Mitsubishi Colt 3-door Range Car Review

Facts At A Glance
Car: Mitsubishi Colt 3-door range
Prices: £7,584-£11,744 - on the road INSURANCE GROUPS: 4-14
Emissions: 119-157g/km
Performance: [1.3] 0-60mph 11.1s / Max Speed 111mph
Fuel Consumption: [1.3] (urban) 38.2mpg / (extra urban) 58.8mpg / (combined) 48.7mpg
Safety: Front airbags, ABS with EBD.
Dimensions: Length/Width/Height 3810/1695/1520mm

Colt 3-door: Sporty Fun

Our Rating: No Rating Available

It seems that all the car makers of the world sans the major muscle builders like Lamborghini or Ferrari are releasing little supermini citycars. Many of them are doing this because that is the way of the world today, smaller, cheaper, better cars while other are doing it because they want and entry level offering for the younger crowd. The Mitsubishi Colt 3-door falls into the former category. The Mitsubishi car company has always been known for their larger passenger vehicles and their powerful commercial offerings. Sure they have had success with sporty cars like the Eclipse, but for the most part they have fallen short with little economy cars. All of that changes with the Colt line-up of cars.

Of course the Mitsubishi Colt 3-door was able to jump many of the competitors out of the gate due to the fact that it was designed by the same division of Daimler Chrysler that gave the world the Smart line-up of cars. In fact both the Colt and the Smart cars were made in the same Dutch factory. Both cars shared a lot of the same technology which would leave buyers to make a choice of what branding they wanted in their driveway. Luckily for the Mitsubishi side of things the Smart car is no longer being produced leaving consumers no choice at all.

Under the bonnet of the Mitsubishi Colt 3-door is a range of engine choices that should please people looking for super economy or pep in their step. All the engine choices under the 3-door Colt are powered by petrol fuel and start out as a 1.1-litre 3-cylinder that produces 75bhp of power. The next step up the power plant ladder is a 1.3-litre engine that emits 95bhp with 4-cylinders. The final engine offered is a 4-cylinder 1.5-litre turbo that gives up to 147bhp when needed. All are fitted with a 5-speed manual that can be upgraded to a 6-speed Allshift automated manual.

Fuel consumption numbers are in-line with the rest of the cars in the class level. The 1.1-litre model averages and estimated 51mpg in combined driving, but the 1.3-litre engine with ClearTec technology can get an estimated 56mpg in combined. ClearTec technology includes, LED lights to save power, low resistance tyres and the Automatic Stop/Start system that cuts the engine off when stopped at a light or stuck in traffic.

The exterior styling of the Mitsubishi Colt 3-door is what will help set it apart from the competition. The designers have created a stout looking thing that looks just as rugged as the 4x4 found up the ladder of the Mitsubishi line. From some angles the front end actually resembles that of an Volvo and less like a Japanese made car.

Mitsubishi has equipped the car with a suspension system that allows for a relatively smooth ride along most normal street surfaces. Take the car into a part of the city that is pockmarked with potholes and there is some jiggling about that occurs. This smooth ride is accomplished with a MacPherson strut system upfront and a low volume torsion beam in the rear.

Overall buyers looking for a unique citycar that drives well and is affordable will find a lot to like about the Mitsubishi Colt 3-door. It seems as though the combination of Japanese and German engineering works rather nicely.