Outlander's Cold Start Nightmare: Battery or Something Worse?

Hey there! I had a similar issue with my 2003 Mitsubishi Lancer (also had some experience with the Galant). I've got some experience working on cars, but I mainly trust my regular workshop for bigger issues. When my car showed those exact symptoms, slow starts, weird noises during startup, and dimming lights, it turned out to be a faulty starter motor. Took it to my trusted mechanic, and they confirmed it after running some tests. The repair set me back about 565 Euro, but it's been running perfectly since then. What's your current mileage and have you checked if the battery is actually holding charge? This could help narrow down if it's definitely the starter motor. Let me know these details, and I might be able to share more specific insights from my experience.

Thanks for sharing your experience! My Outlander's at 104396 KM and had its last service about 6 months ago. I actually did check the battery voltage yesterday, it's reading normal when the engine's running, but drops pretty low during start attempts. The starter sounds really rough compared to how it used to be. I'll probably take it to a mechanic this week to have them check out the starter motor, given what you've described. Your symptoms sound exactly like what I'm dealing with. Did you notice the problem getting worse over time before you got it fixed?

Hey again! Yeah, I definitely noticed the symptoms getting progressively worse with my Lancer. It started with occasional rough starts, especially on cold mornings, but within about 2-3 weeks, it became really noticeable and concerning. The voltage readings you're getting sound very familiar, that's exactly what happened with mine. Normal readings when running but those big drops during start attempts were a classic sign of a failing starter motor. In my case, I actually waited a bit too long to get it fixed (trying to save some money, you know how it is), and one morning it just completely gave up on me in my driveway. Not fun! Since your Outlander's got similar mileage to what my Lancer had when this happened (mine was around 98000 KM), I'd definitely recommend getting it checked out sooner rather than later. After I got the starter replaced, it was like having a new car, started up instantly every time, no more weird noises or battery struggles. One thing though, make sure they check your battery connections too while they're at it. My mechanic found some corrosion on my battery terminals when they were doing the starter replacement. It wasn't the main issue, but cleaning those up helped with overall performance too. Keep us posted on what your mechanic finds!

Thanks so much for all the detailed info! It's really helpful to hear how your situation played out. I've actually just booked it in for tomorrow morning, definitely don't want to end up stranded somewhere! You're right about not waiting too long. I can already tell it's getting worse each day, and after hearing about your experience, I don't want to risk having it completely fail on me. I'll make sure to mention the battery connections to the mechanic too, that's a good point about the corrosion. It's funny how these things can snowball if you don't catch them early. Really appreciate you taking the time to share your experience, it's made me feel a lot more confident about what I'm dealing with. I'll update the thread once I hear back from the mechanic about what they find! Thanks again for all your help!