MOTORNETNEWS  ROAD  TEST  -  DECEMBER  2007

MITSUBISHI 380  SX SERIES III SEDAN

While the 380 sedan is a roomy, well-built, well-equipped car that is quiet and smooth with a powerful V6 engine, it has struggled in the market place against the opposition from Holden, Ford and Toyota. The 380 probably deserves better sales than it gets as its only real drawback is that it is fairly thirsty around town. 

The insulated bonnet is held by gas struts but the engine layout is untidy. Maintenance point access is very good.

OUTSIDE:

The exterior styling is modern-bland with no really outstanding features to make it stand out from the crowd. in this way it is a 'safe' style as it doesn't offend yet doesn't excite either. There is an almost total absence of frills or chromework, just  very well fitting panels and excellent paint.

The 5-spoke alloy wheels tend to look a bit too small for the large wheel openings but the overall wedge-style of the bodywork is quite pleasing.

The plain grille is flanked by over large headlamps while the deep bumper has a central air intake with smaller nacelles each side to house the driving lights. The rather narrow  grille is dominated by the Mitsubishi three diamond logo. The rear bumper is very protective and the large taillights are partly visible from the sides.

INSIDE:

The roomy interior takes five adults with plenty of head, leg and shoulder room. The front seats are extremely comfortable and have excellent lateral support. The trim is in black cloth with seats inserts in a white flecked material. The black plastic on the dash is soft and attractive. Above the window line the trim is light grey and helps to give an airiness to the interior. The driver's seat gets electric height adjustment and lumber support.

The 4-spoke, leather-wrapped steering wheel is height adjustable and the front seat belts also have height adjustment. There are simulated brushed aluminium highlights on the dash which is a simple affair with large user-friendly controls. Ahead of the driver is a large binnacle with speedo, tacho (why is a tacho is provided on an auto transmission car?) and minor gauges. These have very attractive blue night lighting similar to VW's excellent system.

There is a passenger vanity mirror with no cover and no mirror for the driver. Storage spaces are restricted to door bins, glove box and a centre armrest bin plus two cupholders in front and two in the rear armrest.

LUGGAGE AREA:

When you open the boot lid it is obvious that the SX model has been built down to a price. The interior of the boot lid is bare metal - not so good for luggage. There is therefore no interior pull down recess for the lid. There is no split fold capacity for the rear seats, however, Mitsubishi is not alone in not providing this virtually essential feature. Neither the Commodore nor the Aurion have this feature although the Falcon range does.

Another potential problem for luggage stacked in the boot is that the rear speakers for the audio system protrude from under the rear parcel shelf and have some rather sharp edges. There is a full sized spare wheel and tyre under the solid boot floor.

ON THE ROAD:

The 175kW, 3.8-litre V6 engine is very quiet and smooth and has more than enough performance to provide lively motoring. The five-speed automatic transmission is also very smooth and is very well matched to the V6.  The ride is very good for front seat occupants but, like quite a number of new cars, the rear seat ride is not so good.

The turning circle hasn't improved since the days of the old magna models and is still a bugbear in narrow streets. Economy around town is not a strong point for the 380 with an average of 14.6 litres/100km recorded . Highway mileage improved to 10.6 l/100km.

Road holding and tyre grip were very good and the 380 is a pleasant car to drive with light steering and powerful brakes. The very thick windscreen pillars tend to block side vision at corners - a fault that many modern cars exhibit unfortunately.

PRICE:                $34,990 Plus on-road costs

STANDARD:       Dual front and side airbags; ABS brakes with Electronic Brake Distribution; air-conditioning; alarm system; 17" alloy wheels; cruise control; central remote locking; driving lights; engine immobiliser; powered driver seat; power mirrors,  steering & windows; 8-speaker radio/CD audio system; front seat belt pre-tensioners; sports suspension; sports seats; traction control system; trip computer.

OPTIONS:        Metallic paint $350; Power sun roof $2,000.