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I think the only problem with something like a Camry/Accord is that you don't save much buying a used one, so you might as well just get new. And nobody's perfect, not even Honda/Toyota. So in the event that you do get a used one that turns out to be a piece of junk, then you've just gotten screwed twice. First, because you paid a premium for the name value. Second, because now you're shelling out for expensive repairs.
And then you have to live with the disbelief of others who will swear up and down that there's nothing wrong with your car or "if there is you must have done something mean and evil to it!"
Mistubishis have always scared me because they've been marketing to sub-prime buyers for years now, which tend to be the types that buy a car, abuse it, and then get it repossessed, or swap it and roll the negative equity into something else. So while the cars themselves may be okay, I just worry that the type of buyer they tend to attract means you have to really look the car over with a fine tooth comb. I think Hyundais and Kias are kinda like this, too. They're cheap to buy, and migth be reliable, but the owners just tend to not take care of them.
Another thing that used to bother me about Mitsubishi is that back in the 80's, it seems like they sold their worst junk to Chrysler. Like if you saw a minivan blowing smoke it most likely had a Mitsubishi 3.0 V-6. Or if your K-car ate its 4-cyl engine, chances are it was the Mitsubishi 2.6 "Silent Shaft", and not the Mopar 2.2, which was designed by the same guy who did the famous Slant Six and actually pretty reliable and easy to work on.
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