Mitsubishi Verada

In the local family car market, Mitsubishi has long suffered from a bit of an image problem, with the Magna, and its luxury sibling Verada, often losing out in the sales race to the more visible entrants from Toyota, Holden and Ford.

With the recent launch of the high performance Ralliart Magna and previous iterations of the car with varying degrees of sporting credibility, the South Australian-based company is certainly addressing this issue. But whether the performance potential of the Magna will enhance the appeal for buyers in the Verada market is questionable.

It is a pity because the Verada is certainly one of the more competent local luxuries on the market, made even more appealing with a minor upgrade in late 2001 that improved both engine performance and crash safety.

The Verada is up against some tough competition from established nameplates like Ford's Fairmont, the Holden Calais and to a much lesser extent, Toyota's Avalon, but manages to shine in this company as a comfortable, well-equipped and stylish package that is also a good drive.

It's just that, in our opinion, and as the sales figures confirm, it is not a particularly aspirational car. And when you are talking about the luxury end of the market, this is a vital ingredient.

For customers, the most noticeable changes across the range in the latest upgrade was a lengthening of the standard equipment list but as the Verada Xi we tested already sits at the top of the tree, there was little to add for comfort and convenience.

So the biggest changes for the Verada Xi are the slight increase in power and improvement in side impact protection courtesy of some minor structural changes.

Mitsubishi also points to the best in class fuel consumption - according to the government mandated dynanometer test - along with its qualified claim of being the most powerful naturally-aspirated V6 in the class - note the V as Ford's Fairmont uses a straight six - as a means of topping the market.

But despite the clutching at straws nature of the claims, there is no doubt that the 3.5-litre V6 with its extra 7kW and 16Nm - pushing peak outputs to 155kW and 316Nm - is one of the most refined and flexible in the class.

On the road, it has more than enough power to shift the relatively lightweight bulk of the four-door sedan briskly off the mark with confidence without any of the problems sometimes encountered in some larger cars that deliver their not insignificant power through the front wheels.

Mated to the engine is a smooth shifting standard four-speed automatic transmission with a tiptronic style manual shift that allows the driver to easily shift gears on demand for a more hands-on driving experience.

And this is welcomed with the Verada's chassis providing enough confidence and control to be able to push the car into almost sporty territory while still retaining a high degree of comfort for the more mundane trips across town.

Inside, there is a plenty of space and little left for the options list with leather, power driver's seat, windows, mirrors and sunroof, climate control, cruise control, CD stacker, two airbags, ABS and traction control. The dash layout however, does look a bit tired and the fake wood trim detracts from any pretence of luxury.

Mechanically, the Verada is a very good locally built car and with a price tag of just under $50,000 offers plenty of value against the European and Japanese luxury imports but it is definitely a car that appeals to the head, far more than the heart.