DSM Profile: 1997 Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX Restoration by 802 Garage

This is my red 2G GSX! This is my first DSM and first Mitsubishi product in general. It has unfortunately experienced many Vermont winters and a lot of neglect. It is rusty, the paint is scratched and faded, and it has far too many ricey stickers. My area of expertise is Subaru, but I have fallen in love with this rough Diamond.

The quickest way to get a full overview of this car is to watch the introduction for it on my YouTube channel, 802 Garage.



Below are some of the earliest pictures I have of the car, taken in August, 2016 when I was considering selling the car.




I couldn't bring myself to do it, as it was just too cool. Instead I have decided to take it on as a restoration project of sorts. I won't be returning it to 100% OEM, it will be more of a restomod. That said, my goals are reasonable, and the most important points are just to fix the rust and any missing items. The remaining pictures are more recent, as I have begun work on the car and will be home to fix it up for the remainder of the summer.

Getting this car was quite an adventure. I bought it from a coworker who had spent a lot of money on the car over a year to two of ownership. He bought it at around 110,000 miles, and it currently has around 120,000 miles as it sits. In the time he owned the car, he replaced the engine and turbo to the tune of $1875 plus over $1600 more for installation. Many other parts were replaced and maintenance was at least performed before I purchased the car in October of 2014.



When I got the car, it was sitting at a Mitsubishi dealer who clearly had no idea what they were doing as far as I can tell. The car would no longer start, and the starter would just spin. Currently I am confident that a FWD turbo flywheel was installed, instead of the proper flywheel for an AWD GSX. Before I purchased the car, the driver door window was smashed and the aftermarket stereo and related equipment were stolen. At least that let me get it for a cheaper price.

To get the car home, we had to place a jump pack under the hood since the battery was flat dead, then pull it down the road in traffic behind my friend's Subaru Impreza to let the clutch out in gear and have it turn the engine over until the car would run. It died the first time, and we had to do it all over again. Then the car sat at work over night. I came back the next day and put in a newer battery, but pop starting still barely worked. I managed to get it home that day, and it was a fun ride! Actually the first turbo car I have owned.



Unfortunately, after that I was busy with college and moved out of town for the next two years. The car sat, and though the broken window was covered, the car got damp inside and the leather became quite moldy. I also sold the bumper, thinking I would probably later part the car out, given the value of the engine and parts. Plus I gave the air filter to my step brother for a nominal fee. I now regret all of those decisions, as I very much want to restore the car, but I have at least replaced the window! Video of that fiddly experience soon.

So, if you want to follow my progress on this build, please subscribe to my YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/802Garage
My other projects are a 1985 Toyota MR2, and several Subarus including my daily driver. I'll only post updates for the GSX here, and I'll add relevant photos as I can. I know the car is really rough, but I'm hoping I can slowly restore it to its former glory. I have the whole summer for car work, and this will probably just be the first step in the journey.



Thanks everyone!

Wow, it looks like you are in for quite the journey. AWD cars can be both rewarding and frustrating. Just don't lose sight of the end goal, and I think you'll be just fine. Good luck!

Welcome aboard!! Definitely excited to see the build process on here and YouTube

That looks like a handful. Good luck with it and hope to see it finished soon.

Cool project. Good luck! I got my hands full just with basic maintenance!

I wanna see those rear lights ;light up

Subbed to watch the progress! Good luck on the project!

Wow thank you so much for the nice replies and encouragement everyone! At first I was worried I would get flamed for having such a rusty old heap!

It will certainly be a lot of work. I got some advice on my non start issues and have it pretty well confirmed I have the wrong flywheel. Transmission removal will 100% confirm, of course. Though if any of you want to take a look and cast a vote I'd appreciate it.

Check out 10:50 for the issue:


Otherwise, there is still some cleaning left to do in the interior, and I just bought some cleaner and leather conditioner, but check out the progress I did make!

Before:


After:


The image size even got smaller because there were less colors to reproduce! Hahaha.

Video of the cleaning is here:


Thanks again everyone! Transmission should be coming out soon to put in an Exedy Racing flywheel that is actually meant for a GSX.

Glad to see a fellow dsm'r from the green mountain state. I love seeing a riced up dsm come back from the dead! If you need a hand or want to cruise when she's together let me know I have two 2gb one gst and one tsi awd. Give me a shout, glad to see you got off the Subaru bandwagon... jk

Hey 802gst! Thanks for the reply. They certainly seem to be getting thin on the ground in these parts. I'm planning to host a meet late this summer if I can get it together. Keep in touch on my YouTube channel or FB page will be the easiest way to know when. Should hit me up on FB either way so we can DSM since I'm still learning. Just saw a green '97 GST "track car" for sale in St. Albans. Wondering if that's you!
www.facebook.com/802Garage

What a nasty interior. That poor little vacuum sure had its work cut out for it.
FYI, you cannot manually move the power seats forward and backward.

Thanks for that info, IHeartMyHonda! Yeah I'm still not sure the vacuum is really rated for it, but it did it! I just bought some cleaner and conditioner for the leather, so hopefully by the time I'm really done with it, it will look almost as good as new. Transmission should be coming out tomorrow!

802 Garage said:

Thanks for that info, IHeartMyHonda! Yeah I'm still not sure the vacuum is really rated for it, but it did it! I just bought some cleaner and conditioner for the leather, so hopefully by the time I'm really done with it, it will look almost as good as new. Transmission should be coming out tomorrow!

Click to expand...

Good luck! Don't forget to put the m8x60 bolt back in when you go back together. It's the one that goes in from the engine side right above the driver's axle. Without it, you may experience premature bearing wear in the engine.

Good luck to you and your build but I want to say this. In your first post you stated you might have the wrong (FWD) flywheel in it. A FWD flywheel will not work at all with a AWD transmission as the bell housing is smaller on the AWD. Now the teeth could be missing causing your starter to no engage but before you pull everything out, check the starter relay. I just had this problem. Starter would spin but wouldn't kick out. New relay and it works like new now.

Thanks IHeartMyHonda! I won't forget.

99ECLIPSEGSXDSM, initially I was thinking it was the FWD flywheel that was smaller, then I did more research and discovered what you just said. I have heard both that the FWD flywheel will fit in the AWD trans and that it won't as there will be too much contact. My Flywheel does have the tips of the teeth missing seemingly, so I'm wondering if someone managed to put in an FWD and it rubbed the tips of the teeth off on the output shaft area. I probably should have checked the starter relay! That said, I'm too far along now and will be putting in my fancy Exedy flywheel and making sure it has all the correct components one way or another. Thanks a lot for your help though! Chances are you are right and it's something dumb like that. Fortunately this is giving me the opportunity to correct a lot of shoddy work and problems as I go through it.