Selling a junk Mitsubishi Lancer
Any Lancer sells for scrap or parts, running or not. Below: what owners report most often for each model year, the recalls on file, and which of those change the offer. Enter your ZIP for a buyer near you.
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What owners report about the Mitsubishi Lancer
NHTSA has 1,139 owner complaints on file for the Mitsubishi Lancer, model years 1996 to 2017, the 260th-most of the 423 models in our data. The most-reported components are transmission and drivetrain (161, 14%), visibility and wipers (151, 13%), air bags (117, 10%). 155 complaints involved a crash, 19 a fire, and 61 say the vehicle had to be towed. The median mileage when the problem was reported is 65,000 miles. The 2003 model year has the most complaints (242). Data as of 2026-10-12.
When the top complaint is transmission and drivetrain, the question for a seller is whether a buyer will resell the car, pull the parts or scrap it. Read our guide to selling a car with a bad transmission: it explains which offers assume the part works and how to describe the car so the price holds at pickup.
Mitsubishi Lancer by model year
| Year | Complaints | Most reported | Crash | Fire | Recalls | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 1 | Engine and cooling | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2000 | 1 | Other | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2002 | 194 | Visibility and wipers | 47 | 1 | 4 | 68,000 |
| 2003 | 242 | Visibility and wipers | 17 | 2 | 6 | 60,000 |
| 2004 | 96 | Visibility and wipers | 8 | 5 | 7 | 60,000 |
| 2005 | 27 | Air bags | 3 | 0 | 6 | 90,000 |
| 2006 | 52 | Air bags | 10 | 0 | 7 | 100,000 |
| 2007 | 3 | Air bags | 0 | 0 | 3 | — |
| 2008 | 126 | Suspension | 12 | 2 | 5 | 95,600 |
| 2009 | 139 | Engine | 23 | 4 | 8 | 75,000 |
| 2010 | 66 | Engine | 7 | 1 | 6 | 70,000 |
| 2011 | 51 | Engine | 3 | 0 | 3 | 62,000 |
| 2012 | 26 | Transmission and drivetrain | 7 | 0 | 1 | — |
| 2013 | 9 | Other | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2014 | 23 | Transmission and drivetrain | 7 | 4 | 0 | — |
| 2015 | 36 | Electrical system | 9 | 0 | 1 | — |
| 2016 | 40 | Transmission and drivetrain | 1 | 0 | 2 | — |
| 2017 | 7 | Air bags | 1 | 0 | 0 | — |
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not confirmed defects. Median miles is the odometer reading owners gave when they reported a problem, shown only where 20 or more reports include it.
Mitsubishi Lancer recalls
NHTSA lists 19 recall campaigns across these model years, most often for lights (4), air bags (4), visibility and wipers (2). Recall repairs are free at a franchised dealer. Before you sell, check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls; a buyer who plans to resell the car will.
- 2008 model year, body and structure (campaign 20V279000, May 2020): Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) is recalling certain 2008-2010 Lancer, 2009-2010 Lancer Sportback, 2008-2013 Outlander, and 2011-2016 Outlander Sport vehicles originally sold in, or ever registered in, Conne…
- 2004 model year, air bags (campaign 18V220000, Apr 2018): Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) is recalling certain 2004-2006 Mitsubishi Lancer vehicles that previously received a like-for-like passenger side frontal air bag inflator under recall 15V321 as interim remed…
- 2008 model year, visibility and wipers (campaign 18V071000, Jan 2018): Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) is recalling certain 2007-2010 Outlander, 2008-2010 Lancer, 2009-2010 Lancer Evolution, and 2010 Lancer Sportback vehicles equipped with sunroofs. The sunroof glass may detach…
- 2009 model year, engine and cooling (campaign 18V069000, Jan 2018): Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) is recalling certain 2009-2012 Lancer, 2008-2012 Outlander, 2010-2012 Lancer Sportback, and 2011-2012 Outlander Sport vehicles equipped with either a 4B11 or 4B12 engine. The …
- 2015 model year, electrical system (campaign 17V609000, Sep 2017): Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) is recalling certain 2015-2017 Outlander, 2015-2016 Lancer and Outlander Sport, and 2015 Lancer Evolution vehicles. These vehicles may have defective relays that can result in…
What a Mitsubishi Lancer is worth as a junk car
Buyers price a junk Lancer on four things: its weight at today's scrap steel price (the floor), the parts still on it that can be resold, whether it starts and drives, and how far they have to tow it. None of those come from a complaint database, so use this page to describe the car accurately and our junk car value guide to work out a ceiling for the metal. Then get more than one offer.
Guides for selling this car
How to sell a car with a bad transmission 
How much is my junk car worth? 
How junkyards price cars 
Catalytic converters and junk cars 
How to prepare your car for the junkyard 
Junk car scams and how to avoid them Other Mitsubishi models
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Questions people ask
- What is a junk Mitsubishi Lancer worth?
- What a yard can recover: the car's weight at the current scrap steel price, plus parts it can resell (the catalytic converter, engine, transmission and wheels if they're good), minus towing and processing. The same Lancer gets different offers from different buyers, so compare at least two. Our value guide shows the public benchmark.
- Will a junkyard buy a Mitsubishi Lancer that doesn't run?
- Yes. Junkyards and junk car buyers take cars that don't start, and most arrange the tow. Tell them honestly whether it starts, whether the engine and transmission are still in it, and whether the catalytic converter is on; those are what change the price.
- Should I fix an open recall before selling a Mitsubishi Lancer?
- Recall repairs are free at a franchised dealer for as long as the car exists. If the car is going for scrap, the repair won't change the scrap price. If a buyer might resell it or pull parts, a completed recall can help. Check your VIN at NHTSA's recall lookup first.
- Where do these Mitsubishi Lancer numbers come from?
- From the complaint and recall data NHTSA publishes for every make and model, counted by model year on 2026-10-12. A complaint is an owner's report, not a confirmed defect, and the count rises with how many of the model were sold.