Mitsubishi Diamante

The Mitsubishi Diamante was first introduced to the public at the Tokyo Motor Show in 1989, and went on sale in Japan in May 1990. It became the second generation Magna, replacing the widened 1983 Galant Sigma manufactured and sold in Australia as a Mitsubishi Verada (the 1987 Galant was downsized, thus leaving a gap in the product range for the Diamante).
There have been rumors that the Diamante was either not intended for a Japanese launch, or it might have been planned as a low-volume model. The reason for this argument is that until 1989, the width of vehicles was a vital indication of taxation class. The Diamante, being wider than the 1700 mm break, would have suffered a large tax penalty against most of its rivals, which were designed to be just under limit. At the time, Mitsubishi's image was also considered less than ideal for the marketing of a luxury car—its most expensive offering that the time, the Debonair, was largely seen as a company car project for Mitsubishi conglomerate executives.
However, the tax situation had changed in 1989, and the Diamante became the surprise hit of 1990. Amidst Japan's bubble economy, many private car owners sought an executive car in a market that had very few new offerings that year.

The second iteration of the Diamante was introduced in Japan in January 1995. The car was marginally larger with improved headroom.
Several engines were available. The base engine was a 2.5 L MVV (lean burn) V6, followed by a number of 2.5 and 3.0 liter variants. The new Diamante range topped off with a 3.0 L MIVEC V6 rated at 270 hp.
The gadget trend continued with the new Diamante, including a distance/lane-keeping system that tracked lanes and the car ahead using a set of radar and camera (this was first introduced on the 1992 Debonair). Satellite navigation featured prominently on the center console, and for the first time, a 5-speed automatic transmission was installed in a transverse drivetrain, complete with the Tiptronic-style INVECS-II technology.
The Sigma model was eliminated and not renewed for a second generation, due to poor sales in Japan; most Sigmas sold became taxis and patrol cars.
For Australian market, the new Diamante (Verada) debuted in 1997. The 1997 Diamante went into production in Adelaide, Australia. The very first 1997 Verada rolled off the assembly line on July 1, 1996.
In the latter years of its life, the Diamante range was reduced to a single engine offering in Japan, first a 3.5 L GDI V6 (the first of its kind), and then a conventional 2.5 L V6.

The exterior was refreshed for 2002, and then again for 2004, the last year of the Diamante. Mitsubishi ceased to import the Diamante to North America after 2004 due to a decline in sales and unfavourable exchange rates. The U.S. market Galant grew in size, and was replaced by the upper-end GTS trim of the Galant. In Canada, the Diamante was only sold in 2004.
On June 15, 2005, Mitsubishi announced it would halt production on larger sedans within Japan by December, including the Diamante and the Galant.

Mitsubishi no longer makes the Diamante and I think that has contributed to its extremely poor resale value. I'm really glad I didn't buy it new!!! Fantastic used prices though. If you go out and drive a similar year Camry or Accord, then drive the Diamante, you'll be grinning from ear to ear. Very classy interior and incredible power especially on the highway! The 3.5 liter engine is loaded with torque. This car stops great but as already mentioned, the pads don't seem to last very long. I especially enjoy driving this car on the highway. It's quiet, very comfortable, and smooooth. Bigger than expected back seats. Great factory sound system. Oh, and I love the LS model with it's back lit speedometer/tech - very classy. A gripe would be the automatic climate control likes to run the air conditioner even in the winter. I'm sure it cuts down on foggy windows but it seems like a waste of energy. My only other gripe is I wish it got a little better than 25 mpg. I've got well over 100K miles on my '02 LS, the engine still runs like new and all the electronics work perfect.

The look is great compared to the slab-sided, geometric slanted and weird designs of the newer cars. I've had to downgrade the performance because this motor doesn't really take off until you hit about 60 MPH, then its a rocket.

I also had to downgrade the reliability, because in my first seven months of ownership, the dealership had the car in its shop at least two of those months doing warranty repairs. But, after that first series of repairs the car has ran like a dream with no downtime. The comfort level would be rated higher if the leather seats were more comfortable. My seats have a very firm, thick leather skin on them that no amount of leather treatment can make softer or more pliable.

The quality of the parts is great, but is downgraded because the build, or assembly, of the car was not up to snuff when it came out of the factory, causing me two months loss of vehicle while the local dealership corrected all the improperly assembled and mis-adjusted parts. The brake pads and rotors do wear out a little too quickly, but the car continues to stop on a dime.

I'd buy another one, but a used one with about 20,000-30,000 miles on it. That way someone else can eat the 45% loss in value off the new price in the first year of ownership, plus suffer the downtimes while the dealership corrects the factory worker's mistakes.