Mitsubishi Magna Problems

THE Dunlop Monza tyre has been superseded by the 200R, so you won't be able to match the tread pattern. Fitting such an old tyre to a road wheel is not recommended and the best advice is to discard it. Alternately, you could keep it as a spare providing you use it only in an emergency.

MAYBE it doesn't like its new home . . . just joking. I am guessing the RACV is correct in its assessment, and I'm guessing the carburettor either wasn't serviced or wasn't serviced correctly when it was supposed to have been a year ago. It's not easy to set the auto choke carburettor correctly, and if you don't you can have all sorts of problems with the Magna. Take it to Des & Grays Automotive Services in Ferntree Gully. They're Mitsubishi-trained mechanics and will fix it for you.

I FIND it astounding that the dealer would tell you not to worry about changing the oil at the 1500k service, if only to check for any metallic particles it might contain. Draining the oil is a way to check the internal health of your engine. I'd recommend you continue what you're doing.

I WOULD first check the temperature sender, which tells the computer to keep the fuel injectors open a little longer during the cold running phase. The sender could be faulty, though you would normally experience some stalling and poor running if that is the case. The other possibility is that the catalytic converter is partly blocked, which can affect performance, and it's more noticeable when the engine is cold.

I WOULD suspect the engine mounts, which are renowned for degrading and causing vibration on the TR Magna. This tends to be worse in autos. Put the trannie in drive and drive forward, noting the level of vibration. Then put it in reverse and drive backwards. If vibration is less when in reverse, start looking at the engine mounts.

IT'S NOT a problem mechanics are familiar with but they say one of the vent hoses on the tank may be blocked, cracked, or even dislodged.

EACH fuel company offers a 98 RON fuel above regular unleaded and each makes claims about the benefits of their particular fuel. They aren't the same so trying a different brand may work, but I would use regular unleaded in your Magna. I believe the benefits of using the higher-grade fuel are negligible, which your results suggest.

I HAVEN'T reviewed the model you are considering, but be careful about any car you look at. And have it inspected by an expert. Any car of that age will be showing high kilometres, and the TN Magna had troubles with its auto transmission when new. The engine will most likely have a noisy timing chain, and could be blowing smoke.

There's no reason the Avalon should be any thirstier than the Camry. They're about the same weight and they share the same V6 engine and drivetrain. The Avalon is locally produced, not imported, so the parts are the same price as the Camry's. On the current market the Magna is the best buy in that its used values have slumped, the Camry and Avalon are standing up well, while the Commodore remains popular and hence has good resale value. In terms of mechanical reliability, it's hard to go past Toyota and I would probably prefer the Camry or the Avalon, but all four have good reliability and will do the job well.

Your Falcon would have tested about 13 litres/ 100km when new. For comparison purposes, the Commodore V6 would return about 11.5 litres/100km, the 3.5-litre V6 Magna about 10.5 and the Camry closer to 13. Clearly, on that basis the Magna is the car for you.