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Rally Rockets: 1991-92 Mitsubishi Galant VR-4
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Galant VR-4 shown (from left) in its weekday and weekend apparel.
With rumors of Mitsubishi contemplating a withdrawal from the United States auto market beginning to be whispered even before new car sales cratered, the days when the Japanese industrial colossus was doing well on our side of the Pacific not only on the cars it sold, but also on the rebadged “captive imports” it built for Chrysler, seem like a century ago. Okay, so that was technically last century, but let’s not get into semantics. The point is that the Diamond Star folks used to be quite popular with American car buyers, particularly if those buyers wanted to go fast. At the top sat the high-tech (and high-dollar) 3000GT, while folks of more modest means could drive home the brand’s resident street brawler, the Eclipse. And even if reality (i.e. a wife and kids) dictated that two-door motoring was out of the question, but you still wanted something with scoot, Mitsu still had your back in the form of the Galant VR-4.
Mitsubishi’s rally weapon for the late ‘80s was to have been a pumped up, all-wheel-drive version of the favored ride of laser-fingered space queens everywhere, the Starion. However, it was built to the FIA’s Group B regulations and, following a string of fatal accidents, that formula, which resulted in cars that were equal parts Charles Manson and Usain Bolt, was scrapped after 1986, leaving the super Starion without a place to race and Mitsu without a car to field in the WRC. However, for 1988, Mitsubishi’s in-house hot rodders were able to adapt some of the AWD Starion’s components to the year-old sixth generation Galant. When all was said and done, the car featured a turbocharged and intercooled 2.0L DOHC inline-four (producing 195hp and 203 lb./ft in U.S. trim) hooked to a 5-speed stick, all-wheel drive, anti-lock brakes and four-wheel steering. Visual warnings that this wasn’t your garden variety Galant included special bumpers and lower body cladding, body-colored 15-inch alloy wheels, and a modest rear spoiler. The interior boasted leather upholstery, power windows, mirrors and door locks, and a small dashboard plaque stating what number of the year’s allotment (2000 in ’91, 1000 in ’92) that particular car was. (The key fob also displayed these numbers.) The only options were an upgraded stereo and a power sunroof.
So, with only 3000 sent to the U.S. over the course of two years, and all the amenities and competition pedigree that came included, the Galant VR-4 is worth some serious coin, right? Well, no, not really. High mileage fixer-uppers can be had for a couple grand or less, while immaculate examples can approach and even surpass $10,000. Modifications are fairly common, but the ownership community is close-knit and knowledgeable about all the technical ins and outs of these cars. All things being equal, the Galant VR-4 is truly a modern classic that’s a great choice for the family man (or woman).
For more info: GalantVR4.org, Mitsubishi Forum, Mitsubishi-Forums.com.
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