AI Damage2008 Mitsubishi Lancer: common problems
Owners of the 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer filed 91 complaints with NHTSA, most often about suspension and engine. Details by component below, with sources.
Key figures
- Owner complaints
- 91
- involving a crash
- 8
What fails most often
- 1 Suspension 25% of all complaints
- 2 Engine 14% of all complaints
- 3 Steering 13% of all complaints
- 4 Powertrain 12% of all complaints
- 5 Structure 11% of all complaints
- 6 Service brakes 10% of all complaints
- 7 Air bags 8% of all complaints
- 8 Electrical system 8% of all complaints
- Suspension: 23 complaints (25% of all), 2 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Engine: 13 complaints (14% of all).
- Steering: 12 complaints (13% of all).
- Powertrain: 11 complaints (12% of all).
- Structure: 10 complaints (11% of all), 1 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
Engines and transmissions
US-market versions per EPA. On the right: how many NHTSA complaints name this engine or transmission type.
- 2 L · petrol · 4 cyl
- 2 L · petrol · turbo · 4 cyl
- automatic, 6-speed
- CVTnamed in 1 complaints
- manual, 5-speednamed in 1 complaints
Drive: FWD, AWD
Symptoms owners describe
How many of the 91 NHTSA complaints mention each symptom (automatic count from complaint text; one complaint can mention several).
Components owners complain about
| Component | Owner complaints | involving a crash | Technical service bulletins (TSB) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Suspension | 23 | 2 | 0 |
| Engine | 13 | 0 | 0 |
| Steering | 12 | 0 | 0 |
| Powertrain | 11 | 0 | 0 |
| Structure | 10 | 1 | 0 |
| Service brakes | 9 | 1 | 0 |
| Air bags | 7 | 4 | 0 |
| Electrical system | 7 | 2 | 0 |
| Tires | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| Engine and cooling | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Fuel system | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Wheels | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Electronic stability control | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Exterior lighting | 2 | 0 | 0 |
What owners report
Short excerpts of NHTSA complaints in the original wording. These are owner statements not verified by NHTSA; personal data removed.
The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The vehicle rolled over into a ditch. The contact stated no air bags deployed. The contact stated the driver hit her head and sought medical attention. A police report was filed. The vehicle was not drivable and was towed to the contact's residence.
The cross member has completely rusted and the driver side control arm came off, crashing the car and severely damaging the car, with loss of control. I have contacted Mitsubishi Motors but have received no response from them.
My srs light just started coming on a few years ago before we were in an accident. When we took it to the dealer to check it, they said it was a costly repair and is only to remove the light...but that the airbags would still deploy if we were in an accident.
I bashed my head against the driver side window as I lost control, I then hit my head again against the window as the rear end of my car hit a tree stomp. Through hitting the tree stomp it caused my passenger side airbags to deploy but not the driver side, side airbags.
Involved in a car accident in which I was traveling approximately 25 mph and hit someone broad side with the left side front of my vehicle. None of my airbags deployed on a 2008 mitsubishi lancer.
Tl contact owns a 2008 mitsubishi lancer. While driving approximately 60 mph, the contact crashed into a drainage ditch. The vehicle was severely damaged and none of the air bags deployed. One of the occupants was moderately injured. There were no warning indicators illuminated on the instrument panel.
The contact stated that after a while the system would erase any safety information used to track mileage and only show the GPS feature on the digital screen with information from 2004. The contact stated he used the digital screen for the safety features.
The piece I think they call it crossmember has rust holes through it and is about to come apart at the rusted holes on the part. We buy the car [VIN] in 2022 for our daughter to drive to college. Just finding out when we took it into the car place to perform this recall they won't do the recall because of Mitsubishi.
When owners complained
NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.
Comparison
By complaint count this model year ranks 3,786 of 36,659 model years in the NHTSA data (top 10% most complained about).
On average one model year of the Lancer has 48 complaints (18 years in the data). This year has 91, above average.
What to check before buying
- Suspension. Wheel alignment, control arms, subframe, even tire wear.
- Engine. Cold start, unusual noises, oil leaks and engine codes.
- Steering. Steering play, power assist, rack and tie rods after a wheel impact.
- Powertrain. Shift quality under load, harsh shifts, transmission codes, CV joints.
Other years of this model
Questions and answers
What are the most common problems with the 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer?
Owner complaints to NHTSA most often mention: suspension, engine, steering. Total complaints: 91. The most frequent symptoms in complaint texts: rust, corrosion (14%), warning lights, check engine (5%), won't start (4%).
How many service bulletins (TSB) were issued for the 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer?
NHTSA lists 0 manufacturer service bulletins for this year. A bulletin tells dealers how to diagnose or fix a known issue; it is not a recall.
Should I buy a 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer from a US auction?
Owner complaints describe defects, not crash damage. Before bidding, check the components listed above and review the lot photos: VinWind builds a report of visible and hidden damage by VIN.
Other 2008 models
Read also
Sources: public NHTSA data (USA): service bulletins and owner complaints; YouTube: links to videos credited to their authors. Complaints are owner statements not verified by NHTSA, and describe defects rather than crash damage. Data updated 2026-11-06.