Each automotive fanatic who performed Want for Pace Most Wished remembers Massive Lou’s, eleventh blacklist racer, entry throughout the first race in a black Mitsubishi Eclipse GT with tiger decals on the aspect flanked by two yellow Eclipses. Such recollections don’t fade away that simply.
Apart from being utilized in video video games, the Mitsubishi Eclipse made notable appearances in Films corresponding to Quick and Livid, pushed by Brian (Paul Walker) and Roman Pearce (Tyrese Gibson). As we speak, the Quick and Livid Eclipse is among the many most replicated film automobiles within the tuner automotive scene.
The Mitsubishi Eclipse was constructed as a collaboration between Mitsubishi and Chrysler, who merged to kind Diamond Star Motors (DSM). Nevertheless, Mitsubishi purchased Chrysler shares in 1991 and took over manufacturing whereas the first-gen Eclipse was nonetheless in manufacturing.
In 1993 Chrysler bought its fairness stake to Mitsubishi, and the Three way partnership was terminated, and Mitsubishi renamed the corporate Mitsubishi Motors Manufacturing America. They later discontinued the G1 in 1994 and different Chrysler variants, such because the Eagle Talon. Mitsubishi would then proceed making automobiles below contract for Chrysler however continued utilizing the DSM platform for the second-gen Eclipse. Thus, solely the Gen 1 and Gen 2 Eclipse are thought-about DSMs.
Shopping for a Mitsubishi Eclipse is just not a stroll within the park, and it’s fairly difficult than shopping for different JDM sports activities automobiles. One of many primary causes being that the majority accessible on the market are both incomplete venture automobiles or slowly dying away, ready for a savior. We’ve compiled an in-depth shopping for information with all of the frequent points to count on in a Mitsubishi Eclipse and the Professionals of proudly owning one.
Professionals and Cons
Professionals
Nice tuner engine choices
Japanese producers are recognized to make use of comparable engines and platforms throughout totally different automobiles, which is likely one of the causes JDM automobiles are low-cost and dependable. The Mitsubishi Eclipse makes use of the identical engines utilized in different Mitsubishis, such because the Lancer EVO and 3000GT. All these are good engines, however if you wish to make extra energy from a Mitsubishi Eclipse, go for one with a 4G63 or any 6G7 engine.
Base spec G1 variants have the naturally aspirated 4G63, which is comparatively simple to tune and modify because it has an identical construct construction to the turbocharged 4G63T within the Eclipse GSX. When rebuilt with new or refreshed peripherals, you may get roughly 200 horsepower out of an NA 4G63.
However if you would like a little bit extra, upgrading the cam, gas injectors, exhaust and camshaft take energy output to not less than 220 horsepower. Something above 300 horsepower is feasible, however with solid internals, an aftermarket ECU, compression alteration, and compelled induction. Additionally, it might be greatest for those who thought-about an AWD conversion since all Eclipse trim ranges are FWD besides the GSX.
Among the many greatest 4-cylinder JDM engines made, the turbocharged 4G63T ranks among the many greatest. It has gained a status within the automotive neighborhood. A easy Stage one tune consisting of a remap, airbox improve, and a sports activities header will simply improve energy output to over 270 horsepower.
The one draw back is that the 4G63T within the Eclipse is previous; thus, the utmost energy output is decrease. With inventory internals, it could actually solely push round 300 horsepower and upwards of 500 horsepower with an upgraded turbocharger, internals, and a straight pipe exhaust. Fortunately within the Eclipse GSX, a rear-wheel-drive conversion is pointless because it’s constructed on an all-wheel-drive platform.
6G7 engines are additionally comparatively simple to tune, because of their excessive displacement. The commonest modification is pressured induction by way of a single or twin turbocharger setup adopted from the Mitsubishi GTO/3000GT VR-4. Turbo charging ends in a 15-25% improve from the inventory 210 (3.0-liter 6G72) or 260 (3.8-liter 6G75). With different mods, 600 horsepower is definitely achievable in both engine.
Pleasing to the attention
The Mitsubishi Eclipse is likely to be frowned upon within the JDM automotive scene, however one thing about it catches your eye and makes you virtually wish to purchase one. Positive, some house owners rice out their Eclipses with Lamborghini doorways, below glow, and different ridiculous mods whereas making an attempt to dwell the quick and livid dream, however some maintain them inventory or solely change the wheels and paint, and so they look incredible! Aftermarket assist isn’t nice, so you’re restricted to a couple bits and items, corresponding to wheels and wings. Even so, that’s all it’s essential to flip a Mitsubishi Eclipse right into a crowd-puller.
Enjoyable to drive
The Mitsubishi Eclipse isn’t as quick as it’d look, but it surely’s satisfying to drive. When driving one, you overlook how briskly you’re going till you have a look at the speedometer. You’re feeling good driving a chunk of automotive historical past whereas winding down mountain roads or at full throttle on open roads with the exhaust screaming because the rev counter needle climbs to over 7000 RPM. Dealing with is just not that nice in comparison with perhaps a Honda Integra, but it surely’s nothing you’ll be able to complain about.
Low cost
Costs for the Mitsubishi Eclipse stay unaffected by ever-increasing JDM automotive costs and the present used automotive value surge. You’ll be able to simply get a G4 for lower than $10,000, and costs go even beneath $1,000 for a rolling chassis, and most sellers will throw in each Eclipse half they’ve into the cut price. Nevertheless, shopping for a Mitsubishi Eclipse is just not advisable if you’re a first-time automotive purchaser. You’ll find yourself getting annoyed like earlier house owners and promoting it at a loss except you could have the persistence, willingness, and monetary muscle to construct the automotive.
Cons
Low cost inside
When shopping for a Mitsubishi Eclipse, one of many areas you’ll spend time and cash on is the inside. Mitsubishi didn’t put any inspiration within the inside as it’s fabricated from low-cost plastics from the dashboard to door panels. Over time the plastics fade and crack, particularly if the automotive is uncared for or continuously uncovered to the solar.
Refurbishing the plastic inside trims is likely to be simple, however they’re too far gone in the event that they crack when eliminated. Seats are additionally poorly bolstered, and for those who discover one with the manufacturing unit seats, you’re higher off with aftermarket seats, particularly for those who usually drive the automotive. One other frequent construct high quality fault is the defective door handles.
The surface door handles break, and the within handles jam. Most house owners advocate pulling the skin door handles midway after which pulling the door by the sting to open it. The spring should be changed for the inside handles, which is a simple repair, however you need to take away the plastic door panel.
The Mitsubishi Eclipse could be a ache within the neck to work on
Having a venture automotive in some unspecified time in the future is each automotive lover’s dream, however one of many qualities of a superb venture automotive is that it must be simple to work on, which the Mitsubishi Eclipse is just not. Engaged on one will make you virtually remorse shopping for it, particularly concerning wiring and mechanicals, corresponding to eradicating the engine and transmission. Additionally, attributable to previous age, some elements will break if not eliminated appropriately, and also you may find yourself breaking a component that’s arduous to search out and can’t be interchanged with one from one other automotive.
Most Eclipses on the market are overwhelmed up
A part of the rationale the Mitsubishi Eclipse is reasonable is that the majority accessible on the market are beat up. Most house owners surrender on their automobiles attributable to insufficient aftermarket assist after beginning a venture or after the automotive develops some points. These are listed cheaply on Fb market, craigslist, and different on-line listings.
Shopping for another person’s half-done venture automotive could be a stable discount, relying on the way you see the automotive. You’ll be able to both determine to strip the automotive and promote the elements, and also you may make some good earnings from it. Or, in case you have all the time needed an Eclipse, put money and time into one and switch it into one thing you’d take pleasure in driving and proudly owning; selecting the latter signifies that you ought to be ready since a Mitsubishi Eclipse is a unending and cash-intensive venture. That’s why you’ll hardly ever discover a well-built Eclipse on the market.
Widespread Points
Transmission failure
From proprietor boards and teams, transmission failure is likely one of the Mitsubishi Eclipse’s main faults and most house owners, present and former, will advise taking a take a look at drive earlier than shopping for one. The automated transmission within the Mitsubishi Eclipse has a wave cushion spring that holds again and returns the clutch piston and compensates for put on on the friction plates, permitting easy gear shifts.
The wave cushion springs put on out attributable to excessive temperatures from the friction, and tiny bits get lodged into the pump gear or the valve physique. When this occurs, the transmission must be changed or rebuilt, each costly choices. Thus, most Eclipses with an computerized transmission find yourself being left in garages or rotting in backyards.
Shopping for an Eclipse with a handbook transmission doesn’t get you out of hassle but. Some house owners have complained of issue in shifting and a spongy clutch pedal. What causes that is primarily a faulty clutch disc or worn-out stress plate, and you’ll’t substitute one with out changing the opposite. One of many indicators it is best to search for is noises and vibrations whereas shifting gears and accelerating from a cease.
Oil leaks
The Mitsubishi Eclipse is infamous for oil leaks, primarily from the top gasket, valve cowl gasket, and rear primary seal, all frequent oil leak spots in most aged automobiles. Early indicators of oil leaking from the top gasket embrace excessive engine temps, lack of energy, and white smoke from the exhaust. Exterior oil leaks are uncommon within the Mitsubishi Eclipse however point out head gasket failure.
Earlier than changing the top gasket, it is best to verify if the cooling system is working completely, as the top gasket will get broken by extra temperatures if the engine overheats. Consultants advocate utilizing a multiple-layer metal head gasket because it lasts longer than the usual metallic gasket attributable to its means to resist excessive temperatures.
Like in some other automotive, oil spots across the engine’s perimeter point out oil leaking from the valve cowl gasket. Nevertheless, oil may leak from a loosely positioned or warped valve cowl in some instances. It’s necessary to verify the valve cowl earlier than changing the valve cowl gasket and be certain that it’s torqued appropriately after changing the valve cowl gasket.
Oil leaking from the rear primary seal is principally frequent on excessive mileage Mitsubishis, together with the Eclipse. The seal hardens attributable to oil hunger or if the automotive has been unused for a very long time. Any makes an attempt to begin the engine trigger the rear primary seal to tear, dripping oil. You may must take away the transmission to switch the rear primary seal in a Mitsubishi Eclipse, and you’ll’t drive with it leaking. However earlier than you try this, make sure you drain all of the previous oil and refill the engine with new oil after changing the seal.
Braking system failure
Mitsubishi had two braking system remembers for the fourth-gen Eclipse as some items have been fitted with faulty brake boosters, corrosion contained in the ABS unit, and grasp cylinder meeting. If the earlier proprietor didn’t take the automotive for any of those remembers, it’s advisable to not purchase. A faulty brake booster and grasp cylinder trigger a rise in braking distance which will be deadly whatever the velocity at which the automotive is being pushed. Signs embrace a spongy brake pedal and brake fluid leak.
Sunroof leaks and roof failure on the Eclipse Spyder
Driving a Mitsubishi Eclipse with the sunroof open or with the highest down is a superb feeling till you strive closing it, and it doesn’t. Otherwise you handle to shut it, however the climate turns towards you, and rainwater leaks via. Usually, sunroof failure is attributable to a defective closing mechanism that jams attributable to particles accumulation and inadequate greasing.
Easy disassembly and meeting whereas cleansing out the particles and greasing returns the sunroof to manufacturing unit situation. Additionally, verify the situation of the climate stripping if water leaks into the cabin after you shut the sunroof.
The identical case applies to the mushy high. You don’t should undo the electricals for those who hear the motor whirring whenever you activate the mushy high swap. You’ll be able to pull the highest manually if you’re in a rush and examine the hinges and the closing mechanism. The mushy high cloth can also be recognized to tear attributable to previous age and publicity to climate components, and it’d want a substitute or patching.
Common Costs
For round $4,000, you will get a Mitsubishi eclipse in good situation with minimal points. However if you wish to avoid wasting money and get a venture automotive as an alternative, you aren’t restricted to any funds, as you’ll be able to simply get one for a couple of hundred {dollars}. Solely house owners who’ve put some main works into their Eclipses promote for greater than $15,000.
View Mitsubishi Eclipse Ads for Sale
What to search for when shopping for a Mitsubishi Eclipse
The very first thing to verify for when shopping for a Mitsubishi Eclipses is the entrance suspension, particularly the entrance management arms recognized to bend and break. You’re good to go if they’ve been changed with higher aftermarket management arms. But when the automotive nonetheless has the manufacturing unit management arms, driving dwelling with it is likely to be dangerous. Usually, the management arms break when the experience peak is lowered, or the automotive has been pushed on bumpy roads.
Test the automotive’s general situation, together with the paint and customary rust spots, strut towers, rocker panels, aspect skirts, and beneath the car. Within the inside, verify if the automotive has a entrance passenger airbag delete, as some Eclipse house owners have complained of the airbag cowl warping. An airbag delete prevents the airbag from randomly deploying.
The very best Eclipse trim stage to get is the GSX which has an all-wheel-drive platform and higher engine choices. Nevertheless, costs are barely larger, and it’s the one Eclipse that can maintain its worth if maintained appropriately. Lastly, ask for authorized paperwork, even when shopping for a rolling chassis.
Comparable Alternate options
Fashions and Specs
1989-1994 Mitsubishi Eclipse (D21A, D22A, D27A)
In 1970 Chrysler purchased a 15% stake in Mitsubishi and bought badge-engineered Mitsubishi automobiles in the US below the fashioned Diamond Star Motors. In 1982 each corporations started promoting their automobiles independently. That is when Mitsubishi started designing the Eclipse on one in all DSM’s platforms and unveiled it in 1989 as a front-wheel-drive 4-seater sports activities automotive borrowing engine and transmissions from the Mitsubishi Galant.
Models produced in 1989 have the 1.8-liter SOHC 4G37 engine mated to a 4-speed computerized transmission. In 1990 Mitsubishi started utilizing the 4G63 engine and 5-speed computerized transmission and unveiled the FWD/AWD Eclipse GS-T and AWD Eclipse GSX with a turbocharged 2.0-liter 4G63T and an LSD. Additionally they launched a 5-speed handbook transmission for all trim ranges, together with the bottom spec GS.
1994-1999 Mitsubishi Eclipse (D31A, D32A, D38A, D39A)
Mitsubishi unveiled the second-gen Eclipse in 1994, shortly after they’d modified DSM to (MMMA) Mitsubishi Motors Manufacturing America however nonetheless used the DSM platform for the Eclipse. Nevertheless, they nonetheless produced badge-engineered automobiles for Chrysler below Contract utilizing the Chrysler 420A engine.
Manufacturing of the Eclipse was additionally branched to Japan, however consumers confronted larger highway taxes because the second-gen Eclipse had wider exterior dimensions. All different markets received the Mitsubishi Eclipse with the 4G63 or the 4G63T coupled to a 4-speed computerized or 5-speed handbook transmission. Trim ranges remained much like what Mitsubishi supplied within the first Gen Eclipse, however they launched a mushy high convertible sub-trim for the Eclipse GS and GS-T.
1999-2005 Mitsubishi Eclipse (D52A, D53A)
1999 noticed the discharge of the third-gen Mitsubishi eclipse with a way more aggressive styling than the primary two generations, which look comparable. This resulted from Mitsubishi’s SST design unveiled on the 1998 North American Auto Present. However the design wasn’t all that modified within the fourth-gen Eclipse.
Mitsubishi discontinued the 4G63 engines and changed them with a 2.4-liter 4G64 and a 3.0-liter 6G72 V6 engine adopted from the Mitsubishi 3000GT/GTO and eightth-gen Galant. Transmission choices stay unchanged from the second-gen Eclipse. In contrast to earlier generations, you’ll be able to’t get an AWD third-gen Eclipse because the GT-X trim was discontinued leaving the GT-S because the top-spec variant.
2005-2012 Mitsubishi Eclipse (DK2A, DK4A)
When Mitsubishi discontinued the Eclipse GSX and the 4G63 engine, fanatics moved to buy the Mitsubishi EVO. Thus, there was a decline in gross sales for the third-gen Eclipse. Mitsubishi nonetheless unveiled the fourth-gen Eclipse in 2005, providing two engine choices, a 2.4-liter 4G69 engine and a 3.8-liter 6G75 V6 engine for larger trim ranges. Some hoped that the AWD GS-X would return, but it surely didn’t. On the higher aspect, consumers might go for a 6-speed handbook transmission as an alternative of a 5-speed or 4/5-speed computerized.
No matter not assembly buyer expectations, the Gen-4 Mitsubishi Eclipse was appreciated because it was amongst Mitsubishi’s dying heritage. The Mitsubishi Eclipse was discontinued in 2012 attributable to Mitsubishi’s efforts to make extra “passenger-oriented” automobiles to extend gross sales and shift in direction of assembly environmental targets.
In 2018 Mitsubishi resurrected the Eclipse identify with the Eclipse Cross, which was greater than a disappointment for the motoring neighborhood. There had been idea teases from varied sources that confirmed the Eclipse return as an all-wheel-drive hybrid sports activities automotive, which is healthier than an SUV.
FAQ
When stored inventory or modified reasonably, a Mitsubishi Eclipse will be one of the crucial dependable automobiles and can final for round 170,000 miles with minimal points below common upkeep.
In 1989, Mitsubishi unveiled the first-gen Mitsubishi Eclipse as a mid-level sports activities coupe.
No, all Mitsubishi Eclipses are front-wheel-drive besides the first-gen Eclipse GS-T and GS-X (1989-1994) and second-gen GSX (1994-1999).
Mitsubishi stopped manufacturing of the Mitsubishi Eclipse in 2012 to deal with extra passenger-oriented automobiles and make investments extra effort and time into creating battery know-how to fulfill environmental targets.
The Mitsubishi Eclipse will be difficult to work on, primarily as a result of engine and transmission however when you get used to it, engaged on one turns into a stroll within the park.
Mitsubishi didn’t make a rear-wheel-drive variant of the Mitsubishi Eclipse. Commonplace trim ranges have a front-wheel-drive platform, and excessive trim ranges such because the GS-T and GSX have an all-wheel-drive platform used from 1989 to 1999.
Main issues within the Mitsubishi Eclipse embrace transmission failure, fluid leaks, braking system failure, rust, and different minor points corresponding to failing electricals attributable to poor wiring and a disintegrated inside.
Mitsubishi solely used one turbocharged engine, a 2.0-liter 4G63T, within the Mitsubishi Eclipse GS-X and GS-T produced from 1989 to 1999.
How you can import a Mitsubishi Eclipse
Learn our Final Information on How to Import a Car from Japan.
Christopher joined jdmbuysell.com in 2018 as an automotive Journalist and now oversees all communications with consumers & sellers.
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