2009 Mitsubishi Galant Ralliart Review

Introduction

What’s New – For 2009, the Mitsubishi Galant gets new front and rear styling, a new arrangement of features and models, and a host of minor upgrades to help it keep pace in the competitive family sedan market.

Competes With: Chevrolet Malibu, Honda Accord, Toyota Camry

What We Think – The styling improvements made to the Mitsubishi Galant for 2009 are definitely worthwhile, but we wish more attention had been paid to refinement. The Ralliart edition delivers a nice dose of fun, and the Galant certainly is loaded with personality, but like a guy who laughs too loud and too often, it quickly gets annoying.

Mitsubishi Galant Ralliart – 2009 Review: The 2009 Mitsubishi Galant is a case study in why there is so much more to a vehicle than a spec sheet. Glance at it, and you’ll find little that’s disagreeable with this car: It has good power, has most of the options you’d want in a midsize family sedan, and even comes in a Ralliart edition that delivers more power and a firm, sport-tuned suspension.

So why don’t you see Mitsubishi’s big four-door sitting at the top of the sales charts? Because the devil’s in the details. The interior is loud, the materials largely feel cheap, and the entire vehicle feels unrefined. Sure, the Ralliart is fun to drive, but when you’re commuting to work, the problems inherent in every Galant glare, such as the lack of storage space and the dated center stack design. As enthusiasts, we dig the performance of the Ralliart we drove, but once you get past its one trick, this pony has little else to offer. The non-Ralliart Galants don’t even have that, so unless you’re smitten by this Mitsubishi’s looks or have a sociopathic aversion to seeing yourself coming and going in a Honda Accord or Toyota Camry, your dollars are probably better spent elsewhere.