1998 Mitsubishi Eclipse

"TAKATA RECALL" I HAVE REPLACED MY CONTROL ARMS ABOUT 4 TIMES NOW IN THE PAST 2 YEARS. I HAVE IT FIXED AND THEN THE SQUEAKING ALWAYS COMES BACK LASTS ABOUT 6 MONTHS THEN THE LOWER BALL JOINT BREAKS. LAST TIME IT BROKE I WAS GOING ABOUT 40 MPH, IT WAS VERY SCARY. THE PICTURE I SENT WAS TAKEN ON 7/28/2014. THOUGH THE LAST TIME IT BROKE WAS ON 6/20/2015.

"TAKATA RECALL" I HAVE REPLACED MY CONTROL ARMS ABOUT 4 TIMES NOW IN THE PAST 2 YEARS. I HAVE IT FIXED AND THEN THE SQUEAKING ALWAYS COMES BACK, LAST ABOUT 6 MONTHS AND THEN LOWER BALL JOINT BREAKS. LAST TIME IT BROKE I WAS GOING ABOUT 40MPH, IT WAS VERY SCARY. THE PICTURE I SENT WAS TAKEN ON 7/28/14. THE LAST TIME IT HAPPENED WAS ON 6/20/15 AND I HAVE HAD IT REPLACED SINCE.

BATTERY DISCHARGES OVERNIGHT AND ELECTROAUTOS CANNOT FIND ANY ELECTRICAL LEAKAGE BUT THEY SUSPECT THE STARTER SYSTEM DEVICE (AN OBLONG DEVICE THAT NEEDS TO BE PRESENTED TO A RED LIGHT TO GET THE STARTER TO FUNCTION). THE BATTERY HAS BEEN CHANGED SEVERAL TIMES BUT LEAKAGE CONTINUES. DUE TO AGE, NO SENSORS ARE CURRENTLY AVAILABLE TO CHECK IT. VEHICLE IS STATIONARY IN GARAGE.

RECENTLY, RELOCATED TO FLORIDA WITH IN 18 MONTHS I NOTICE MY PASSENGER SIDE AIR BAG IS PROTRUDING OUT FROM THE HEAT AND HUMIDITY IN SW FLORIDA. ORIGINALLY HAD CAR IN NEW YORK AND NEVER HAD THIS PROBLEM. I AM VERY CONCERNED ABOUT IT EXPLODING WHILE I AM DRIVING. NOTICE ON RECENT RECALL CONCERNING AIR BAGS DIDN'T INCLUDE MY MAKE AND MODEL. THIS 1998 MITSUBISHI ECLIPSE GST IS MAKING A TRUE STATEMENT ON THE ABOVE AIR BAG ISSUE AND ALL STATEMENTS ARE TRUE. PLEASE BE ADVISED THAT THE ABOVE MAKE AND MODEL IDENTIFY SAME ISSUES WITH AIR BAG BEING EXPOSED TO HIGH HEAT CLIMATES IN SOUTHWEST FLORIDA. PLEASE LOOK INTO THIS MATTER I BELIEVE THIS MAKE AND MODEL SHOULD BE ON THE RECALL LIST, THANK YOU. *TR

1998 MITSUBISHI ECLIPSE, UNIT 1 WAS TRAVELING EAST ON THE OHIO TURNPIKE NEAR THE 54 MILEPOST. UNIT 1 FILLED WITH SMOKE. UNIT 1 PULLED TO THE RIGHT SHOULDER AND STOPPED. THE DRIVER OF UNIT 1 EXITED AND OPENED THE HOOD AND OBSERVED FIRE. THE DRIVER OF UNIT 1 WAS CHARGED WITH OVI. BF (OHIO TRAFFIC CRASH REPORT # 10-0046-89)*JB UPDATED 04/22/11 *BF

ON 9/6/2010 I GOT IN MY CAR AND PULLED OUT OF MY PARKING SPACE. MY CAR HAD BEEN SITTING ALL THAT DAY AND THE PREVIOUS DAY. AS I PULLED OUT, HEARD A FLOP, FLOP NOISE, STOPPED MY CAR, GOT OUT AND LOOKED AROUND. THE FRONT RIGHT TIRE, A UNIROYAL LONG TOURING A/S, HAD COMPLETELY BLOWN OUT (NOT JUST GONE FLAT). I REPLACED THE TIRE WITH MY SPARE. I LOOKED OVER THE BLOWN TIRE AND FOUND A TEAR APPROX. 1-2 INCHES LONG ON THE INSIDE OF THE TIRE, JUST BELOW THE TREAD. MY FATHER CONTACTED THE TIRE MANUFACTURER, BECAUSE MY SISTER HAD THE SAME MODEL TIRE AND HAD THE SAME PROBLEM WEEKS EARLIER. MY FATHER WAS TOLD WE COULD GET REIMBURSED FOR NEW TIRES IF THEY WERE INSPECTED BY THE DEALER AND FOUND TO BE DEFECTIVE. TODAY, 9/8/2010, I TOOK MY CAR TO A TIRE DEALERSHIP AND GOT THE ONE TIRE REPLACED. THE BLOWN TIRE WAS FOUND TO BE DEFECTIVE. AN INDIVIDUAL FROM THAT DEALERSHIP CONTACTED THE MANUFACTURER & WAS TOLD TO FILL OUT A CLAIM FORM SO I COULD BE REIMBURSED 60% OF THE NEW TIRE COST. THE DEALER KEPT MY BLOWN TIRE. I CONTACTED THE MANUFACTURER ABOUT GETTING ALL NEW TIRES, BECAUSE THE OTHERS WERE FOUND TO BE DEFECTIVE WITH CRACKS BEGINNING. THEY SAID THE TIRE I JUST PAID FOR COULD NOT BE COVERED BECAUSE IT WAS NOT AN ACCEPTED BRAND, BUT FOUR NEW TIRES THAT WERE OF AN ACCEPTED BRAND COULD BE COVERED UP TO 60%. THE TIRES HAVE ALL BEEN SAID TO BE DEFECTIVE BY THE DEALERSHIP, HOWEVER THE MANUFACTURER REFUSES TO COVER THE FULL COST OF REPLACEMENT TIRES. *TR

I PURCHASED MY 1998 ECLIPSE GS IN 2003 WITH APPROX. 38,000 MILES ON IT. WITHIN 2 MONTHS, MY DRIVER'S DOOR HANDLE BROKE WHEN OPENING THE DOOR. THIS OCCURRED ON A DAY IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SUMMER. NOT THINKING MUCH ABOUT IT, I HAD IT REPLACED AT A COST OF ALMOST $300.00 (PARTS, LABOR, & PAINT) IT HAPPENED AGAIN WITHIN 3 MONTHS. THE DEALERSHIP REPLACED THIS ONE ALSO AND ONLY CHARGED ME FOR THE PART, A MERE $175.00. ABOUT 6 MONTHS LATER, MY GIRLFRIEND AT THE TIME WAS OPENING THE PASSENGER DOOR AND THAT HANDLE BROKE OFF. THIS MAKES 3 BROKEN DOOR HANDLES IN 11 MONTHS. I MIGHT BE A STRONG GUY, I GUESS, BUT MY GIRLFRIEND WAS 5'1" AND ABOUT 90 LBS.. THE KIND OF GIRL WHO HAD TROUBLE TEARING NOTEBOOK PAPER. WELL, WHILE WAITING FOR THE DEALERSHIP TO ORDER A REPLACEMENT HANDLE, MY BROTHER WAS GETTING INTO THE DRIVER'S SIDE OF MY CAR TO INSTALL A NEW STEREO AND THE DRIVER'S SIDE HANDLE SNAPS OFF IN HIS HAND. I HAD TO LEAVE A WINDOW DOWN FOR A WEEK INORDER TO GET IN AND OUT OF THE VEHICLE. I HAVE SINCE STOPPED ORDERING FROM THE DEALERSHIP AS A FIBERGLASS DOOR HANDLE WAS AVAILABLE ONLINE FOR $35.00 AND CAME BLACK IN COLOR. TO DATE, AS OF 2010, I HAVE HAD TO REPLACE THE DRIVER'S DOOR HANDLE 6 TIMES AND THE PASSENGER SIDE TWICE. AFTER SPEAKING WIT QUITE A FEW MITSUBISHI ENTHUSIASTS, I HAVE DISCOVERED THAT THIS IS A PROBLEM MITSUBISHI KNOWS ABOUT, ALWAYS KNEW ABOUT, AND HAS SIMPLY REFUSED TO FIX, EVEN AS FAR AS NOT MAKING REPLACEMENT DOOR HANDLES OUT OF STRONGER MATERIAL. I WILL NEVER BUY A MITSUBISHI AGAIN BASED ON THIS SIMPLE DESIGN FLAW WHICH THE COMPANY DEEMS IS BENEATH THEM TO MAKE RIGHT. *TR

RATTLING/CLACKING WHEN DRIVING SLOWING ON ROUGH ROAD. FOUND RIGHT FRONT LOWER LATERAL ARM HAS A LOT OF PLAY AND ALSO INNER AND OUTER TIRE ROD ENDS HAVE A LOT OF PLAY. THE FRONT LOWER LATERAL ARM TO SUSPENSION AND EVERYTHING DROPPED PRIOR GETTING TO DEALERSHIP TO INSPECT AND FIX IT. MORE DAMAGES INCURRED FOR BROKEN SUSPENSION, TIE RODS AND LATERAL ARM. *JB

AROUND 50,000 MILES ABOUT 2001 MY SERVICE ENGINE LIGHT WOULD COME ON AND GO OFF. I CALL DEALERSHIP AND BECAUSE I COULDN'T BE SEEN NO EARLIER THAN 2 WEEKS AHEAD OF TIME I WAS UNABLE TO GET A CONVENIENT APPT. I DIDN'T GET THE VEHICLE IN THE SHOP UNTIL MUCH LATER. WHEN THE LIGHT STARTED STAYING ON STEADY AROUND 81,000 I TOOK IT IN. I TOOK THE VEHICLE TO MY LOCAL MITSUBISHI DEALERSHIP AND THEY CHARGED ME OVER $200 TO TELL ME MY COMPUTER WAS NO GOOD AND A NEW ONE WOULD COST $1100 AND MY WARRANTY ON THE COMPUTER WENT OUT AT 80,000. I LET SOME TIME GO BY AND PURCHASED A COMPUTER FROM THE JUNKYARD. I THEN FOUND A PLACE THAT REBUILT COMPUTERS. I SENT MY ORIGINAL COMPUTER AWAY. I LATER GOT A PHONE CALL WITH THE PLACE TELLING ME THAT MY COMPUTER HAD BEEN RECALLED SO I CALLED MITSUBISHI. THEY TOLD ME THERE HAD NOT BEEN A RECALL SO I CALLED THE PLACE BACK. THE GUY EXPLAINED THAT MY COMPUTER HAD THE SAME ISSUE AS MANY OTHERS LIKE MINE HAD AND THAT MITSUIBISHI DID NOT RECALL THEM BUT STOP MAKING THAT TYPE OF COMPUTER. HE DID TELL ME THEY MADE A NEW ONE AND IF I COULD FIND OUT WHAT THEY WENT OVER TO HE COULD FIND ME ONE. WHEN I CALLED MITS BACK AND EXPLAINED THEY TOLD ME THAT THE DEALERSHIP COULD HAVE OVER RIDDEN THE 81,00 MILES SINCE IT WAS SO CLOSE TO THE 80,000 AND IF I WENT BACK THERE I COULD SEE IF THEY WOULD DO IT. WELL I CALLED BACK AND SPOKE TO THE SERVICE MANAGER. HE WANTED ME TO DO ANOTHER DIAGNOSTIC TEST WHICH I AM TRYING TO EXPLAIN THAT WOULD NOT BENEFIT ME. I WOULD BE PAYING ANOTHER $200 PLUS DOLLARS TO BE TOLD THE SAME THING THAT THEY HAD ALREADY TOLD ME OR TOLD SOMETHING DIFFERENT WHICH MEANS I HAVE WASTED MY FIRST $200 PLUS DOLLARS. I GAVE UP AND HAVE BEEN REPLACING EVERYTHING ON THE CAR TO GET IT FIXED. I HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO USE THE JUNKYARD COMPUTER CAUSE MY ORIGINAL ONE HAD BLOWN UP AND IT HAS BEEN AN ISSUE EVERY SINCE. MY SERVICE ENGINE SOON LIGHT STAYS ON NOW AND IT IS MISSING BADLY. I HAVE CHANGED THE OXYGEN SENSORS 3 TIMES. *TR

1998 MITSUBISHI ECLIPSE TURBO CUSTOMER STATES THAT LESS THAN FOUR MONTHS AFTER PURCHASING THE CAR, IT BROKE DOWN IN THE PARKING LOT. THE FRONT DRIVERS SIDE TIRE CAME OFF CRASHING TO THE GROUND**CC THE CONSUMER DISCOVERED THE VEHICLE WAS APART OF A RECALL, HOWEVER SHE WAS TOLD BY CUSTOMER SERVICE THAT THE VEHICLE HAD ALREADY BEEN REPAIRED UNDER THE RECALL. THE CONSUMER WAS ALSO TOLD THAT BECAUSE SHE DIDN'T TAKE THE VEHICLE TO A MITSUBISHI DEALER THEY WERE NOT LIABLE FOR REIMBURSEMENT. *JB