Road Test: Mitsubishi Colt

By Feann Torr - 7/7/05

Mitsubishi Australia is on the cusp of a new era, where it will release the replacement large car to the long-standing Magna, to be called the Mitsubishi 380, which will fall in line with what is very much a revitalised product line-up.

In addition to the new Mitsubishi 380, the Japanese company is slowly-but-surely updating its entire model range in Australia, which now includes the more powerful 120kW Outlander compact AWD, the sleek Grandis people mover and the popular ES Lancer small car.

You can now add the new Colt to that burgeoning list, which slots in nicely just below the Lancer as Mitsubishi's compact car (classed a 'light' car by VFACTS), yet with prices beginning at a $18,990, it's not the cheapest of vehicles residing at the smaller end of town, undercut by the Hyundai Getz, for instance. That said, standard features of the Colt include twin airbags, air-conditioning and ABS across the range.

It's main competitors are the more upmarket Honda Jazz and Mazda2 models, and herein we'll look at whether the European-styled Colt can compete with these already established models. So without too much rigmarole, let's get to it:

Mitsubishi's new tall-bodied Colt is modern inside and out, and packs a brilliant transmission to boot

The Colt feels more powerful than its 72kW, 1.5-litre engine would suggest

Lucky the CD stereo is blocked out of view...

The tall-bodied Colt greets the eye with a strange, almost cheeky stance - the tall body creates an impression of size, the front end has a decidedly sporty tone and the overall look imitates Mercedes' A-Class to some extent.

With wheels pushed out to all four corners, reducing overhangs, the bonnet rises seamlessly into the A-pillar that props up the windscreen, and it's a strange-looking car at first, but one that I was more than happy to be seen in after a few days of bonding.

It grows on you, just like a wart. But if there's one thing I didn't like about the look of the Colt, it was the brake lights. But apparently these are all the rage in Europe, so I'm sure my sense of style will catch up in good time...

Stepping inside the reinvented Colt, I was surprised with the amount of room offered to the front seat occupants. The rear seats aren't so good, but they can be adjusted for fore/aft travel up to 150mm, and I should also mention that there's a 6.1-litre storage box underneath the front passengers seat, perfect for delicate pastries.

Back to the front seats, and there's plenty of elbow room and the tall body opens up acres of head room, and the driving position, too, surprised me - it's much higher than I would have thought, and when combined with a truly massive windscreen, it bestows the driver with a very good view of the road.

Rearward vision is above average, hampered somewhat by the rearmost D-pillars, but thanks to the short overhangs and vertical rear end its a doddle to park in tight spaces, and very easy to punt around slowly.

Ergonomics are really nice in this little Mitsu; the cabin has an airy, open feel to it, thanks in large part to the removal of the transmission tunnel between the driver and front passenger.

The gear shifter has been relocated to the steering column for some old-school gear shifting (and it works surprisingly well), while the hand brake is now foot operated (footbrake?), positioned where the clutch would be to the left of the brake pedal, making for much easier handbrake initiation.

Although I feel like a dork for saying it, the cabin has a really fresh vibe thanks to flat floor, and is much more memorable than the interior's of both the Honda Jazz and Hyundai Getz as a result. Where the handbrake would normally dwell, twin cupholders exist and they can be moved into various positions, which I thought was a nice touch.

The CD stereo pumps out good levels of treble and bass, just what the target demographic demands, but it looks really low-rent in the otherwise pretty centre console, which nullifies some its acoustic capacity.

Driving the little Mitsu was largely uneventful, but the chassis is perfect for the inner urban driving that the Colt will be subjected to the majority of the time. With good front brakes (drums at the rear) and a light kerb weight (1090kg) it can wash off speed quite rapidly, it has a positive 9.4 turning circle, plus with most of the controls close to the steering wheel so it's dead easy to get in and drive. It does what its told, with neither great protest nor deep involvement.

The steering is light but quite direct, and I experienced only the lightest of torque steer, and when pushed to its limit the Colt tends to scare; it's 15-inch alloy wheels squeal while the tall body and high centre of gravity don't combine particularly well with increasing corner speeds.

Ride and handling in everyday conditions are great though, the suspension - for commuting, shopping, or just heading out to the country - strike a nice balance between comfort and response.

Where the Colt impresses most however, is in its ability to transfer its engine power to the front wheels, and the CVT is a big contributor to this effect. Perfectly suited to city driving, the CVT (continuously variable transmission) doesn't have specific ratios or gears, it simply sits on a given engine speed, depending on how heavy your right foot it, and accelerates very smoothly - there's virtually no jerkiness. Point and shoot in the purest sense.

As well as returning impressive fuel economy figures in the city, the 1.5-litre MIVEC (Mitsubishi speak for variable valve timing, or VVT) engine, coupled with the CVT, is just as happy on the open road, sitting on 2100rpm at 100km/h on the freeway. How many small 4-cylinder cars with a standard manual or automatic gearbox can do that?

Though there aren't any gear ratios as such, there are 'rev' patterns that the Colt will adhere to. For example, in normal 'D' mode, the engine will rev to between 4500 and 5000rpm when you put the pedal to the metal.

In sport mode the engine will sit on 6100rpm when you floor the throttle, and though in all modes of operation the engine doesn't rev as quickly as a conventional auto or manual gearbox, it's unorthodox power delivery makes it feel very quick, and overtaking is brilliant, much easier than in a manual or auto.

Official fuel consumption figures are 6.4 litres/100km on the combined cycle (city/highway), suggesting that on the open road this little Mitsubishi can tick over while consuming less around 4.0 litres of fuel for every 100km travelled.

I am a huge fan of the CVT in terms of fuel efficiency and making the most out of smaller engines - it just works so seamlessly and smoothly. Though I'd have trouble giving up the control that a manual brings in high performance cars, for applications such as the Colt the CVT makes a lot of sense and will save you big fuel dollars in the long run.

At the end of the day, the Colt is a very stylish compact car, with class-leading equipment levels and interior space, but far more impressive than its visual flair and 'fresh vibe' interior is its ability to drive for hundreds of kilometres on just one tank of fuel. Generating only 72kW of power, the Colt feels much stronger than this, and the CVT is integral in squeezing every last kilowatt from the engine.

Overall: 3.5/5

Compared to its light car rivals, the Honda Jazz and Mazda2, the Colt confirms its place as a well equipped, bona-fide contender. With its sporty, tall-bodied exterior and clever interior packaging, it makes a very good first impression.

Only the Jazz competes with the Colt on a practical scale, and that's because it too has the fancy CVT. The Mazda2 may be offered at cheaper prices, but there's no CVT version in Australia, and after having sampled a few of these newfangled gearboxes, I'm convinced of their value, particularly in small cars like the Mitsubishi Colt.

The new Colt is another feather in the cap of Mitsubishi's revitalised line-up, and having already won the German 'Golden Steering Wheel' award in 2004 for best new small car, there's already a lot of good will surrounding it.

And though I'm not German, or golden, I too reckon the Colt is certainly a very appealing compact car, and though I wasn't blown away with its cornering ability, these cars don't need to rely on such attributes to tempt buyers. And besides, the turbocharged CZ3 is still yet to come!