Mitsubishi Reviews

A dirty or clogged fuel filter will stop a modern turbo-diesel engine dead in its tracks. In fact, it’s one of the first things a switched-on mechanic will check on vehicles like yours. So if the mechanic has changed the filter and restored to car to full health, then I reckon he or she has probably nailed the cause and fixed it very simply and cheaply for you.

Let’s be honest; there are literally thousands of things that could go wrong that might make your vehicle stop. Modern cars are very complex things, but you need to have faith that sometimes, simple problems occur and can be fixed simply.

This is an older car now, and although it’s a simpler device compared to most newer cars, there are still thousands of things that can go wrong and cause a loss of performance. A full service and tune would be the first thing to do, as you may find the car is simply not running as well as it should be due to blocked filters, old spark plugs and possibly even stale fuel. A service and tune will rule out that sort of thing.

From there, you need to work out whether it’s the engine that’s the problem, or the transmission, or a poorly adjusted park-brake, or even something in the chassis like a binding brake or perhaps under-inflated tyres. All these things can make a car feel sluggish.

If you (or your mechanic) do decide that it’s the engine at fault, don’t rule out things like a blocked exhaust system, a dud sensor that controls the fuel injection or something simple like a vacuum leak as a result of a missing or burst rubber hose.

Running on after the ignition is switched off is more of a problem in petrol engines than diesels. But you haven’t told me which engine your Triton has, so maybe it’s the 2.4-litre petrol we’re dealing with here. If so, you may find that the running-on is being caused by poorly timed ignition which could suggest a problem with the physical bits that make up the ignition system, or even a problem with the computer that controls it all. Worn or leaking fuel injectors could also cause this problem.

If your engine is the turbo-diesel, then another potential cause of running on is a worn or stretched timing chain (the petrol engine uses a toothed timing belt which shouldn’t stretch) that has allowed the camshaft to get slightly out of phase with the crankshaft. In both these cases, the fault could easily be enough to trigger the check-engine light and keep it on to alert you to the problem. Have the vehicle scanned to see if there’s an ignition fault or what’s called a camshaft deviation, indicating a worn timing chain.