14th Apr 2003, 04:06

I have a '99 Mitsubishi Eclipse with 83K miles on it. Granted much of my mileage are highway miles, however, I've only replaced the brakes once, and will probably have to replace them again soon. Hence, I've gotten 30-40K out of each set of brakes on average. What are these drivers doing to the brakes to wear through them at 20K? Maybe they can't downshift like I can since I have a 5-speed standard transmission... Another repair I've done is replacing the front left (driver's side) axle for some reason. I do not have any issues with water entering the car when it rains like I've read in a couple of these reviews. I believe that problem would easily be solved by the dealer if you have them adjust the canter on the windows. This car is the best handling car I've ever owned or driven with the exception of a '01 BMW 325i.. but that's to be expected. My Eclipse is still a sweet ride, even now that it's 4 years old.. plus it beats the heck out of the styling of the newer Eclipse's. ;)

10th May 2003, 12:10

I got my 98' spyder in summer of 2000. At first the rain leaked a little from the front corners of the convertible top. that didn't bother me too much. every year the rain gets much worse. it is now may of 2003, and when it rains the water almost runs in a stream. I have taken different steps to fix the problem, I got new weather strips on both sides, $180. and was told that would fix it. and I have had window adjustments 2 times to press the seal closer to the strips so water couldn't get through. that helped, but has not solved the problem. When I asked the dealer to fix the problem he said 1 in every 5 will just leak, there is no way around it. I guess I will have to get a whole new top. I wanted to avoid it. other than the rain problem, I love the car.

2nd Jul 2004, 16:19

I am the original owner of a Red with Black Convertible 1997 Eclipse GS Spyder. As of 7-2004, the car has $170,000.00 miles. I have had to make many repairs such as: Rotors at 30,000 miles. Timing Belt at 60,000 miles. Throttle body at 100,000 miles. New automatic transmission at 150,000 miles. The center post of the convertible roof broke at 110,000 miles. Stereo amplifer under passenger seat burned out at 90,000 miles. Interior knobs and handles have broken off.

3rd Nov 2004, 20:36

The brackets are a common failure on the convertible tops. Basically, the straps that retract them lose their elasticity and when you lower the top, they fail to pull back one of the ribs that supports the roof from driver to passenger side. Since the rib doesn't get pulled back, the roof gets jammed up and the brackets that hold this rib get bent. You can bend them back yourself a number of times (its not rocket science and is obvious) until finally they fatigue and break.

I'm embarrassed to say I am an expert on this now.

One solution is to stop about half way when opening the roof and reach up and back and push the rib back, then continue opening the roof. The roof will now fold correctly and evenly. Works every time and prevents jam-up.

Other (temporary) solution is to get under the liner and loop the strap around the rib once to add more tension. This lasted me about 1 year, but the straps eventually stretched out again. Brackets and straps cost app $250/side. I tried welding a bracket once to repair it, but the weld failed.

Regarding leaking, can't say I recommend replacing the roof. We had ours replaced twice (someone cut into it to steal something). It now leaks much more than it ever did when it was "new". Maybe it depends on who changes the top, but no way to predict that. If you can, please let me know who to take it to.

21st Mar 2005, 11:10

I have a 1998 Spyder GS and have experienced problems with the brackets, straps, and leaking at the driver side and passenger side windows. The bending bracket problem is because the strap was not installed. A local trim shop, recommended by the Mitsubishi dealer, bent the brackets back into shape and installed straps. The top folds correctly now. As far as the leaks, replace the rubber moldings, but have all windows aligned making sure that the windows seat properly in the tracks. Additionally, the top may be bent or skewed to one side just enough to compromise the seals. A good trim shop specializing in convertible tops should be able to realign the top. This problem is generally a result of the bracket/strap issue and pulling or tugging on the top to get it to close properly. Getting wet when the door opens is just one of those convertible top quirks... happens on most inexpensive convertibles.

1st Dec 2010, 09:19

How do you set a garage door on the visor on a 98 Mitsubishi Spyder Convertible?

3rd Apr 2011, 13:14

Hold the button down on the garage opener and the button in the car at the same time. The light in the car will blink a few times and then it is set. I actually set it to open the gate to our neighborhood and it works great.