long story short, we are pretty close in signing a 2001 pearl white solara convertible, sle, v6, beautiful car. asking price is about 18000. not bad, but then we come to the notice there are a lot more 99 eclipse out there in the market. i'm not sure if this directly translates to how people are trying to get ride of these good looking, classic mitsu., or were they just produced more than the 01 solara.

my friend advised me not to get a mitsu. but i'm prefer to keep an open mind, especially when a 99 eclipse can be had under 10 grand.

 

Its not a bad car, but it is one of the reason Mitsu is in financial trouble. It succeeded the older Eclipse which had a turbo and an all-wheel drive option, and had nothing to offer but a V6 in the highest option. Mitsu over produced them, but no one wanted to buy them

 

that's the 2000-current eclipse.


the 97-99 eclipses are the one with the turbo's and AWD systems. These models are that bad it's just that u'll be hard pressed to find taht wasn't beaten to by the previous owner. If you just want one for a daily driver, they're alright, but my honest opinion about those cars is that, don't get them. Most people are disappointed with the those cars due to various build quality imperfection and things along those lines. unless you want it for drag racing or w/e, don't get it.

 

I owned a 94 Eclipse I got used in 96. The first 2 years of ownership was trouble free and it was comfortable, had a nice interior, and good handling. I can't say I babied the car or properly maintained it at first since it was the first car I owned but it started to become a problem. The transmission went, smaller things like idle motor and burning excess oil started occuring and then the engine went from the oil burning problem. I made the mistake of ordering the replacement engine from this place called the engine shop and having it put in a place that had horrible mechanics and did bad work. After they put the engine in the car started having alot of problems with overheating, odd idle, puttering when accelerating after just starting, water pump failure, valve tap, headgasket, etc. I then started hearing alot of bad things about Eclipses's and got a Honda Accord which gave me zero problems. Some of the problems were adressed with the new body style in 95 and the cars became cult performance machines for those who could not afford Supra's, 300zx, Rx-7 etc with their tunable turbo engines, AWD, and a great looking shape. Base models had 140hp and turbo's and AWD had 200-210. You will not get Honda or Toyota reliablilty but the later models 98-99 are not as bad as everyone says as long as you are deligent in maintenace. I would not buy as a primary everyday driver but as a second car to drive less and have some fun with. I really would not buy one unless you really like that model Eclipse. You should go out of the way to find a good example and since they have pretty poor resale value you should not have to spend too much. Turbos are rare and you will pay more for them.

The 2000 Eclipse was totally changed and shared a platform with the Chrysler Sebring and Dodge Stratus. It ditched the AWD and turbo for a v-6, got larger, and lost most of its handling and character and did not feel special anymore. It went from a high performance pocket rocket to a conservative roomier 2 door everyday coupe. The Eagle Talon and Plymoth Laser were almost identicle in the 90's but were not as common. There is or was a small good looking high performance sport hatch that sold in Japan called the FTO and it should have been brought over as the Eclipse replacement. I believe top models had a 2 liter v-6 putting out about 200hp.

 

vroooom....pssssh!

 

In most ( not necessarily all ) cases a 2001 Solara is going to be a lot safer buy than a '99 Eclipse. The second-generation Eclipse (95-00) was notorious for poor build quality, mostly due to poor conditions at the Diamond-Star plant in Normal, IL where they were built. The ones I remember seeing and test-driving even brand-new had squeaks and rattles, burrs in the paint, and loose trim even right off the assembly line. As they aged, the engines....in typical Mitsubishi fashion..... got upper-end problems like valve stems, head gaskets and oil consumption. The AWD GSX model did give some good winter traction, but the very low ground clearance worked against that by allowing snow to pack up under the body. The turbo models were often driven very hard and the turbos in general didn't last.....and are expensive to replace.

The Solara convertible is Camry-based and should not be problematic if properly cared for.....BUT................if you are seriously interested in one, check out two important things. First, MAKE SURE that the V6 has had regular oil changes at reasonable intervals. The 3.0 V6 is NOT forgiving of extended drain intervals.....they tend to sludge up, gel, and can seize up and be ruined of you don't change oil regularly.
Second, the first-generation Solara convertible, unlike the second-generation one, was not designed to be a convertible to start with. Its body and frame does not have the extreme rigidity of, say, a Mercedes SL500 or 600 convertible, which is like a tank in spite of its drop-top. 1st-Gen Solara convertibles DO have cowl and chassis flex on bumps and rough roads....so test-drive it on a variety of surfaces to see if its ride under those conditions is acceptable to you.

Good luck.

 

I have a 2000 se v6 coup and I love it. No problems at all, but yes make sure about the oil changes cause sludging can occur. The solara is decently sporty with more luxury and of course its a safe bet on reliablity.

 

look up crank walk

 

Thanks.

http://www.roadraceengineering.com/w...crankshaft.htm

 

Does that happen to automatic?

 

Ill sum it up for ya.....


It's a DSM