AI DamageMitsubishi Montero Sport: problems, complaints, bulletins
Summary for the Mitsubishi Montero Sport across 10 model years: 349 owner complaints and 0 NHTSA service bulletins, plus repair videos. Pick a year for details.
Model years
What fails most often
- 1 Engine and cooling 17% of all complaints
- 2 Service brakes 16% of all complaints
- 3 Powertrain 12% of all complaints
- 4 Air bags 12% of all complaints
- 5 Electrical system 10% of all complaints
- 6 Steering 9% of all complaints
- 7 Structure 8% of all complaints
- 8 Suspension 8% of all complaints
- Engine and cooling: 59 complaints (17% of all), 4 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Service brakes: 55 complaints (16% of all), 10 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Powertrain: 42 complaints (12% of all).
- Air bags: 41 complaints (12% of all), 36 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Electrical system: 36 complaints (10% of all).
Engines and transmissions
US-market versions per EPA. On the right: how many NHTSA complaints name this engine or transmission type.
- 2.4 L · petrol · 4 cyl 1997–1999
- 3 L · petrol · 6 cyl 1997–2003named in 1 complaints
- 3.5 L · petrol · 6 cyl 1999–2004named in 1 complaints
- automatic, 4-speed 1997–2004
- manual, 5-speed 1997–1999named in 1 complaints
Drive: RWD, AWD, 4WD
Symptoms owners describe
How many of the 349 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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Engine and cooling | 59 | 4 | 0 |
| Service brakes | 55 | 10 | 0 |
| Powertrain | 42 | 0 | 0 |
| Air bags | 41 | 36 | 0 |
| Electrical system | 36 | 0 | 0 |
| Steering | 32 | 2 | 0 |
| Structure | 28 | 1 | 0 |
| Suspension | 28 | 1 | 0 |
| Equipment | 14 | 1 | 0 |
| Vehicle speed control | 14 | 7 | 0 |
| Engine | 11 | 2 | 0 |
| Visibility | 11 | 1 | 0 |
| Fuel system | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| Seat belts | 10 | 6 | 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 driver's and front passenger air bags failed to deploy. The contact suffered injuries to the left shoulder, hip, knee, back, face, back, and spine. Medical attention was received. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed and deemed destroyed. The manufacturer and dealer were not contacted.
The airbags failed to deploy. The driver sustained unknown injuries that required medical attention. A police report was filed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 240,000.
I was pulling into my sisters drive which has a big trash dispenser in it & I already had my foot on the brake going about 1mph the suv lunged forward like I was hit from behind & my vehicle crashed into the trash dispenser & that then hit their fence which bent.
My wife was driving are 00 mits montero sport, on the fwy she try to slow down to get out of the fwy. She was pressing on the brake but the car was not slowing down so she put the transmission to lower gears to make the suv to slow down it help but not to get the suv to stop. So she hit the car in-front.
The rear view mirror changes automatically to night vision you can not change it back. It very difficult to see cars behind you with the way it changes and how close they are to you. My daughter backed into someone because she could not tell they were behind her. I have had problems with this also.
Air bag failed to deploy when driver lost control of vehicle and drove into a small grove of trees. Car was totaled. Windshield collapsed, entering car cabin and hit driver. Driver was wearing his seat belt at the time of the incident. Driver incurred bump to head and bruised hip.
When owners complained
NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.
What to check before buying
- Engine and cooling. Radiator and fan after a frontal hit, coolant level and condition, overheating.
- Service brakes. Pedal feel, ABS operation, leaks, discs and hoses.
- Powertrain. Shift quality under load, harsh shifts, transmission codes, CV joints.
- Air bags. Check the SRS light, stored codes and airbag/curtain status after any impact.
Other models of this make
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 2026-11-05.