Junkyard Gem: 1994 Mitsubishi Diamante ES Sedan

As soon as the last decade of the Nineties obtained rolling, the Lexus LS400, Toyota Cressida, Infiniti Q45, Acura Legend and Mazda 929 had confirmed that huge Japanese-made luxurious sedans might rack up respectable gross sales in the US. Mitsubishi dove into that competitors beginning with the 1992 mannequin yr, when the Diamante arrived on our shores. Here is a type of early Diamantes, present in an Oklahoma Metropolis automotive graveyard just lately.

Mitsubishi had been promoting huge, swanky Debonairs at dwelling for the reason that center Nineteen Sixties, however that automotive was by no means offered new in North America (although a Debonair-related Hyundai, the XG300/XG350, did present up right here).

The Diamante was based mostly on an enlarged Galant/Sigma platform and was accessible right here as a pillared hardtop four-door sedan (in which there’s a slim B pillar however the door home windows are frameless) and as a station wagon. The US-market sedan was inbuilt Japan, whereas the wagon got here from Australia.

The Diamante’s price ticket made it tempting for American patrons contemplating Japanese luxurious sedans. The bottom ES sedan listed for $25,525 in 1994, which involves about $53,097 in 2023 {dollars}. In the meantime, the Mazda 929 began at $30,500 ($63,446 now), the Acura Legend sedan price $33,800 ($70,311 now), the Infiniti Q45 listed at $49,450 ($102,866 now) and the Lexus LS400 was $51,200 ($106,507 now).

The upper-zoot Diamante LS (which price $32,500 in 1994) obtained a twin-cam 6G72 V6 driving the entrance wheels with 202 horsepower, however right this moment’s Junkyard Gem is a base ES and it has the SOHC 6G72 with simply 175 horses.

Mitsubishi constructed Diamantes with guide transmissions, however we did not get these vehicles on our aspect of the Pacific. A four-speed automated transmission was obligatory tools in North American Diamantes.

This automotive did not fairly make it to 140,000 miles throughout its profession.

It seems that this automotive handed via the fingers of each Fred Jones and a lesser-known outfit known as Amigoland Motors throughout its life.

This era of Diamante remained on sale in the US via the 1996 mannequin yr, however gross sales by no means measured as much as Mitsubishi’s hopes. The wagon obtained the axe after 1995, at which period the ES sedan turned a fleet-sales-only machine. For 1996, all Diamantes offered right here had been fleet vehicles. For 1997, a brand new era of Diamante confirmed up; gross sales continued via 2004.

For Mitsubishi’s diamond anniversary, the dear Diamante (with low-cost lease phrases).

Mitsubishi Motors pushed the Diamante’s low value relentlessly.

Japan’s Automotive of the 12 months.

In its homeland, the Diamante was accessible with four-wheel-drive and four-wheel-steering.

We should admire the macho voices of the narrators on Japanese-market automotive commercials of this period.

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