2003 Mitsubishi Eclipse Spyder GT 3.0

Faults:

NEW UPDATE.

I live in good old Canada, and recently Mitsubishi came here. I previously had a Sebring, that I loved for almost 9 years, and decided it was time to get a new car. The engine in my Sebring was the 2.5 L Mitsubishi, and I have never had a problem with it.

So I decided to take the plunge and buy a Spyder GT_Premium, and here is where the problems started...

I was lied to before I even got the car. They told me it was brand new, being brought up from Illinois. 1.5 weeks later they told me it cleared customs and was in Canada, and 4 days later I found out the car never even left the plant down there, but they had another one in Moncton that had 800 KM's on it. I decided OK, I would take that one, they threw in the alloy fuel door, and a bunch of oil changes.

1. Two days after having the car, the black vinyl cover that goes over the top when it is down, went flying off the back of the car, when a semi went by me on the other side of the highway. Had there been a car behind me, they would have been dead, have this thing being flying through the air. Yes, it was securely fastened with the two little plastic clips... and I had been on the highway for almost 20 minutes prior to this...

2. The first rain storm we had, I took the car out, and noticed that when I went downhill, the stereo cut out, and going back up hill, it came back on. Thought it was a loose wire, until I went to clean the car 3 days later. I went to remove the mats on the passenger side of the car and it was FILLED with water. There is a leak in the under part of the car, the leak fried the stereo amplifier, and all the speakers. The car has been sitting at the dealership since Monday morning, and today is Thursday morning, they can see the water filling, but still do not know where it is coming from. Friday I get the car back and they told me it was a seam that went under the front tire-well.

3. So Friday afternoon, I got the car back, and headed home. Saturday I went to clean the car again, and noticed the windshield had a crack in it. Took it back again Monday morning, and they said it was a stress fracture, that has since grown to about a 14 inch crack going up the middle of the windshield... And the passenger turn signal had condensation in it. The girl at the parts counter came out and ordered a new windshield, and the mouldings (she was great, and very skilled in cars).

I called the general manager after I got to work, and he never bothered to return my phone call, so I called Head Office, and they finally decided to return my call two days later, so I went down to pay them a visit, and told them I wanted a new car... and that I could not believe all these problems I was having for a car that was less than 3 weeks old. The woman's last words to me before I left her office was, I will call you by the end of this afternoon... do you think she called??? HELL NO!!!

I waited until the next day and called her. She informed me that she called the general manager of the dealership, and that he was going to call me, and was very surprised to hear he had not yet. I asked her three times why SHE did not call me back when she said she was, but she just went right around the question all three times. It was like she did not give a crap that I just spent $53,000 on a new car (Canadian with the 7/180,000 km extended warranty). I talked to the general manager 30 seconds after hanging up the phone with her, she must have had him on speed-dial. He was going to talk to Mitsubishi, and see if they could get a new car, but would not hear back from them until tomorrow, and he wanted to inspect the windshield. I could have thrown something at him if he was in front of me and not on the phone.

I am supposed to hear from him tomorrow, and he is speaking to a rep in Toronto... I really like the car and spent weeks looking for a new one, but once you change the windshield, it will just not be the same :( It will not be as good as a factory installed windshield. I told them this car was going to be used 12 months of the year, and yes I will be driving it through the harsh Canadian winters (with studded tires of course)

Does anybody know of anyone else I can contact? I talked to the Better Business Bureau, and I only have until Sept 30 to file a claim as the new 2004 cars will be out, and this car will be considered last years model, and will depreciate in price... I don't want the money back, I just want another car...

I feel robbed after having spent $53,000 Canadian for a car that I have been able to drive for 15 days.

I should have kept my 9 year old Sebring, that was still in mint condition :(

:mad: :mad:

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 21st September, 2003

1st Oct 2003, 16:54

I suggest that you get after the dealer for a new Car. The car you had sounds like it was a dealer run around car and as you all know they are not treated nicely. Obviously the car is a lemon my suggestion is call a TV station that has one of those consumer marketing stories and tell them your woeful story. This should get the attention of the Head office or the dealership.

15th Nov 2003, 16:02

Well, I have an Update, the dealership has decided to replace my car with another 2003 Spyder Eclpse GTS, 0 KM. The new car should be ready for me to pick up on November 17, I am SOOOOO HAPPY... It took awhile and a lot of persistent, but I am really glad Mitsubishi did the right thing, and I thank them greatly for that :)

19th Jul 2004, 16:31

Glad it worked out for you. Note that the Sebring coupe you had was also made in the same plant in Illinois. The quality is generally very good from the plant. With a very complex build with thousands of inter-related parts and a highly robotic sealing line water leaks can happen. However, dealerships with a little experience should have little trouble finding the void and fixing the first time. Unfortunately a good product can get a bad knock from a rotten dealer.

6th Apr 2010, 07:33

Wow, I would have never accepted a car with even 10 miles on it, if it is supposed to be brand new off the line.

6th Jun 2010, 01:19

Hello.

Sorry for this late reply as I am planning to get a 2003 Spyder GS on Monday, and I'm wondering if you can help me out with some of your experience with your car.

So the big question is, will it survive Canada's winter?

And can you offer any other advice as well?

Thank you very much.

Please note that that I live in Montreal (Quebec) and I only drive in week-ends. On top of that, the car is already checked and it is in a good condition.

2003 Mitsubishi Eclipse RS 2.4 liter

Summary:

Tight handling, quick ride, fun to drive!

Faults:

Nothing has gone wrong with this car, I've had it for three months. I've put 4,000 trouble-free miles on it.

General Comments:

The Eclipse is an exciting car to drive. It handles beautifully, and is extremely responsive. My previous car was a Dodge Neon (don't get me started), so the difference in power between the two are incomparable. This car is fun to drive, especially the manual. I test drove the automatic, and it wasn't as responsive as the manual. I've since read that many Eclipse GT/S owners consider the RS as the "R(eally) S(low) " model, but this car is faster than any car I've ever driven. And that's saying a lot, since my first car was a 1966 Mustang V8 (manual). (Okay, in retrospect it is just as responsive as the Mustang was.)

The main thing that bothers me about this car? There isn't a light for the hatch/trunk. Mitsubishi explains that the interior/dome light is sufficient enough to see into the hatch. Obviously, they have never tried to find something in the hatch when it is pitch black outside. Even when the cargo cover is removed, there is absolutely no light coming into the hatch area.

Another thing worth mentioning, although it doesn't affect me in particular, is the rear leg room. We have two young children, so the leg room wasn't a factor for us. However, when my adult friends have sat in the back, it requires me to push the front seats up considerably so they can sit comfortably. This car is for someone who will rarely need to have an adult ride the back seat.

The front seats are very comfortable, and the whole interior is very sporty feeling, as if you're in a cockpit.

The air conditioning does a superb job, and will blast you out. I love the air vents, they are easy to control, and you have the option of shutting them completely off, individually.

I wish the interior came in more colors, I have the Steel Blue Pearl color, and I would have liked the light tan interior as an option, rather than the midnight color. The color is very sporty, but shows every speck of dirt.

All in all, this car is an awesome ride, and will elicit many a "whooo-hooo" from it's drivers. My only complaints are very trivial, and if I had a chance to buy this car all over again, knowing what I know, I would still choose the Eclipse.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 3rd August, 2003