New 2009 Mitsubishi Eclipse GT/Spyder

  • Thread starter Thread starter gator of kana
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I don't personally know why the car isn't that accepted by GTP (I never bothered to talk about it that much with anyone here, so that may be why; could also be the look of the current gen.), but after driving one of the upper models in the line up, it isn't a terrible car. Has a lot of pick up, doesn't sound bad in high revs, and corners quite nicely against Dallas' inability to make a straight road.

But, maybe I passed on it because of money. I don't know how other dealers work, but Mitsubishi really wants some money if anyone wants to finance/lease these little cars, and for me, when leasing, if the money being spent equals the MSRP, it's better off just to buy the car than to lease.
 
I'm not into rice at all(except for the kind you eat. love those), but the yellow, and the red ricey Eclipse looks really cool to me. Too bad that those cars aren't really good at anything.

2009-mitsubishi-eclipse-gt-rear.jpg
 
Reventón;3180658
I don't personally know why the car isn't that accepted by GTP...
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I had always assumed it was the Gallant underpinnings that caused problems, you know, too much weight, FWD-only, no longer a spry little bugger that would run easily with Integras/Civics, Celicas and 200SXs.

Its a good-looking car that is comfortable, but like you pointed out, its very expensive for what you get. To that end, with how good the Lancer is, it kinda defeats the purpose of the Eclipse to some extent.

Lets look at the performance coupe pack here with this car:

Mistubishi Eclipse GTS V6
Scion tC
Chevrolet Cobalt SS Turbo
VW GTI
Honda Civic Si
Volvo C30 2.5T
MINI Cooper S

All of those options there are going to lead you to other choices that are quite obviously better (usually) for a lesser price. Lets be honest, the Cobalt is without a doubt the better performance option, the GTI and the Cooper S are going to beat it on comfort, the Honda is going to have it on price and fuel efficiency... In the end, while the Mitsubishi isn't a bad car, the problem is, it isn't good enough.
 
I think you summed it up pretty well, there. I drove a Lancer GTS-equipped model the same day. So much more involved driving with that car for slightly increased payment options.

But, out of those, I would def. choose the Cobalt, Cooper S, GTI, or Si. The only problem with the Cooper S & the GTI, though, is that dealers here wanted a nice hefty per month payment, enough to really put them above the Lancer GTS. The German-engineering in them really affected insurance as well compared to the Honda, Mitsu., & Chevy. I never had a chance to really look at the Cobalt as well, but I'm sure it wasn't that pricey, anyways.

The Scion, though, was a lot like the Eclispe. Lease payments equalled around the MSRP of the car, and Toyota wouldn't come lower on payments. No deal.

On a last note, after getting the Si, VW ironically then put a huge mark down on GTIs & VW vehicles, along with Porsche. Caymans for just $530/month was the hardest to accept. :indiff:
 
Out of that grouping, the Cobalt has become the surprise value and performance option. Normally I'd automatically swing towards the GTI without even considering the other cars, but after seeing the Turbo in person, and then seeing that amazing performance in the 2008 VIR Lightning Lap really changed my opinion of the car from something otherwise positive to absolute full support. For something that cheap, its amazing what you can do with it.

I think it would be fair to assume that if Mitsubishi took a similar approach, shoving a 260 BHP Turbocharged I4 under the hood of the Eclipse and getting the chassis tune spot-on like Chevrolet did, they too could have a winner down in the value bracket. Granted, its about the same amount of power the V6 is already producing, but there is a very different quality to performance like that... Given Mitsubishi's stellar track record with doing so, I'm positive they could make a stellar effort.
 
The Eclipse is a much better car than the old one was, that V6... thing that killed off the turbocharged monster a lot of us knew and loved.

But it's still more boulevardier than sportscar... big, heavy, and not quite as powerful or as agile as the 350Z that's its closest competitor... though the handling is reportedly pretty good for a heavy FWD car.

I wish they'd just chucked the useless rear seats... would've saved some weight... maybe go the Cooper GP route and replace them with a strut brace or something.
 
Putting a massive grille on the front of a fairly low and wide car = fail. It looks like it has down's syndrome.
 
It went from scared/surprised to pissed off! :lol:

I think the photoshop does look 1000 times better.
 
YSSMAN
Out of that grouping, the Cobalt has become the surprise value and performance option.
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Anything GM these days is going to cost you less money than the competition these days. That's how they move their cars off the lots. That said, the Cobalt is also looking to a different crowd than the rest on that list. The Cobalt is more directed at performance than livability, hence it being very fast for the price. Maybe this is because giving the car extra power is easier to do cheaply than offering a world class interior. The rest of the competition offer something more livable day to day. And they move their cars by offering excellent refinement and more so-so performance (compared to the Cobalt and old SRT Neon). Not that that's a bad thing though. Each of those cars are still among the best performance values out there.

niky
The Eclipse is a much better car than the old one was, that V6... thing that killed off the turbocharged monster a lot of us knew and loved.
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I wonder how much better the car would handle with a turbo 4 up front instead of the heavier V6 hanging over the front axle. And maybe fuel regs will push Mitsubishi to downsize again sometime?
 
YSSMAN
I had always assumed it was the Gallant underpinnings that caused problems, you know, too much weight, FWD-only, no longer a spry little bugger that would run easily with Integras/Civics, Celicas and 200SXs.

Its a good-looking car that is comfortable, but like you pointed out, its very expensive for what you get. To that end, with how good the Lancer is, it kinda defeats the purpose of the Eclipse to some extent.

Lets look at the performance coupe pack here with this car:

Mistubishi Eclipse GTS V6
Scion tC
Chevrolet Cobalt SS Turbo
VW GTI
Honda Civic Si
Volvo C30 2.5T
MINI Cooper S

All of those options there are going to lead you to other choices that are quite obviously better (usually) for a lesser price. Lets be honest, the Cobalt is without a doubt the better performance option, the GTI and the Cooper S are going to beat it on comfort, the Honda is going to have it on price and fuel efficiency... In the end, while the Mitsubishi isn't a bad car, the problem is, it isn't good enough.
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I don't think the Civic Si or VW GTI really belongs in that group though.

The Eclipse GTP with the V6 has 265 horsepower. I'm pretty sure it's considerably more expensive than a Si or a GTI and it's also considerably more powerful.

The real problem with FWD though is that while it's a 6 cylinder and it probably has a fair amount of headroom (probably could get to like 350 horses with several grand thrown in it), with a FWD chassis, something like 300+ horsepower will be too much.
 
The Cobalt might be cheaper than the Eclipse, but with the Eclipse being more expensive there should be a better quality that the Eclipse has than the Cobalt. I don't get it, why do we all look at the performance and the price first before we think of other factors to a car, they play an important role too
 
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gator of kana
The Cobalt might be cheaper than the Eclipse, but with the Eclipse being more expensive there should be a better quality that the Eclipse has than the Cobalt. I don't get it, why do we all look at the performance and the price first before we think of other factors to a car, they play an important role too
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Because the Eclipse is sold as a performance coupe when it is a mushy piece of torque steer. Furthermore, the insides of the Eclipse are nothing too spectacular itself.
 
gator of kana
I don't get it, why do we all look at the performance and the price first before we think of other factors to a car, they play an important role too
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Lol.

Given that performance and price are the Nissan GT-R's two distinct "Unique Selling Points" that comment sounds mighty contradictory coming from you ;)
 
gator of kana
The Cobalt might be cheaper than the Eclipse, but with the Eclipse being more expensive there should be a better quality that the Eclipse has than the Cobalt. I don't get it, why do we all look at the performance and the price first before we think of other factors to a car, they play an important role too
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I'm pretty sure price is like the #1 factor for like the vast majority of car buyers out there. Maybe brand is the #1 factor, but the price usually determines if you're even a potential buyer.
 
gator of kana
The Cobalt might be cheaper than the Eclipse, but with the Eclipse being more expensive there should be a better quality that the Eclipse has than the Cobalt.
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Eeeek....

I'd call that one a draw at best, as both have pretty cheap plastics covering most of the cabin, and in terms of the various updates that have been given to both cars, I'd call them fairly close as well. Either way, the Cobalt will absolutely destroy the performance of the Eclipse all for a low-low price.

My usual GM (and VW) bias aside, the Cobalt is quite clearly a better choice.

RE: Price as a factor

Its always a factor, particularly these days. Gator, when you're old enough to have a job and realize how expensive these cars actually are to own and operate, trust me, you'll think pretty close to the same way we do. The Eclipse is drastically overpriced for what you get, particularly when there is the Cobalt, Civic and GTI hanging around out there in the low $20K range to blow the car away.
 
Toronado
Because the Eclipse is sold as a performance coupe when it is a mushy piece of torque steer. Furthermore, the insides of the Eclipse any Mitsubishi are nothing too spectacular.
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Fixed it... :lol:
 
gator of kana
I agree, I like this Eclipse too but I wish they had 4WD, it would increase performance massively...
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Yes it eould be nice to see it fitted with 4wd running gear, as this is far more capable of putting power to the ground then FF layout cars.👍
I would imagine this something that Mitsubishi could do in a more 'sporty orientated' version.
Rusty*
 
There are FWD cars that are quite a bit more powerful than the Eclipse GT. And many V6 FWD sedans that have similar power ratings, and they all do just fine. I can't say if the Eclipse drives more like a Cobalt SS or a Maxima V6, but my guess is that it'll either be tuned well enough that the FWD drawbacks can be tuned out to a degree, or enough of a barge that having RWD or FWD wouldn't matter at all.
 
I think part of the reason you'll never see that is because those headlights are probably illegal. Or at least height wise

Then again, I didn't think the EVO X would come out as close as it did...
 
RA Concept....NICE!!👍
TYeah that's a pretty sweet looking ride. I also hope tha t oneday Mitsubishi brings back the FTO as a 4WD or an FR layout Car. I really liked driving the FTO from GT3, it was a great car!;)
Rusty*
 
gator of kana
Eclipse GT
http://www.auto-power-girl.com/cars-2009/mitsubishi-specifications/mitsubishi_eclipse_gt-2420
mitsubishi-eclipse-2009-7.jpg


Eclipse Spyder
http://www.auto-power-girl.com/cars-2009/mitsubishi-specifications/mitsubishi_eclipse_spyder-2423
mitsubishi-eclipse-spyder-2009-4.jpg
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The Japanese can't pull an Audi. These cars and the GT-R would look so much better without the black bumper.

Robin.
Just quick a photoshop....

This is all you had to do Mitsubishi!!!

eclipsenp8.jpg


Robin
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My neighbor has the front bumper of the red eclipse and also has eyelids on the headlights to make it look like that. They look alright, but they look a lot better in the dark.

homeforsummer
Yes. They should 👍
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No, they shouldn't. 👎
 
You guys are forgetting an important vehicle that you should buy over the Eclipse GT, the Mazdaspeed 3. It has an MSRP of $22,740 ($23,410 destination) and gives you 263 HP and 280 lb-ft of torque. The Eclipse GT has an MSRP of $23,999 ($24,674 destination) and gives you 265 HP and 262 lb-ft of torque. So power wise they are fairly similar but the Mazdaspeed 3 is cheaper, it lighter (3,153 lbs. vs. 3,543lbs.), and is probably more practical in day to day use.
 
I dig the idea of the Mazdaspeed 3 there.

Also, there is so so much I could point to on this so called 'Eclipse' with my deadly pink photoshop brush of criticism. I wish this car would be Eclipsed.
 

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