Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (automatic and manual transmissions, CVT, axles, driveshaft, 4WD/AWD).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2002 Mitsubishi Lancer owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
2002 Mitsubishi Lancer es . Have had four (4) accidents with this vehicle from date of purchase to present approximately 13 months in 2/2004 the automobile started stalling, and during the stall it would accelerate, and the brakes would not function during this. Also, the transmission made revving sounds periodically.I made an appointment at the Mitsubishi dealer ?bellsouth Mitsubishi? In sayreville njin feb 04? And explained the problem to the service dept.the put the car on a machine for tests and no errors were found. I then notified the sales person that sold me the car they requested me to leave it for 4 hours to run tests etc? They could not duplicate the problem. 12/17/04 when the vehicle stalled at a stop sign and accelerated into the truck ahead of me causing significant damage to the front ,the bumper, and hood of my car. …
I bought a new 2002 Mitsubishi Lancer and after one month started having problems with surges from the transmission. I took it back to the dealership but since it wasnt doing it at regular occurences, they found nothing wrong by driving it. About 6 months later the problem worsened so I took it back to the dealership. Again the car was driven but they could find nothing wrong and blamed it on the tires. I felt insulted as though I couldnt tell what was going on in my car. I finally gave up and decided if the problem caused damage, maybe then they would listen to me. The problem continued for 2 years until I gave up and once again took it to the dealership. They told me that I would need to have the transmission and fluid changed before checking it for further problems covered by the warranty. The cost of this would be $170.00. …
Accelerator pedal or the transmission. I was backing up and the car revved really high and crashed me into a pole. I then tried to pull forwards and the car revved again and lunged forward, smashing into 2 cars. I did not even have my foot on the gas at the time. I had my foot on the brake and the only way that I could make the car stop was to put it in park. I had no damage to my own car but did cause quite a bit to the other cars. I had a friend who is a mechanic look at my car and he seems to think there is something wrong with the transmission. I only bought the car 7 months ago at a dealer and the transmission fluid is already dark brown. I'm not sure why this would be, I have had 3 oil changes on my car since I bought it and I've only put 9000 miles on it since I bought it 7 months ago. There should not be that kind of wear on the tranny after that little of use. …
The day prior to the full failure of the part, I experienced loss of pressure in the clutch pedal in normal driving. The car's milage was approximately 43,000 miles. I was able to drive the car home by synchro-shifting to minimize use of the clutch pedal. The next morning full failure was evident as the pressure had dropped to the point where the car would not start. I was towed to the nearest service station by aaa where the problem was diagnosed as a bad master cylinder in the clutch. The part was replaced the next day and it was revealed that the slave cylinder was faulty as well. The premature failure of these parts lead to three missed days of work and a total parts and labor bill of $770. Both the master and slave cylinders in the clutch were replaced with OEM Mitsubishi parts as no third-party manufacturer had them available at the time. The old parts are not available.
2002 Mitsubishi Lancer, 5 speed manual. The car is a daily driver, and is never driven hard. It just turned 68,000 miles. Driving in a parking lot to a restaurant, the car makes a loud noise and rolls to a stop. It restarts but will not go anywhere in any gear. I lost all gears. I had it towed home, and I see nothing obvious. I ended up at a transmission shop where I paid to have it taken apart and they found the transmission itself was OK, but the axle shaft had broken inside of it. The transmission still had to be disassembled to retrieve the broken piece. A new axle cannot be found for this car anywhere but the dealer where they wanted 750.00. The transmission diagnosis was 300.00. Parts I had to replace upon reinstalling, was 488.00. I have all documentation. I had to borrow and rent cars for 10 days until I had my parts, of course they had be ordered.
The slave cylinder on my 2002 Mitsubishi Lancer went out while driving the car. I was driving on the freeway when this happen and I could no longer get my car to go into gear. I had to get over from the left lane of traffic to the shoulder of the right lane without being able to accelerate because my car would not go into gear. I had to cut other drivers off and almost caused an accident. The slave cylinder leaked brake fluid all over the clutch and now that has to be replaced too. Mitsubishi knew this was a problem because they changed the design in 2004. I have read about this same problem from others who have the same car.
My slave cylinder failed due to leakage from the transmission. As I was driving uphill and tried to shift into 2nd gear the clutch pedal just went straight to the floor and my car got stuck in neutral. Its costing me 1000 dollars to fix it. There is a TSB out on this problem and I don't understand why this hasn't been made a recall yet??? It looks like a quite common problem for people and a costly one at that. Very unfair that we are having to pay for these repairs when this was a manufacturers defect.
Pushed in clutch pedal, heard a loud pop, and clutch pedal went to the floor. The clutch would not disengage. I was able to pull into a parking lot were the car stalled. Got the vehicle towed to dealership. Dealer stated seals inside slave cylinder blew out and coated the clutch disc, pressure plate, and flywheel with fluid. Replaced slave cylinder and pressure plate, and resurfaced the flywheel. I had to pay $1009.35 to get the vehicle back.
Dt*: the contact stated while accelerating from a stop, the clutch felt as if it had lost pressure. This caused a hesitation in the manual transmission. The vehicle was not seen by a dealer. Also, the contact stated the front brake pads wore out too quickly. The brakes had to be changed 7 times in 5 years due to wear on the pads. The vehicle was previously taken to a service dealer, where the dealer was unable to determine the problem.
Car accelerated to full throttle and took off while transmission was in park. Local dealership Mitsubishi of orange park jacksonville fla kept car for from 3/11/03 until 3/25/03 to try to make car duplicate situation but to no avail. They kept in touch with Mitsubishi tech support but nothing could be determined to why car did such a strange thing. This has been known to happen on cars while in motion, especially on older models.
Transmission complaints in other Lancer years
Frequently asked questions
How common are transmission problems on the 2002 Mitsubishi Lancer?
NHTSA has 22 complaints about the transmission & drivetrain of the 2002 Mitsubishi Lancer, 15% of the model year's 148 complaints. The component named most often is manual transmission (6 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2002 Mitsubishi Lancer transmission problems?
No. NHTSA lists no transmission & drivetrain recall for the 2002 Mitsubishi Lancer, though it has 2 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2002 Mitsubishi Lancer transmission problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 55,000 miles, and 19% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 2 crashes, 0 fires and 0 injuries and 1 death to transmission & drivetrain problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.