Delica Canada | Mitsubishi Van Club

Hi Guys,

I'm looking at buying a used Delica, and I'm very new to these beauties and I'd really appreciate some advice from you folk!

Here are the specs:

1992 Mitsubishi Delica L300 (Turbo Diesel)

220,000km
[4WD Automatic, 4 cylinder diesel]
apparently gets 25mpg

(let me know if giving you the VIM would be useful)

Seller wants around $6000 after having owned it for two months and deciding he actually needs a smaller car for city driving.

His father, a mechanic, recently changed the timing belt, harmonic balancer, alternator, power steering, oil + fuel + air filters, oil change.

AC doesn’t work
Windshield has a tiny crack

Comes with all season tires.

I took it for a test drive and it starts consistently and drives smoothly without much noise (other than a spare tire shaking from underneath). To my eye it looks to be in pretty good condition.

I had my mechanic take a look at it and he said the transmission and 4WD are in good condition. He wasn’t able to get it going past 65 km/h to test if the turbo works.

However, the major issue is rust. He said that the gas tank, gas line, brake line and calipers are very rusty. Also the engine and the shocks both leak oil.

My concern is- with the rust issues and good probability that I’ll need to replace some significant components, I’m afraid that while taking this thing on a road trip it might break down and have me immobilized waiting for parts to be imported from Japan (taking prob. 3-6 weeks) at a big cost.

I naively ask, what do you guys think?

Is it easier to find parts than my mechanic thinks? (He says its a long wait, pretty tricky, and pretty expensive)

And, given the issues (rusty gas tank, gas line, brake line, break calipers, and oil leaks in the engine and shocks) what is a reasonable price for this Delica?

Many thanks,

Pete.

Take a pass on that one in my opinion. Original head and injection pump means that you might need to rebuild them at some point, so factor the cost of that into the equation. Shouldn't have that much rust unless it was from Hokkaido.

I would also pass on that. Sounds strange that somebody who has access to a mechanic would have bought the van in the first place. Rust is an enemy that is hard to stop!!

Thanks guys.

My gut says the same- I'll take a pass on this one and keep my eyes open for one with significantly less rust!

Cheers,

Pete.

Hey Pete,

I just had an aquaintence of mine offer me his L300. He said it's either got a blown head gasket or a cracked head, either way it's free. This is the seond one that has come my way with the same issue and I've taken both. The first one I fixed and am using it as a work truck. The second one I'm going to collect tomorrow and have it towed out to my friends place where him and I work on them. My point being is if it's in good condition rust wise I will let you know. Once we are done with it the van will be in tip top running order. We can even throw a veggie oil kit in for you if you like! If the head is cracked we will replace the head, OEM head gasket, clean the intake manifold, clean the egr, make sure the turbo is in good shape, do the timing belts, water pump and all that good stuff. As far as I know the van only has 160,000 km on it, but will confirm tomorrow. If you're interested PM me and we'll chat. Cracked heads are common on the L300 as people push them too hard. I highly recommend a pyrometer on whatever van you decide to purchase. Best $200 you'll ever spend.

Cheers,

Joe

Hey again Pete,

Checked out that L300 today and it is totally rat bagged. Body damage, super mouldy inside, just plain nasty so I passed on it.

Happy hunting!

Hi Pete,
that L300 has all the goodies that van has to offer.
With that mileage I would give it a go for 3k or less - if you have a cheap welder at hand and are mechanically inclined. Then check the injectors and source a replacement head in time.

From my experience the Diesel heads start getting aged from 200.000 km on, roughly.
This can be from bad maintenance, one should have the injectors checked at least every 100.000 km, else they can have bad spray and cause local overheating, resulting in cracked cylinder heads. Replacement pattern head plus original gasket set would set you back by 1000$ I assume.

Rust is business as usual, most of them have it. It is just odd welding work but usually no vital parts - so no breakdown reason here, just a wet footwell etc. Tanks and lines can and should be replaced, there are pattern parts available. No reason for welding here (and I tried it ...).

The work the sellers Dad has done is worth about 600 $ I guess, including the Alternator. It is good he did it, but the price is still too high.
To have a van like that professionally welded up would start from 2000 $ if you have it done, I assume.

Change of windscreen is another 500 $.

The van may be worth 6000 $ with less issues. If you just count down windscreen, rust, and replacement parts for brakes and tank, bingo here we are at 3k.

Over here in Europe it would be worth 2k or less.

My impression is that the guy bought it without much car knowledge, then got his Father to have a look at it (and under it), and now is trying hard to sell it without too much loss ...

Andy

Hi Andy & Joe,

Thanks for such detailed advice. I really appreciate it.

I decided to pass on this one.

With up to $3000 in predictable repairs, especially concerning the cylinder head and gasket, it seems the owner is definitely asking too much and is simultaneously a bit too keen to get rid of it (after only 2 months, and with a mechanic father nearby)!

I did learn a few things through this "analysis" though- contrary to what my mechanic says, it shouldn't be too difficult to find Delica parts on the West Coast. (He suggested that I'd be better off looking at a toyota sienna or honda odyssey in terms of availability and low cost of parts.. which confused me a bit). And that there is a very helpful guy working at Coombs Country Autos named Graham).

I'm going to keep hunting.

Cheers guys,

Pete.

There are a number of parts that cross-over from other vehicles. You can also find almost anything else that you need through one of the many Delica friendly shops in Vancouver or from Coombs or RMI.