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2016 Mitsubishi Lancer: jerking or lurching

5 of the 30 complaints about the 2016 Mitsubishi Lancer describe jerking or lurching.

owner complaints
5
of this car's complaints
17%
recalls
1
Is there a fix? There is 1 recall and 14 service bulletins for this area of the car. See below

Jerking or lurching by model year

  • 2016
    5
  • 2015
    2
  • 2012
    2
  • 2009
    2
  • 2005
    1
  • 2003
    11

What owners say

Filed Jul 20, 2025 · Transmission · VA

It’s throwing a P084A code and it feels like the transmission is about to let loose. I bought the car with 30,000 on it in 2016 and it has a hair over 136,000 and ever since I’ve had it it’s always had this transmission lag jerk in it. Very scuttle but you can feel it. Then all of a sudden it just started going into limp mode, hi low hi low rev, jerking and couldn’t get over 30 mph. This looks like a continuous problem with these transmission and gives Mitsubishi a bad taste in some peoples mouths. I’m out of a decently nice car and probably a couple thousand dollars for a new transmission.

Filed Apr 10, 2023 · Transmission · PA

I started to experience hesitation in the cars power and shifting “gears” in the cvt, it started to feel very rough and the rpm would jump up and down. The owner of the dealership tried to tell me it was normal. I knew something was wrong. I left the dealership and not even kidding… 20 minutes later my cvt gave out and the light came on. I purchased the vehicle with 27,700 miles. I was shocked, they had it replaced but i never received any paperwork on where it was replaced. The car started to feel fine for about 20k miles and then boom it’s back. I am going to take my car into the dealership once again and I am just not a happy overall owner. I have had over $21,000 in repairs on this vehicle! We’re talking from wiper motor going out to exhaust pipes needing replaced. The warranty company has luckily saved me with most repairs but i’m sure they are not happy either. I am now at 95k miles and on my way to take it in to see what’s wrong this time. The car has terrible acceleration and just doesn’t want to shift. I shouldn’t be feeling a huge jerk around 30mph from a cvt. I also told the owner of my dealership and his mechanics that their is a weird odor that smells like radiator fluid coming from the passenger floor. It’s completely soaked all the time and even has a weird texture to it. The owner and mechanics once again tried to make me feel stupid. This is unrepaired and has been happening since i bought the vehicle. I have been trying to get it fixed but i’m told “you spilled something” which is documented in the repairs notes. I just want to drive this car without something else giving out. I believe my dealership can’t give me the help my car needs and i’m concerned knowing i still owe $11k on the vehicle. Main Concern - 2nd CVT failing (something was missed that’s causing this) - Passenger Floor Boards Wet (getting no help and being told i spilled something)

Filed Nov 28, 2021 · Transmission · NC

Car has 76,470 miles. Took to dealership due to loss of power and jerking hard during takeoffs and said that it needed new transmission. Dealership looked at it said it had internal failure codes for transmission. When doing research there was a recall in 2016 for this specific car for issues that this car is having and the specific transmission. Spoke with woman on hotline and was told to file a report since some cars could have been overlooked in the recall possibly. Recall was for 2016 Mitsubishi lancers with CVT transmission and was made during the time frame that the recall was going on.

Filed Nov 5, 2021 · Transmission · SC

I was driving on the way home, my car started to skip and jerking. Went to Mitsubishi and told me I needed a whole new transmission replacement on a 2016 Lancer with only 81,000 miles on it. It seemed to never catch up to speed smoothly. Which I was terrified I was going to wreck otw home that day.

Filed Mar 24, 2021 · Acceleration · VA

When I try to accelerate, the car starts out really slow. There is a lot of jerking and acceleration issues. When I try to accelerate, it acts like it is shifted to l, but then it speeds up. This is a constant issue.

Service bulletins that may apply

Related recalls

Power train: automatic transmission: control module (TCM/PCM/tecm)Reported July 28, 2016 · 82,436 vehicles affected
What is wrong
Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) is recalling certain model year 2015-2016 Outlander Sport vehicles and 2016 Outlander and Lancer vehicles. The affected vehicles are equipped with a constant velocity transmission (CVT) that, in certain driving conditions, may cause a delay in the vehicle accelerating.
Risk
A hesitation during acceleration can increase the risk of a crash.
Remedy
MMNA has notified owners, and dealers will reprogram the CVT control unit with modified software, free of charge. The recall began on August 15, 2016. Owners may contact MMNA customer service at 1‑888‑648‑7820. MMNA's number for this recall is SR-16-006.

Recall number 16V563000 · Recall details

Questions about the 2016 Mitsubishi Lancer jerking

Is jerking or lurching a common problem on the 2016 Mitsubishi Lancer?

5 of 30 owner complaints about the 2016 Mitsubishi Lancer (17%) mention jerking or lurching. The model year with the most reports is 2003.

Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2016 Mitsubishi Lancer?

There is 1 recall and 14 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.

Other symptoms on the 2016 Mitsubishi Lancer

Hesitation 9CVT failure 7Loss of power 5Transmission failure 5

All model years of the Mitsubishi Lancer

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