Delica Canada | Mitsubishi Van Club

I am in the market for a delica and am extremely torn about an Auto as i have been in 5 spds all my life. I am a mega ski bum and will be doing a tonne of mountain road driving. I am concerned that i wont have the "hold back" that a 5 spd offers but seeing that i can get that extra top speed on hwy, im confused!

Can anyone offer their opinions on automatics? the 5 spds are so rare and i need a vehicle ASAP.

from my research i have concluded that unless your going to be doing hardcore 4x4ing the auto will work great. im sure many of you are skiers/mountain lovers, what are your thoughts?

thanks for your time!

The auto just feels 'right' in a van like this, I did a lot of snow driving in the winter and I really didn't see any need for a standard transmission (having come from a 5-speed vehicle) and the lower RPM on the freeway is really nice considering the cost of fuel these days.

I'm the same in that I have pretty much always had and for sure always preferred a stick shift. When we bought a delica, however, we ended up with an auto. I thought I wanted another manual, but my wife (Hazelnut here) preferred an auto and that's what the bus we found and liked had. Now that we've had it for 8 months and 13,000 km, I'm really happy with it. It's a different style of driving, but really just as interactive and fun. Ya still need to down shift on hills (pop in and out of overdrive 1st, then, if it's really steep, click the shifter into second or even 1st for ultra steep stuff). And you can manipulate the up-shifting too by backing off or giving it more on the accelerator. We make a point of not going faster than about 95 kph, so I'm not sure we get any better fuel economy than the higher revving manuals, but I'm still happy with the auto. That being said, I'm sure I would be happy with a manual deli too! So, since you asked, my 2 cents worth of advice would be:
a) Unless you are really, really bent on a manual, get an automatic - hey, there are more buses to choose from.
b) Test drive both - maybe the auto leaves you cold and the manual feels right.
c) Worry less about the type of tranny than the condition of the rest of the bus.
d) Get out there and buy one or the other, love driving it, get out to deli meets, and posts pictures of your new ride and the adventures you have in it!!

great info, thanks so much! I am really looking forward to getting involved with such a welcoming and informative group of people.

ill be having a full on photo shoot with my new Deli when i get it,try to talk my girlfriend into a few of the shots, and ill be sure to post em up asap!

cheers.

If you get a 5spd, put 31's on and your end-gearing should be close to an auto with stock tires.

jfarsang wrote:If you get a 5spd, put 31's on and your end-gearing should be close to an auto with stock tires.

really?

I believe my 89 is geared even lower than later 5 speeds, 31s give me a 10% advantage roughly, Driving i-5 I show 100, rpm around 3200 and i'm traveling roughly 110-112 (70mph) I lose about 20km off my tank opposed to my daily driving, which is like $3 max, I would worry more about overheating or other mechanical problems that can arise from driving at high rpm for long periods of time. I want to cut away enough metal to fit 33s, then i will be happy with the highway speed.

I drive my boss's auto and I just prefer the feel of mine. I hear a lot of people saying the auto just feels right, it feels fine, but I really do prefer the 5 speed, and I did sacrifice the condition of my vehicle a bit to get one with a 5 speed transmission. If you are going to treat it like i treat mine though, thats not a big deal.

I think the real advantage of the 5 speed is fitting larger tires without losing as much fuel economy. I didn't lose much when i jumped to 31s, and theoretically, if I am doing 110 at 2800 rpm like the automatics when i have 33s, I should be getting the same mileage. Aside from a few minor variables that would effect the mileage, My basic understanding of physics tells me this anyways.


If you are really a 5 speed guy, get a 5 speed. I've driven to california and back, its a bit slower, but it is worth it to me. Never have i said man i wish i had an automatic... never.

Or look for a 5-spd with 4.625 gears.

Then you'll have a touch higher end ratio than the auto which in turn would give you a 5-spd with better highway speed/rpm than an auto.

I've seen delica's with 4.875 (most common) and 4.625 (more common on 5 spd's and delica trucks)

Automatics are much more common it seems than the 5 spd.That being said, I know that I for one (a hardened stick driver myself) am quite happy with the Landmaster's auto. I've been off roading with it, and it never let me down. I'm sure that other forum members (Bruce comes to mind) can give you more insight about the performance differences between the two transmissions

I have a five speed and for the majority of driving that I do there is no way I would want an auto. I have the advantage of running the van on veggie oil so milage isn't a huge concern for me. I can do a true 110 Km/hr (gps) at about 3200 rpm just like Adam with a top speed on flat (no head wind) of about 120km/hr.
The area where the five speed shines, in my opinion, is on gravel roads. It seems to accelerate much faster than the auto. I have driven two other auto vans to compare and much prefer the off the line speed and compression braking of the 5 speed. I spend about 4-10 hours on logging road per week and don't like to waste time (I basically think I am a rally driver) and I don't think that a auto could do it. If I was getting another van I would definately get another 5speed but that is just my opinion.

Andy

Wow thanks everyone for your input! Keep it coming!

I recieved a call from Japanoid yesterday, they found me a 90 chamonix 5spd with 107k, 8 passenger. I am pumped on the captains chairs and i dontk now how i feel about the bench. i think it will take away from live-ability of the van and make it more of a people mover. Also i am concerned with the lap belts in the 90's, i want my passengers to be as safe as possible. And seeing as how i am planning on having this vehicle for a long long time, the ability for a child seat in the back is a plus (wow thats scary to even fathom but i guess it must be done!)

again thanks to everyone for there 2 cents!

-Bouch.

My boss has 3 kids in a chamonix, the oldest is not even 4 yet. If you are creative you can create a satisfactorily safe way to attach the seats. It is not hard to make your own anchors, I understand the importance of doing this properly, i'm just saying its not that hard to do properly.

I really like the bench seaets, they fold into a bed better (in my opinion) and that extra jump seat means someone can sleep while 4 others are riding in the back, which is great for driver rotation on long trips, although you would be seatbeltless while sleeping. I have the rear row of seats out of my van right now, and having the 3 instead of 2 in the middle row is a definite plus as well... its like an SUV but with a bigger space in the back...

THe only disadvantage I find to the bench seat is that the captains chairs slide all the way against the engine hump whereas the bench is fixed in place on the floor... but I just think its cool that the captains chairs do that, I haven't ever actually desired that function for a specific application.

Bench seats do not make it just a people mover... at all. I really like mine and use my van for all sorts of crazy things. I even had a motorcycle in there once.

That chamonix from japanoid sounds like something I would buy. I believe josh (coaxial) has the higher geared manual, at least thats what I assume after talking to him about top speeds... they were very different from mine...

If you want to use your van in the way I do (see the videos or just ask someone) then i would suggest the 5 speed, and that one from japanoid, being a 90 may be a bit less expensive than the top shelf ones around, which honestly is great given the way I use my vehicle.

Get the 5 speed, you know you wanna, there aren't enough of us.

Get the 5 speed, you know you wanna

lol!
I like the way the captain's chairs fold up to the hump too, but would not get a bus that had them. For me this is even more important than the auto / manual quandary. The middle bench is important for us as it holds two dogs, belted in and comfy. I like the way it divides the bus's interior space way more, both practically and aesthetically. We took the rear bench out so the middle one really separates the cargo space from people / dog space way better than the chairs. Ours is a 92 and has a shoulder belt on the driver's side on the middle bench. And while it wouldn't be as good as being belted into a shoulder strap sitting upright, I'm sure one could sleep on that bench with the lap-belt on (ish...) - better than nothing

I have captains chairs and 5 kids. Anchors are super easy on captains chairs. Not so much on bench seats.