Honestly, I don't know what to tell ya. There has been a good number of people that have had this problem. I would suggest he speak with an Lawyer. That might scare the Mitsubishi dealer into settling and fixxing the car under said recall.
The NHTSA opened up an investigation on 31 JAN 2002 You could contact them, they may be able to help.
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/portal/site...f2c!-154572781