003
 Clutch defective, went out at 9000 miles, had to replace with my own money as dealership said that they will not honor warrenty on my car, but provided no proof or reason why.*ak
06/18/20042800104/17/2004
 Slipping clutch with only 3500 miles. *ak
09/07/20031
 Under the first few weeks of ownership of my 2003 mitsubishi lancer evolution, my clutch began to slip. i immediately notified my dealer and went in to have it inspected. i spoke directly with the district manager but before any questions he assumed i had abused the vehicle and said they would only check for problems if i paid to the cost of a teardown before anything. i explained that i was still in the break-in period and driving very carefully. he did not care and said many people abuse this car, so he still would not try to understand. furthermore, while being at the dealer for other problems, someone had taken my car for 20 miles without any explaination. i let him know about this and he still insisted that i was abusing the clutch and would only allow an inspection if i paid the labor for a teardown first. basically, the district manager of mitsubishi was unreasonable and would not listen to my concerns. *ak
11/01/2003150001005/23/2003
 I purchased the vehicle brand new with 26 miles. 6 months later and 17000 miles the clutch slipping and not ingauging. it was so bad that the car would not even move. the rpm would just raise, even all the way up to 6500 in first gear with the car not responding. the mitsubishi dealer ship here in town would not even want to cover it or touch it.*ak
05/22/20047853310/22/2003
 I have had problems with the clutch on this vehicle. i have only 7,000 miles on the vehicle. 5th gear synchros went bad. this is not acceptable. the dealership specifically advised they have had numerous complaints about this, and it should be recognized. *ak
06/16/20045174203/18/2004
 Clutch slipped. *ak
06/10/20032
 Clutch failure 2 times before 6000 miles. 2003 lancer evolution.*ak
06/17/20046380104/16/2004
 Clutch failed under acceleration while merging on freeway. car has 6300 miles, 3 months old. dealer quoted almost $1500 for replacement not under warranty. *ak
11/01/20031
 My mitsubishi evolution 8 clutch stopped working at approx. 12,000 miles. i took my car to my dealer and i was denied a warranty claim. i never done it hard or even took it to a race track. *ak
05/15/200410000101/05/2004
 Clutch failure at right around 10,000 miles.*ak
01/06/200448001004/22/2003
 Clutch started slipping after 4800 miles, had my clutch replaced, $1125. *ak
05/28/200316750104/13/2003
 I've owned my 03 mitsu evolution viii for 1 year and i have put 16,700 miles on the car. the clutch is slipping and it's not covered under warranty. this is ridiculous since it will require 8 hours of labor and a better clutch just to get it where it should have been in the first place. i have done everything with in reason to baby this thing. i just don't understand why it wasn't covered under warranty.*ak
01/15/20046000110/30/2003
 Failure of clutch at around 6,000 miles on a 03' mitsubishi lancer evolution. mitsunishi claims under warranty that it is covered up to 12,000 miles or 12 months. they wouldn't even look at the clutch or check to see if it was under warranty. i communicated with the head of service shop and he communicated that mitsubishi motors had stated they would not cover problem. after numerous phone calls i didn't recieve any help and was forced to replace bad part myself for over $2000 w/labor. i have seen this in numerous evolutions with them even going out under 1000 miles. out of 6 friends that own the same car 5 have had to replace clutch and all under 7000 miles.*ak
05/17/20044001
 Premature clutch wear and failure. on my vehicle, a mitsubishi lancer evolution viii, the clutch started slipping at 5700 miles from purchase. the clutch failure occured from normal usage, and this behavior has been exhibited in other evolutions as well. this is unacceptable from a safety standpoint as it can lead to the vehicle becoming inoperable.*ak
05/28/20045500202/26/2004
 2003 mitsubishi evolution clutch defective at 5500 miles. also 3rd gear syncho is gone. very weak clutch. *la
03/06/20042600101/10/2004
 I had bought my car brand new on january 10th, 2004 with about 300 miles on the car already from the day i bought it from fred beans mitsubishi. since then i have not been hard on my car at all. but about 2,500 miles on the car, my clutch started to stick and i felt that something was wrong. i reported it to mitsubishi and i was told that it was a normal thing these car's do. on march 6th 2004 i was driving normally down the boulevard, when out of nowhere when i am starting to pull away in my car, the clutch sticks down all the way and would not release back. i had to scoop my foot under it and manually pull it back. i barely got it home before the clutch totally died on me. i took it to mitsubishi that following weekend and they told me that they will not cover the clutch because they say all of us youngsters abuse cars and that we will not warranty the part. so i had to go and spend nearly $800 to buy a new clutch and have it installed. i don't feel that i was treated right and for the car to have a clutch go that fast, it must of been a defect. but they just wanted my money. *la
11/10/20033000109/13/2003
 I have a 2003 mitsubishi lancer evolution bought it brand new and my clutch had to be replaced at 3000 miles costing nearly 1500 dollars and would not be covered under warranty by mitsubishi. it was replaced with a aftermarket clutch i have had no problem with as of yet and it has 17000 miles on it. *la
05/29/2004100050
 The clutch is shuttering / chattering when pulling from a stop in 1st and more so in reverse. this started happening mildly when new and is now much worse at 7000 miles. in reverse the shaking and shuttering is often so bad i must push the clutch back in and start over. this happens on a daily basis. *la
05/03/20041
 I own a 2003 mitsubishi lancer evolution with 10,500 miles. the clutch appears to have prematurely worn out as engagement is very rough and causes the car to jump and lurch from a stand still. coming from a start in first gear is the primary problem. this clutch shutter/chatter is very common in the evo viii community and should be addressed. the dealer tells me it is due to a worn clutch plate and is a wear item and thus not covered under warranty. the car has not been driven aggressively let alone abused. from the info i gather many evo viii owners are experiencing the same syptoms with even less mileage than mine. this definetely should be cause for a recall!!!! thanks . *ak
03/28/200450001
 The clutch wore out prematurely while driving between 45-55 mph. vehicle was taken to a dealership, who indicated that the clutch needed to be replaced. this was a common problem with these vehicle. *ak
POWER TRAIN - CLUTCH ASSEMBLY - BELL HOUSING
08/01/20043200104/28/2004
 I purchased a new 2003 mitsubishi evolution viii with about 300 miles on april 28th 2004. approx. 3 months later i noticed that the clutch started to slip in second gear. i then proceeded to take it to the dealership where i was told that the clutch was blown. at this time i had appox. 3200 miles on my new vehicle. i was then told that i would have to have a replacement clutch put in and that for them to even look at the clutch it would cost $500 for them to drop the parts needed to confirm this problem, which i thought was ridiculous because i was at trhe mercy of the dealership and mitsubishi's sub-par replacement part. i had my car towed to a local performance shop where they instructed me to replace the clutch with a more durable and well know act race dics. in doing the repair also the flywheel seemed to be damaged so that was replaced as well. the car was not ever raced or ever abused or driven to any extent of wearing parts excessivly. this i feel is known negligence of sub-par parts used in this vehicle.*ak
06/06/20042500105/29/2004
 After purchasing new 2003 mitsubishi lancer evo8 with 1500 dealer miles, an additional 1000 miles was driven when cltuch problem began. very serious clutch slippage. returned vehicle to dealer only to be told not under warranty. i have searched the internet to find 12 similar complaints with the nhtsa on file. i am currently in negotiation with the dealership manager with this problem. i am thinking if they replace this clutch with a factory kit, that this will not happen again. *ak
POWER TRAIN - CLUTCH ASSEMBLY - PEDAL/LINKAGE
08/01/20043200104/28/2004
 I purchased a new 2003 mitsubishi evolution viii with about 300 miles on april 28th 2004. approx. 3 months later i noticed that the clutch started to slip in second gear. i then proceeded to take it to the dealership where i was told that the clutch was blown. at this time i had appox. 3200 miles on my new vehicle. i was then told that i would have to have a replacement clutch put in and that for them to even look at the clutch it would cost $500 for them to drop the parts needed to confirm this problem, which i thought was ridiculous because i was at trhe mercy of the dealership and mitsubishi's sub-par replacement part. i had my car towed to a local performance shop where they instructed me to replace the clutch with a more durable and well know act race dics. in doing the repair also the flywheel seemed to be damaged so that was replaced as well. the car was not ever raced or ever abused or driven to any extent of wearing parts excessivly. this i feel is known negligence of sub-par parts used in this vehicle.*ak
05/22/20047853310/22/2003
 I have had problems with the clutch on this vehicle. i have only 7,000 miles on the vehicle. 5th gear synchros went bad. this is not acceptable. the dealership specifically advised they have had numerous complaints about this, and it should be recognized. *ak
04/13/200476001
 While driving at 65 mph consumer shifted gears and smelled a burning odor. vehicle was pulled to the shoulder, and the consumer found that the push rod to the clutch was bend. vehicle was towed to the dealer, who confirmed that the push rod was indeed bend. *ak
POWER TRAIN - DRIVELINE - DIFFERENTIAL UNIT
10/27/200419050206/13/2003
 I have a 2003 mitsubishi lancer evolution. at 19,000 miles the car developed a very loud sound coming from the front of the car at speeds above 30mph. i work at a auto repair shop and concluded that the sound is coming from the transfer ase/front differential. more than likely from ring gear being improperly shimmed from the factory. if the problem is not resolved with the transfercase/front differential, when the problem occurs with other lancer evolution owners there is a chance that the transfercase/differential could lock up causing a accident or cause more damage to other parts of the drivetrain.*ak
POWER TRAIN - MANUAL TRANSMISSION
07/15/2008600001
 The 5th gear syncro has failed on the car at 60,000 miles. this is a known defect to mitsubishi and they have developed new, stronger parts as part of a tsb. however, mitsubishi is refusing to repair the defect citing abuse. *tr
11/30/2006250001
 Tl*- the contact stated that while parked and attempting to drive the 2003 mitsubishi lancer evolution he turned on the ignition while in neutral and the vehicle lunged forward and failed. the contact stated that the manufacturer stated everyone with the same vehicle had the same problem.
06/05/2006320001
 3rd gear synro went bad after 32000 miles. *jb
07/23/200517300107/04/2003
 Failure of 5th gear. mitsubishi has a current tsb released on this failure and denied repair under warranty. the warranty claim was denied due to the fact that an aftermarket clutch, of higher quality was installed on the vehicle after failure of manufacturer installed clutch. *jb
10/15/200415000210/15/2003
 1) i am in the military deployed to afghanistan... 1 month before i deployed my stock clutch was slipping. this is not covered by mitsubishi's warranty. i was reading on my forums and there were at least 2 to 300 people experiencing the same problem all around 5000 miles on the car regardless of how the car was driven. i purchased a new clutch, $1300 and had the dealership install it for $800 figuring that they would warranty there work. i deployed to afghanistan, came back and about 2 months of driving the car my car was making a hi squealing noise. the problem was diagnosed as the clutch. although they did no other inspection. i ordered a new clutch had them install it... same problem continued. so i paid another 700 for a new clutch for no reason. then they rediagnosed the problem as the rear differential. they replaced that under warranty... problem was fixed. i was babying the car for a week or so because of the clutch break in period is suggested 1000 miles. while doing 60 mph on the highway the car noise came back just as bad as before... called mitsubishi and they refused repair by order of the district rep. 2. the noise has progressively gotten worse and has caused my car to be sluggish now. i would like my drivetrain to have a thorough inspection and fixed where necessary. i would also like to be reimbursed for my clutch that i had to buy that wasn't faulty to begin with. i also think mitsubishi needs to adhere to a warranty on there drivetrain. regardless if you install an aftermarket clutch in your car, the drivetrain should be covered. who in there right mind would pay for the installation of a new stock clutch and fly wheel if its just going to go bad at the same time you need your oil change. *nm
06/10/20041700206/01/2004
 My manual transmission in my lancer evolution started to feel rough around 350 miles i thought in was normal since it was a new car. but around 1700 miles the problem got worse i took it to the attention of the dealer where i purchased it form but the mechanic said it was fine, so i took it home the way it was. i now have 5000 miles and my clutch is all worn out and my dealer refuses to fix the problem even though i have never abused of the car i am still trying to break it in. so i think it does not make since that i would have to change my clutch 20 times before my 100,000 miles. so i don't think the clutch went out under normal wear and tear there has to be something wrong with this car there have been to many complaints about the same problem. *jb
06/01/20041700204/07/2004
 Mitsubishi lancer evolution 8. *ak
06/08/200412000111/13/2003
 I had 12000 miles on my car it is 7 months old. i am the original owner and iv been driving manual cars for over 8 years. never had any transmission problems be for they had to replace some syncros because it would grind between fourth and fith gears at highway speeds. and they also made a comment on how worn my clutch is and that my fly wheel is scored. every now and then when i start off i smell my clutch burning and smoke comes out of my exhaust and they say its from abuse when its not. *la
11/13/200313000509/06/2003
 Ecu registers p0300 (multiple cylinder misfire) obdii error code. error code is thrown, ses light comes on, and car stumbles until throttle is released. this typically occurs at light throttle or cruising (steady) throttle. it can occur under load (acceleration) but never occurs on deceleration. known facets of this problem thus far are: 1) mitsubishi is aware of 2 issues: sticky (dirty) injectors and a transmission harmonic resonance, which throws the knock sensor 2) the car is undriveable when this occurs until the throttle is released. 3) my vehicle in particular is almost 100% undriveable on the highway due to this problem recurring every 10-15 seconds during any sort of highway driving period. 4) it _is_ a safety issue as i have had this occur under light acceleration attempting to merge into traffic, only to be met with what feels like a wall when the error code is thrown and the ecu retards the timing because it is detecting knock (which is not actually occurring). 5) mitsubishi (mmna) is apparently aware of an ecu reflash fix for this problem (the harmonic resonance issue, not the injector issue). they have claimed that the flash will be out within 3-6 weeks since november 2003, and it is still not out nor available. i have been told it is held up in epa certification. this problem has occurred for me literally hundreds of times, and no dealership has been able to fix it because mitsubishi will not authorize any warranty work on my vehicle for this problem, citing that a fix is already on the way, wait for it. *nm
05/22/20047853310/22/2003
 I have had problems with the clutch on this vehicle. i have only 7,000 miles on the vehicle. 5th gear synchros went bad. this is not acceptable. the dealership specifically advised they have had numerous complaints about this, and it should be recognized. *ak
07/20/20032400106/16/2003
 I have a 2003 mitsubishi lancer evolution-8, and at approximately 2,400 miles i began having problems with my transmission, and no modifications had beed done to the car. it started out as a 4th to 5th gear shifting problem(grinding). it seems like it's rpm sensitive. i had the dealership look at it, and they said it wasn't bad enough need fixing, however, did aknowledge after they drove it that there was something out of place with my transmission and did experience the same problem that i was having. i have had the car in three times for this, but it is obvious that they have no desire to fix this. then around 4,500 miles it started to have problems going into second gear, and third gear with a very notchy and rough engagement. i now have 12,500 miles on my car and the shifting is getting much worse. after browsing the internet, i found many letters and documents of people with the same transmission problems on this year and model of car with the end result being that the owner of the car is at fault and not the manufacturer/dealer. one reference # is 10063730 nhtsa complaint id: 464401 entered march 23, 2004.*ak
POWER TRAIN - TRANSFER CASE (4-WHEEL DRIVE)
09/06/20071
 I launched my car from about 5500rpm. i previously had a new exedy clutch and flywheel installed about 2 months earlier. the car jumped but wouldn't go anywhere after i let the clutch out. i thought maybe first gear was gone but when i tried all the other gears it seemed as if the car was in neutral. i had the car taken to a local performance shop and they diagnosed the problem as being my transfer case. the total cost for the new oem transfer case with front differential and labor to put it in was around 3400. mitsubishi needs to act on this problem because i have read many complaints about it and have heard many stories from evo owners about their transfer case issues. *tr
03/07/200633000508/31/2003
 I am currently on the 5th transfer case for my 03 mitsubishi lancer evolution 8. i had 2 go out under warranty, another rebuilt and now i am on my last one. the first went at ~33k, replaced and broken within a month regular highway driving. *jb
12/08/200613506104/07/2006
 While traveling 65 mph my transfer case on my 2003 mitsubishi evolution unexplainable began to make a loud whining noise, although only having roughly 13,500 miles. as i pulled the car over i could here that there was a metallic clicking sound coming from the transfer case also. to correct this the transfer case will need to be completely replaced. *nm
12/06/20068057111/10/2006
 After only 8057 miles on my 2003 mitsubishi lancer evolution, my transfer case started to whine quite badly. after reading some tech articles, i found that this is not an uncommon failure. i also know that mitsubishi has had transfer case recalls in the past due to their poor rear seal design. the recalls were based off of lawsuits and deaths to individuals driving their vehicle at highway speeds when all four wheels have locked on them causing catastrophic loss of vehicle control. based on mitsubishi's track record, and their knowledge of life threatening conditions under transfer case failure, it is a negligent act for them to overlook this problem. a recall is necessary for public safety! *jb
08/14/2005108/14/2005
 03 evo heard grinding noises in my tranny or transfer case area @ 15k miles.. took to dealer and they told me they won't check it if its not broken..they did replace a drive shaft but noise was still there.. my clutch is now slipping @ 24k.. *jb
10/27/200419050206/13/2003
 I have a 2003 mitsubishi lancer evolution. at 19,000 miles the car developed a very loud sound coming from the front of the car at speeds above 30mph. i work at a auto repair shop and concluded that the sound is coming from the transfer ase/front differential. more than likely from ring gear being improperly shimmed from the factory. if the problem is not resolved with the transfercase/front differential, when the problem occurs with other lancer evolution owners there is a chance that the transfercase/differential could lock up causing a accident or cause more damage to other parts of the drivetrain.*ak
06/20/2004303/25/2003
 Loud noises when decelarating, very chattery when driving. *ak
04/09/200410100205/26/2003
 Extremely loud noises coming from transmission/front transfer case. i know of many others with this issue. mitsubishi needs to look into this severe defect in the evo viii front transfer case!*ak