My brother (Darren)'s first car not including a TA Torana paddock bomb was a 1985 TM Mitsubishi Magna. The car was purchased in 1999 for $2000 which was a steal as the car was immaculate. He owned the car for about 6 months before the transmission let go (a common fault, more info further down) so a new one was sourced and fitted for $600. We chose to use another auto as it slipped straight in with out having to change centre consul, loom, and source parts like gear stick ect. The car was then put up for sale for $3000 non negotiable, and to my supprise was sold to the first person to look at it.

When my brother started looking for a suitable car to buy he asked me for help as i had reasonable knowledge on cars. I believed a Ford MKII Escort would be a good first car but we still chose to check out the local car yards for inspiration, and within a short time he wanted a TM magna. As i said earlier these cars do have a lot of problems, aspecially the Automatic versions, this is because the auto transmission used on the car was designed for a much lighter car with a less torquey motor, there for they continually blew their guts out. Some of the other problems were cracked blocks & heads (mainly on the manual) and of course the flying conrod or two.

As these cars can only be described as lemons i warned him of them and also added that if he went to look at any or bought one he would not receive any more help from me, and as you can see he bought one. The car lasted a total of 6 months before it got a severe tummy ache and left us stranded on the way to school. The car was then repaired and sold off.

After the car was sold he started looking for a replacement that being an Escort. As he needed it straight away we did not have long to look so he was unable to get exactly what he wanted, that being a 2 door 2 litre but ending up with a 4 door 1.6 litre (see section). My brother did not own the Magna long enough for him to under take and modifications to either interior or engine.
One of the things that supprised me about the magna was its power. The engine was only a 2.6L Astron II mated to a auto transmission but it blew my mates Commodore and other unsuspecting drivers off the street. It had a bit of a close ratio box with over drive so it was fast on accelerating but needed an extra gear for cruising.

When he first bought the magna it looked like he would keep it for a while and do it up, so i looked into a few ways of upping the old donk, and here's what i came up with:

Engine: Mitsubishi Astron 2555 cc, bored to 2604 cc
Induction: MicroTech EFI, EA Falcon throttle body, TO3 turbo, intercooler
Head: Magna SOHC 8-valve, ported
Camshaft: Reground to suit turbo
Crank: Astron, reground, balanced
Rods: Astron, balanced, shot peened
Pistons: Forged, 40 thou oversize, 7.2:1 CR
Ignition: Sigma GK distributor, highenergy coil ect (did not get around to determining the exact set up)
Exhaust: 3-inch mandrel bent from turbo, two 3 inch ID resonators

As the original transmission is a bit of a prick a better 5 speed would  have also been on the list, although i never got around to selecting one it most probably have been a Toyota Celica item.