Mitsubishi’s stable appears to be quite extensive. First, there was the Starion, a mis-hearing/mis-spelling that was originally intended to be the Stallion, a car that has now been put out pasture. Now we have the younger Colts trotting out to show their paces, the Mitsubishi Colt Cabriolet being one of this great line-up (in Europe, the Mitsubishi Colt Cabriolet is known as the Mitsubishi Colt CZC).

The new Mitsubishi Colt Cabriolet isn’t the first topless Colt to be made by Mitsubishi – they came out with one in 1962. The new Mitsubishi Colt Cabriolet (or coupe-cabriolet, to be more precise) is a sportier beast. However, it looks… cute. Modern, chunky and stylish with a few sporty touches, but with that overall charm shared by most small open-top cars such as the Beetle and the Mini. If this Colt was a horse, it would be one at the fuzzy-maned, big-eyed wobbly-legged stage of early life rather than the almost-a-stallion stage. Pininfarina styling strikes again!

Not that the Mitsubishi Colt Cabriolet is at all wobbly to drive. Not only is the handling everything you expect from a modern car, it also has the stability enhanced when things start turning pear-shaped: the traction control, the stabiliser bar do their thing, along with the ABS brakes with EBD. The Mitsubishi Colt Cabriolet is fun to drive, especially with the top down. But driving’s no fun if you don’t go anywhere, and to help you get where you want to go, the Mitsubishi Colt Cabriolet has a tidy little 1.5 litre unit under the little bonnet that’s capable of producing 80 kW at 6000 rpm and a top torque figure of 210 Nm (pretty respectable for a small car!) at 3500 revs. Or try the 110 kW turbocharged engine for even more on-road fun. And you get to play with that power via the 5 speed manual transmission. This baby isn’t a Ferrari, but it does the 0–100 gallop in sub-ten second time: 8.4 seconds in the turbocharged Mitsubishi Colt Cabriolet.

The Mitsubishi Colt Cabriolet is, however, big-eyed, both in the sense that the visibility is excellent and in that the swooping headlights help to add charm and cuteness with just a tiny hint of get up and go. The low emissions are cute, too (168 g/km), as are the fuel economy figures (8.9 l/100km urban; 5.9l/100km open road).

On the inside – if you put the top up and feel like you’re inside – the little two-door Mitsubishi Colt Cabriolet can fit the driver and passenger comfortably, and has room for two more in the rear. Boot space in the cabriolet version is smaller than in other Mitsi Colts, as is the case with most cabriolets, but still offers enough room for the basics. In the cabin itself, creature comforts are provided for with leather trim, heated seats, power steering and remote controlled audio, just to name a few.

The Mitsubishi Colt Cabriolet hasn’t hit Australia’s shores yet, but if the pictures on the European Mitsubishi websites are anything to go by, the Mitsubishi Colt Cabriolet will be well worth the wait. Seven colour options are available overseas, and it will be interesting to see what will be available Down Under.

The current model series includes the:

• Mitsubishi Colt Cabriolet

For any more information on the Mitsubishi Colt Cabriolet, or for that matter any other new car, contact one of our friendly consultants on 1300 303 181. If you’d like some fleet discount pricing (yes even for private buyers!), we can submit vehicle quote requests out to our national network of Mitsubishi dealers and come back with pricing within 24 hours. Private Fleet – car buying made easy!

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