1996 Mitsubishi Eclipse problems
Owners have filed 220 complaints with NHTSA about the 1996 Mitsubishi Eclipse. Brakes is the most reported problem area, at 16% of complaints. After that come engine (14%) and suspension (14%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 220 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Brakes 16% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 31 and 5
- Injuries and deaths
- 12 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 85,000 miles 28 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 2 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 0 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 2 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 6 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 6 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 3 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 5 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 2 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 0 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 0 |
| 200k+ miles | 2 |
What the data shows
Among the 28 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 85,000 miles.
Safety-related details: 31 complaints mention a crash; 5 complaints mention a fire; 12 injuries reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 1996 ranks 4th most-complained-about out of 18 model years of the Mitsubishi Eclipse with enough data (122 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 4 safety recall campaigns.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
Vehicle suddenly accelerated and smashed into a wall, both driver and passenger air bar deployed. Drivers right foot never left the brakes
Consumer stated that he rearended another vehicle and the air bags did not deploy. Going approximately (40) or (45) MPH at time of impact.
There was a flood, applied the brakes and the car started to spin, hit a bus head-on and ended up in a ditch and the dual air bags did not deploy. Please describe in detail.
Bought car in nov 1996. About 5 months or so after purchasing the car, the drivers side sun visor can detached from the ceiling. I was told that this is not a covered warranty service. I was told that the threads needed to be redone and that they were stripped. My car only had 16,000 miles on it at this time. So the dealer apparently fixed it. But they didn't. When I put my sun visor down the visor slips out of the plastic holder and flies forward. Sometimes this has almost cost me many accidents.
Tl* the contact owns a 1996 mitsubishi eclipse. While driving approximately 60 MPH, the vehicle began to exhibit an abnormal vibration and it made an unusual noise. The contact drove onto the emergency lane and upon further inspection, found that the front drive shaft had fractured from the transfer case. The vehicle was towed to a local repair shop where it was inspected but not repaired.