2004 Mitsubishi Diamante

Mitsubishi makes three versions of the Diamante, its top-of-the-line luxury sedan: the ES, LS, and, the one we tested, the VR-X . The VR-X carries about five more horsepower under the hood and 130 more watts in the stereo, along with upgraded wheels and a firmer suspension. All Diamantes share a restyled front end for 2004, but to my eye, it's the trunk, rear deck, and lighting that show some spark of innovation. The front grille and headlights look like they were borrowed from a Pontiac Grand Am or Sunfire. The four-door sedan is powered by a 3.5-liter V6 with a cast-iron block and aluminum cylinder head. It generates 210 hp at 5,000 rpm and 240 lb-ft of torque at 4,500 rpm, more than enough to accelerate the car to the speed limit with plenty left over to pass or make it up most West Virginia mountains. Part of the performance could be due to adaptive shift control, which changes shift points in the four-speed automatic transmission based on driving conditions and driver behavior. But it's hard to tell exactly what it is doing. I often wish there was a cut-off switch for these new electronic features so I could make direct comparisons between driving with and without it. Regardless, the transmission smoothly accommodates both Walter Mitty racing and more sedate Sunday driving. The transmission also had clutchless manual shifting, a feature cropping up more and more in upscale cars. The manufacturer says it "offers easy, raceinspired, sport-performance shifting without the burden of having to operate a third pedal." But most people I know who have or had cars with this feature usually tried it out for 10 or 15 minutes, then ignored it. I'd like to hear from readers who have cars with clutchless shifting and how often they use