The Morning Call and Mcall.com's view

The appeal of the Plymouth Colt Vista is not in its appearance – it is really a strange looking vehicle – but in its practicality. Here is a seven-passenger station wagon ideal for the young, large family, a segment of the market that sometimes has to go very big or very expensive to find ideal transportation.

Not that the Vista is all that cheap – there is not such a thing as a cheap vehicle these days – but neither is its price likely to cause nosebleed. And after awhile, the Vista’s somewhat odd appearance may even begin to grow on someone because it is so practical as a people-hauler it perhaps can be better appreciated.

The test vehicle – supplied by Rothrock Motor Sales, 15th Street and Route 22 – proved to be likeable and agreeable. It did everything it was suppose to do without fuss or ado. No really big thrills or chills, just practical transportation.

The Vista, to be sure, is not a vehicle suited for everyone. It is doubtful if any swinging singles, Dinks (double income, no children) or senior citizens will be charging dealerships to get their collective hands on these vehicles. But for the large young family or anyone who has the need to haul a bunch of people around, it definitely has possibilities.

Although the Colt Vista has a Plymouth stuck in its name, it is not an American vehicle nor is it built in this country. It is imported by Chrysler Corporation from Mitsubishi Motors of Japan. (It is also available under the Dodge nameplate.) Since the relationship of Mitsubishi and Chrysler has been a very good one and has resulted in some excellent cars shipped to this country to carry the Chrysler/Plymouth/Dodge name, there really are no complaints on this score. Mitsubishi, in fact, supplied the small cars Chrysler needed before it could bring out its own economy-type cars in the late ’70s.

Although the Vista doesn’t look that much different than when it was introduced several years ago, there have been some changes for the 1988 model year. There’s a new grille, aero headlights and taillights, color-keyed bumpers and wide body side-moldings with bright inserts, as well as some mechanical improvements including a 10 percent increase in horsepower.

As far as basics go, the Vista has a wheelbase of 103.3 inches; overall length of 176.6 inches; width of 64.8 inches, height of 57.3 inches and curb weight of 2,590 pounds. These dimensions are for the front-wheel drive version; it is also available in four-wheel drive. The seven passengers are seated in a 2x3x2 seating arrangement. The best mix would be two adults up front and five children in the two rear seats. Seven adults could possibly be seated in this vehicle but they would have to be small and possessing good natures.

The seating arrangement, though, is versatile and can be easily converted to 65 cubic feet of cargo space with the center and rear seats folded flat to the floor. With all seats in place, open cargo space measures 14 cubic feet. With the third seat folded, room is increased to 37.4 cubic feet. For something a little different, the standard seating also converts quickly to a fold-down bed. The test vehicle had a roof rack, which meant among other things, that everything that could not fit inside could be strapped to the roof – though hopefully not the children.

Some thought was given to passenger care and convenience. Interior items include five assist grips, removable head rests on the second and third passenger seat, rear seat heater ducts, 10 separate storage compartments and reclining front, center and rear seats. Not quite all the comforts of home but not bad for this type of vehicle.

Driving the Vista should not present any problems to anyone. It is sort of a combination of a small station wagon and mini-van. Because of its relatively short length and relatively narrow width, parking and maneuvering are a snap to judge. The four-wheel independent suspension features struts, coil springs and link stabilizer up front and trailing arm and coil springs in the rear.

Although one should not drive the Vista as if it were a sports sedan, handling is perhaps better than expected. And the ride is quite decent. The test car was equipped with power steering which meant its rack-and-pinion system went from lock-to-lock in 3.4 turns, which is somewhat quicker than the manual steering version’s 4.2 turns to go lock-to-lock. (The four-wheel drive version features ”on-the-fly” fingertip control. And to make sure the driver knows where things are standing, a lighted instrument panel graphic and audio tone confirm that the system is engaged.)

Powering the Vista is a 2.0 liter/121.9 cubic inch four-cylinder, overhead cam, Mitsubishi Clean Air Jet engine. This year’s version of the engine features electronic multi-point fuel-injection and is rated at 96 horsepower (up from 88) at 5,500 rpm and 113 foot pounds torque at 3,500 rpm. This is a decent amount of horses for a 2,600 pound vehicle so, not surprising, performance isn’t bad.

Making the most of the engine’s power is a close-ratio five-speed manual transmission. The box is standard equipment, a three-speed automatic is optional. It is not a difficult transmission to operate (assuming one knows how to shift for his/her self) and its gearing helps both performance and fuel mileage. Both fourth and fifth gear are overdrive gears (ratios of less than 1:1), which means a driver has to do some shifting at the upper end to keep the rpm up.

The test vehicle averaged 19 miles per gallon for city driving and 27 mpg over the highway. Since the engine’s compression ratio is only 8.5:1, unleaded regular can be used.

Base price on the Vista two-wheel drive is $11,122. Standard equipment includes power brakes, liftgate defroster, tinted glass, intermittent wipers, side window demisters and some trim and convenience items. Full price on the test vehicle, including a destination charge of $235, came to $13,487. Options totaled $2,130 and included: custom package (more convenience and trim items), $414; two-tone paint, $245; liftgate wiper/washer, $147; power windows, $212; power door locks, $139; luggage rack, $124; speed control, $178; AM-FM stereo/cassette, $408; power steering, $236, and carpet mats, $27.

The vehicle is protected by a new warranties for 1988. There is a three- year/36,000-mile package on the entire vehicle and covers just about everything on the car. The basic warranty last year had been one year/12,000 miles. The powertrain warranty has also been increased from three years/36,000 miles to three years/ 50,000 miles. And the corrosion protection plan is now five years/unlimited mileage, up from five years/50,000 miles.