2nd gen. Eclipse GS-T opinions?

[M-Town 10+ year member]

Hi, im new to the forums. I was wondering what you guys thought of the 95-99 eclipse GS-Turbo. It has a stock T-25 turbo..nothing special..but i would plan to put a larger one in when money allows. Right now I have 7 grand, but this car goes for about 8-10 grand if i want a 97 or higher. I have heard good and bad things about this car, Im just looking for a slick looking, 4cyl. 2dr car that is reliable, fast, and wont hurt my bank roll to much. I have a 4dr accord (which when i sell it i'll have the 7 grand in the bank...). Your help would be greatly appreciated...thanks

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[BassHeadL7 10+ year member]

i test drove a 99 model eclipse gs 2 days ago and it wasnt bad. good throttle response and and good mid-top end power. the dealer wanted almost 11,000 for it, but it could be talked down if i had tried.

 

[M-Town 10+ year member]

thanks...any other opinions?

 

[violator5spd 10+ year member]

I like them. They run mid 15's...they look good...and turbos are always fun, so I say go for it (as long as it's 5 speed //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif ).

 

[Bumpin03 10+ year member]

first of all basshead...the gs and the gst are a lot different...the gst is a lot faster. and violator..i believe the gst's and gsx's only come in 5 speed manual. not 100% sure though. and M-Town...if you want a 4 cylinder because of the insurance....if it has turbo...it will probably cost more then a 6 cylinder.

 

[Tek 10+ year member]

ah...where to begin...i love these cars. I LOVE THESE CARS. hear me? //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

ok, these cars are quick to begin with, and can be made very quick with minimal mods, for $3,000 extra I bet you can run low 13s high 12s. You can get a lot out of the stock turbo, but theres also the 16g and 20g turbos you can get (before you drop one of those bad boys in you'll be want to make other mods first like fuel pump, injectors, etc.). First things you'll probably want are gauges (boost, air-fuel ratio, etc), boost controler, turbo timer, cat back exhaust, blow off valve (mmm....one of the greastest sounds on earth), i can go on.....

violator5spd-GSXs and GSTs come in manual as well as automatic.

BTW the Eagle Talon, Mitsubishi Eclipse, and Plymouth Laser (although not made in the second gen model) are all the same with small cosmetic differences and are collectively known as DSMs. Personally I prefer first gen Talons.

Check out http://www.dsmtuners.com

 

[M-Town 10+ year member]

thanks alot for the info....I have heard that these cars get what is known as "crankwalk" (from a website) "this car has the typical factory defect that causes the thrust bearing to wear prematurely. It's a well-known problem that Mitsubishi has been trying to keep swept under the rug." Anyone know about this and how I could tell if the car I test drive could have this problem? Also..how are these cars and mileage?

 

[Tek 10+ year member]

Yep, crankwalking is bad. Yet another reason I like 1st gens better, doesn't happen to them. It happens mostly to early 2nd gens. I'm not sure exactly what happens, but it basically renders the engine useless. Check http://www.dsmtuners.com for more info, post in their forums, they're really helpful over there. They aren't the most reliable cars in the world, but parts are cheap. And the looks/performance makes up for it IMO.

 

[TBIRD 38 LX 10+ year member]

Good fast cars. DSM's are notorious for blowing up though. For seven grand check out a Mazda MX-6 LS (V6) but sweeeeeeeet car. Or look for a Prelude with the H22A Vtec. You might wanna try the 92+ MR2 turbo.... good luck

 

[M-Town 10+ year member]

Good fast cars. DSM's are notorious for blowing up though. For seven grand check out a Mazda MX-6 LS (V6) but sweeeeeeeet car. Or look for a Prelude with the H22A Vtec. You might wanna try the 92+ MR2 turbo.... good luck

I've heard that these cars do have problems with blowing up...The mazda mx-6 is pretty nice...my friend has one and he has had nothing but problems with it. I have also heard that parts for mazda's are hella expensive. So that kinda rules out a mazda

The preludes are great cars IMO, I love hondas...I have an accord right now..great car..just not sporty enough. Preludes however seem to be more expensive and I don't really want a car any older then a 95, unless its had a new engine droped ect... If i could find a prlude with a h22a in it that might be worth me looking into, I live in pensacola florida there arnt any for sale around here..

The mr2 turbo's seem to be pretty **** good cars..judging by carreview.com. The only problem is, is that anything over 93 is like 11+ grand. Im trying to stay in between 8-10max grand.

So far the eclipse GS-T or GSX seems to fit in pretty well with what im looking for. Im looking for a 2dr sports car with a stock turbo. Can anyone else come up with any other cars similar to that?

 

[dubsports 10+ year member]

I dont know how close to identical the manufacturing quality is between Eagle Talon/Mitsu Eclipse.. but since theyre the same company and the same car I figure it would be pretty close, and I'd advise you against buying one. Two of my friends have 97 and 99 talons, and all they've both had is problems mechanically. Theyre just not reliable at all once you hit 120000km or so (miles converstion?..60000 or so?). Both have had breakdowns frequently, despite their attempt at replacing things with performance parts.

 

[M-Town 10+ year member]

yea...there are alot of eclipse's out there with over 100,000 miles on em still runnin strong..might have just been bad luck..I'd like to buy a 4cyl without a turbo if I thought putting one in wouldn't cost me an arm and a leg... Has anyone driven a GS-t and a GSX before? Which would you prefer? thanks

 

[Tek 10+ year member]

I've driven a talon TSI which is the equivalent of a GST, and I loved it. As far as reliability, any time you put performance parts on a car, you're probably going to have some problems. check out this thread for more info on reliability - http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=44297 .

Other cars similar with stock turbo....3000GT VR4, Stealth R/T Twin Turbo, Supra (gonna have to get an older one to stay in your price range though, my buddy has an 89 turbo thats NICE), older 300zx twin turbo...cant think of any others right now, personally I'd go with a first gen DSM turbo, u can get em for well under 5k then spend the rest on upgrades.