Mitsubishi Eclipse
Manufacturer:	Mitsubishi Motors Corporation
Production:	1990 – present
Class:	Sportscar
Body Styles:	2-door coupe 2-door convertible
Predecessor:	Mitsubishi Starion
Successor:	none
Also known as:	Plymouth Laser (1990-1994) Eagle Talon (1990-1998)
Shares components with:	1st Generation: Plymouth Laser Eagle Talon Mitsubishi Galant 2nd Generation: Eagle Talon Chrysler Sebring Dodge Avenger Mitsubishi GTO/3000GT Dodge Stealth 3rd Generation: Chrysler Sebring
Similar models:	Acura Integra Acura RSX Ford Probe Hyundai Tiburon Mazda MX-6 Toyota Celica
This article is part of the automobile series.

The Mitsubishi Eclipse is a two door, four seat sports coupe/convertible that has been in production since 1988 and sold as 1990-2004 models. The Eclipse is produced solely for the United States market, where it has also been built as the Eagle Talon and the Plymouth Laser through Mitsubishi Motors Corporation's close relationship with Chrysler (now DaimlerChrysler). Eclipses are popular among racers, ricers, and other automotive enthusiasts because of the car's low price and wealth of aftermarket parts.

Mitsubishi's experience with sports cars starts in the early 1980s with the development and sale of the Mitsubishi Starion. Up until this point, Mistubishi Motors had sold smaller keicars for the Japanese and American markets--although many were rebadged as American makes (such as the Dodge Colt). The Starion, similarly sold as the Chrylser Conquest, offered performance and features on-par with sports cars offered by Japanese makers with more experience in performance motoring. The Starion's main competitors were among the largest of the Japanese sports cars: the MkII Toyota Supra and the Z31 Nissan 300ZX.

During the Starion production run (1983-1989) Mitsubishi had no other true sports offerings for the US market. Clearly, when the Starion was discontinued, Mitsubishi would benefit from a replacement sportscar. At the same time (specifically, in 1986), Chrysler was discontinuing their Laser car--a direct clone of the Dodge Daytona sports coupe. The Daytona was produced until 1993 but during the entire decade, Chrysler Corporation's sports nameplates were thinning.

Presumably stemming from their cooperation on the Starion and Conquest, Mitsubishi Motors and Chrysler founded a new production division, Diamond Star Motors (DSM) in October of 1985. The DSM plant was situated in Normal, Illinois and eventually produced cars bound primarily for the US market. The first cars to roll off the lines at this facility were the Mitsubishi Eclipse, Eagle Talon, and Plymouth Laser.

The Eclipse has undergone three distinct generations: the first two (1G and 2G) are closely related and share many parts, whereas the third (3G) is based on a new platform and most parts are incompatible with 1G and 2G Eclipses. The fourth generation (4G) Eclipse is still in development and is not yet available.

1st generation: The Eclipse and Plymouth Laser both appeared in 1989. They were built (as are all Eclipses; as were all Lasers/Talons) at the Diamond Star Motors plant in Normal, Illinois shared with Chrysler. They were powered by the Mitsubishi 4G63 engine and had front wheel drive ("FWD"). The Eagle Talon appeared a year later, and all wheel drive ("AWD") and turbocharged versions of the Eclipse and Talon entered the market.

2nd generation: The Laser was dropped in 1994 as the Talon and Eclipse underwent a major redesign. Both vehicles were powered by a more powerful (but slightly less durable) version of the 4G63. Both cars came in FWD and AWD versions, as well as turbocharged versions. The Talon was dropped in 1998.

3rd generation: The Eclipse underwent a change into its current generation in 1999. The 4G63 was replaced by the less powerful and less durable 4G69 in some versions and a V-6 in others. The AWD transmission available in prior versions was discontinued, ostensibly due to high cost and poor sales. This time, the Chrysler version is the Chrysler Sebring coupe.

4th generation: Details of the fourth generation Eclipse were revealed during late 2003 and 2004. Features of the new model will include new 3.8 liter V-6 and 4-cylinder powerplants, both derived from the 2004+ Mitsubishi Galant family, with which the Eclipse shares many mechanical components. Like the 2004 Galant, the new Eclipse will be FWD only.