The competition is heating up, and if Mitsubishi doesn't act fast, the Galant will get burned. With ever-improving designs from both foreign and domestic manufacturers, the designers at the three-diamond studios had better get busy improving their bread-and-butter car.

Built to compete with the likes of the Honda Accord, Ford Contour, Toyota Camry and Nissan Altima, the Galant falls short of most of the competition. Not as durable as the Honda, fun-to-drive as the Contour, prestigious as the Camry, nor polished as the Altima, the Galant seems to be having an identity crisis. Looking at the sales numbers, it appears that Mitsubishi has been failing to attract the customers that the other compact car makers are bringing into the fold. And this year, most of the competition is redesigned and much-improved, and all at very attractive prices.

True, Mitsubishi has addressed most of our gripes about the interior of the car. The cheap and flimsy center console was replaced by a redesigned unit that is the proper height for resting one's arm. The cheap dashboard plastic has been upgraded and sound deadening material has been installed to quiet the buzz from the engine compartment. And this year, even the exterior is snazzier, sporting a black grille, chrome accents and alloy wheels are now standard on the LS.

But looks aren't everything. We're still waiting to see a V6 engine offered in the Galant. At this point, the Nissan Altima is the Galant's only competition that makes do with just a four-cylinder powerplant. And unlike the Nissan, which cranks out 154 horsepower, the 2.4-liter Mitsu powerplant feels overtaxed when combined with an automatic transmission. There are rumors that a V6 will be introduced within the next few years; we hope that they aren't just rumors.

If you are in the market for an around-town car that doesn't look like everything else on the road, the Mitsubishi Galant should make a satisfying choice.