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What 29 owners told NHTSA about the 2016 Mitsubishi Lancer

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (29)Crash / fire / injury (2)Transmission & drivetrain (20)Electrical system (4)Speed control (4)Engine (3)Body & structure (2)Airbags (1)Visibility & wipers (1)

4 of 29 complaints match · Speed control · clear filters

Jul 17, 2023Transmission & drivetrainSpeed control

I purchased this car in 2016 brand new from the dealer. Have kept up with its maintenance but in the past couple of months, the car is not taking off. What I mean by that is that the transmission slips and won't allow the car to gain speed there is a delay in the car accelerating. This is the second time that it has happened this year and its very unsafe to use a car this way and its less than 10 years old.

NHTSA ODI 11532803

Dec 18, 2022Speed controlEngine

Vehicle accelerates by it self

NHTSA ODI 11497959

Mar 24, 2021Speed control

WHEN I TRY TO ACCELERATE, THE CAR STARTS OUT REALLY SLOW. THERE IS A LOT OF JERKING AND ACCELERATION ISSUES. WHEN I TRY TO ACCELERATE, IT ACTS LIKE IT IS SHIFTED TO L, BUT THEN IT SPEEDS UP. THIS IS A CONSTANT ISSUE.

NHTSA ODI 11404737

Mar 7, 2021Transmission & drivetrainSpeed control

AS I WAS DRIVING IT IT SEEMS TO HESITATE ON ACCELERATING AFTER A FEW STOPS THE TRANSMISSION LIGHT WOULD COME ON FOR A LITTLE BIT THEN GO OFF. SAME WITH THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT. AS I WAS DRIVING IT TO WORK ON THE HIGHWAY.. IT SUDDENLY STARTED LOSING POWER AND I WAS ABLE TO PULL OVER AND PARK IT AT A GAS STATION WHERE IT WENT COMPLETELY DEAD.. I HAD AAA TOW IT.. IT STARTED UP BUT THE SHIFTING IS NOT ENGAGING RIGHT AWAY. HAD THE SOFTWARE UPDATED IN 2019.. THE CVT TRANSMISSION ARE FULL OF PROBLEMS. IT SEEMS TO HAVE THE SAME SYMPTOMS AS THE RECALL BUT MY CAR WAS NOT RECALLED ACCORDING TO THE VIN NUMBER.. I HAD A FLUSH DONE RECENTLY AND I HAVE ALSO HAD THE OIL CHANGED WHEN NEEDED. THE ACCELERATION HESITATION THEN LOSS OF POWER WHILE DRIVING 60 ON THE FREEWAY IS A SAFETY ISSUE... A LOT OF SEMI TRUCKS TRAVEL THAT HIGHWAY AND THEY CANT STOP WHEN A CAR LOSES POWER IN FRONT OF THEM.

NHTSA ODI 11399625

Working with the data? Download all 29 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 25, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2016 Mitsubishi Lancer verdict →