Mitsubishi’s hopes ride on futuristic 2006 Eclipse
RESTON, Va. — At the Detroit Auto Show a year ago, Mitsubishi dazzled observers by putting on display a radically designed concept car called “Concept E.†It had hybrid power and a wonderfully futuristic flair to its body sculpture. Cynics, however, pointed to recent financial problems confronting Mitsubishi and scoffed at the idea such a car could ever be anything more than a public-relations ploy.
Barely one year later, the 2006 Mitsubishi Eclipse has been introduced – even as it has been rushed to dealerships all across the U.S. – and it is almost identical to the far-out design of the concept. Mitsubishi plunked the concept-shaped body onto the same platform used by the new Galant sedan and Endeavor crossover SUV, and dropped two more conventional powerplants under the hood instead of the hybrid idea.
The rush-to-production, it turns out, occurred specifically because of the financial problems, which has caused Mitsubishi Motors of North America to change executives faster than it can bring out new models. Rich Gilligan is the new president, incidentally, and Dave Schembri is the new executive vice president of the North American branch of the Japanese company.
Schembri, who worked at Mercedes before making the career move to Mitsubishi, made me nervous by wearing a perfectly tailored suit and tie on the media introductory drive from Washington, D.C., through the rolling hills of Virginia and Maryland, where shorts and polo shirts were far more logical against the 95 degree heat and stifling humidity of the past week.
Their historic perspective was pretty much right on for a contemporary automotive company, although some of the hyperbole went a little over the top. For example, suggesting the 50-50 split rear seat provides “ample room for two†adults is a stretch; it would work for kids, or very short adults. And boasts about the stretched wheelbase, when it’s only a half-inch longer, and an impressive coefficient of drag of 0.35 when even comparatively hulking sedans beat that – the new Dodge Charger, for instance, comes in at 0.33.
Still, hopes among the media are high that a proud and technically advanced company that has built automobiles for 90 years might gain some stability, and not be seen only as a stepping stone for executives looking to advance.
I am among those, because I was impressed enough with Mitsubishi’s advanced engine technology, which included such enhancements as counter-balance shafts as early as 1971, that I bought a Dodge Colt wagon, and, later, a 1979 Dodge Colt hatchback – both made by Mitsubishi. The Colt hatchback had a unique two-speed axle with a four-speed, so you could shift eight times if you wanted. I could screech the tires in the first three gears and regularly got over 41 miles per gallon. All of which makes me reluctant to praise any so-called economical car that can’t reach 30.
The new Eclipse, aside from its eye-catching shape, is impressive to drive and to scrutinize. It comes with a large (2.4-liter) four cylinder engine as standard in the GS model, and with a larger (3.8-liter) V6. Both engines have single overhead camshafts and four valves per cylinder. The four has 162 horsepower at 6,000 RPMs and 162 foot-pounds of torque at 4,000 revs, while the V6 has 263 horsepower at 5,750 and 260 foot-pounds at 4,500. Both also have Mitsubishi’s “MIVEC†variable-valve system.
By adapting to the new GalantÂ’s chassis, the new Eclipse enjoys an 11 percent improvement in torsional rigidity, and a whopping 119-percent improvement in bending rigidity.
So in performance, the Eclipse has departed from its small, over-achieving engines to larger-displacement and smoother engines. The result is a sporty coupe that is swift, strong, and handles superbly with its front-wheel-drive power and a suspension that has struts up front and multi-link in the rear.
Mike Krebs, vice president of product strategy, pointed out that the first generation Eclipse – which also served as the Plymouth Laser and Eagle Talon in Chrysler trim – won all kinds of awards for style, engine and performance from its inception in 1989. Those turbocharged, all-wheel-drive models were raced by Duluth’s Archer Brothers to such road-racing dominating that the Sports Car Club of America decided that first turbocharging and then all-wheel-drive should be ruled illegal, just to reduce their advantage.
Krebs pointed out that the second generation, which was rounded off from the original wedgy style, was a favorite of hot-rod tuners, and put the Eclipse on the map with its styling, and that the third had edgy styling and found fame in the movie 2 Fast, 2 Furious. While Mitsubishi marketing increased over the years, it would seem the current crop of executives may not remember the fantastic cockpit feel and overall tightness of the original Eclipse, which, to me, was by far the best of them all. And while the more recent models may have had more appeal, and better marketing, none of them can boast of the bottom-line performance awards of the original.
The new car has the style and punch to appeal to youthful buyers as well to some older ones who may be ready to return to a sporty coupe. Interiors vary among avant-gard, techno-sport and Hi-Q sport, giving buyers an assortment of styles.
One of the best features of the new Eclipse is the price. The GT, which is aimed at competing with everything from the new Mustang to the Infiniti G35 coupe, starts at a mere $23,699 with the V6, and $26,969 with the premium package additions of 18-inch wheels, leather seats with six-way power, a sunroof, aluminum pedals, and a 650-watt Rockford-Fosgate audio system with nine speakers, a 10-inch subwoofer, and six-CD in-dash player.
The GS is a real bargain, starting at $19,399, and equipped with air-conditioning, cruise control, keyless entry, an audio system with a CD player, plust side seat and side curtain airbags, while a sunroof, audio upgrade and other items are on the option list.
Having driven the GT first, I was impressed with its power and the way it snaked around the hilly curves in the rural hillsides we negotiated. But then I drove the GS, much more basic, but I was even more impressed with the way the 2.4-liter four could make the Eclipse jump. The GS weighs 3,274 pounds, substantial until compared to the fairly hefty 3,472 of the GT. If that doesnÂ’t seem that much lighter, the difference is felt keenly in the steering, because the four is lighter in the front end and feels more agile to the touch.
Mitsubishi puts a six-speed manual and five-speed automatic in the GT, and only a five-speed stick and four-speed automatic in the GS, which is the trendy way to go, even though logic might suggest that the smaller engine would benefit more by having an extra gear. On steep hills, however, the GT was far better in third or fourth, and needed downshifting from sixth for sure, and fifth unless you were carrying substantial speed.
Designed in California and built at MitsubishiÂ’s Normal, Ill., plant, the Eclipse is the first Mitsubishi vehicle designed and built entirely aimed at the U.S. market.
As for the hyperbole, Mitsubishi already is running an ad that was ranked No. 1 in television, with a group of youthful Japanese women – actually, UCLA students – play a drum-band background of staccato pounding in a smoky, South Pacific-style motif, as the new Eclipse emerges.
Otherwise, Mitsubishi and its ad agency are groping for things such as calling potential customers fun-seeking strivers, trying to lob “Driven to Thrill†as a catch-phrase, and stressing both that the new Eclipse is designed and built in and for the U.S., and that Mitsubishi, unlike other companies, is not going to abandon its Japanese heritage in order to blend into U.S. culture. But the executives all are desperately anxious to have the U.S. culture notice – and purchase – the new Eclipse.
They also pointed out that companies such as Nissan and Chrysler both turned themselves around by starting out with great products. And there is no question that with the Eclipse, like the super-swift Lancer Evolution, provides that for Mitsubishi.
Malibu Maxx offers Chevy concept of ‘blue-collar tech’
A friend of mine owns a Chevrolet Malibu Maxx, and he insists itÂ’s better than any of the so-called superior Japanese midsize sedans. He insists he has adequate power, adequate fuel-economy, and features that cars such as the Accord and Camry canÂ’t match.
This fellow fancies himself objective, but he is not open to debate if the conversation turns to the superiority of the latest technology in overhead-camshaft engines, for example. It turns out, the new Malibu Maxx is quite a good car, despite a refusal to offer GM’s highest-tech V6 engine. What we can call GM’s “blue-collar tech” V6 is adequate for power, efficiency, price, although not up to the car’s impressive occupant conveniences. The question, in the current highly competitive automotive climate, is whether adequate is good enough. Obviously, GM in recent years believes it is, but recent drops in GM’s share of new-car sales indicates consumers have not shared that outlook.
The Malibu has been a historical success for General Motors, ever since its days in the 1960s when it was a neat, intermediate-sized sedan and coupe with sporty tendencies. The newest Malibu four-door sedan has a brother, called Malibu Maxx, which has an extended roofline tapering back in the manner of a stylish and sporty almost-wagon hatchback.
Personally, I like the silhouette cast by the Malibu Maxx, and the fact that the test car was gleaming white, and I drove it during some very grey days, made it stand out all the more. From a styling standpoint, the front end has what has become Chevrolet’s “signature†horizontal bar across the middle of the grille, which looks OK on some vehicles, and accents others, but which I think clutters the clean lines of the Maxx.
Performance wise, the Malibu Maxx is no more than adequate, with the iron-block 3.5-liter V6 engine, an option choice above the Ecotec four. The V6 achieves 200 horsepower, which is adequate — that word again — for a 3,500-pound four-door, and its 220 foot-pounds of torque moves the Maxx away from stops with adequate zip.
Climbing into the Maxx, the interior is well laid out, especially the gauges and switchgear for the driver. I have grown to appreciate the firm support of stiffer seats for maintaining alertness and driving control, and I found the seats in the Maxx almost old-time soft compared to the firmness of the competitors.
The hatchback offers a worthy alternative between sedans and donÂ’t-call-it-a-station-wagon, and the test car had a heavily tinted skylight over the rear portion, which doesnÂ’t do a lot for occupants of the first or second row of seats, but would brighten up the rear a little, if you happened to haul your dog back there. Fido, and any groceries or objects you might want to haul, are easily loaded through the large, top-opening hatch.
Living with the Malibu has some surprise benefits. For example, as I drove through the I94 tunnel leaving the west edge of Minneapolis, the headlights suddenly came on. I like that feature, because often, even if you think about switching the lights on in a tunnel, you rationalize that itÂ’s only a short tunnel so you can get along without them, even though it’s obviously safer to have them on. After driving through some monsoon-quality rainstorms in the past week, where some drivers couldnÂ’t see and pulled off onto freeway shoulders, I was amazed at how many drivers turned their wipers on full but didnÂ’t turn on their headlights (even though itÂ’s required by law). Daytime running lights donÂ’t activate your taillights, so switching on the headlights in foul weather is vital to being seen. So having lights that come on when sensors perceive adequate darkness can be a benefit.
A bigger benefit, and a tremendous feature, is the remote start feature that was standard on the LT model of the Maxx. You have a remote key-fob switch to lock and unlock the doors and hatch, and if you click it in the proper sequence, you can start the vehicle from across the parking lot. That could be a good feature when itÂ’s a humid, 90-degree day, because you could have the air-conditioner preset, and cool down the car before you get to it. ItÂ’s a much more impressive benefit in wintertime, when you can start a car in subzero weather and warm up both the engine and the interior. It is timed to shut itself off, and it will shut itself off as a safety precaution when anyone opens a door.
The audio system was quite good, and a separate set of rear audio headphones and controls should make the kids happy. Heated front seats should make you and your front passenger happy, and six-way power driver seat with manual lumbar support, plus adjustable pedals, should make the driver happy. A fold-flat front backrest, plus “multi-flex†rear seats, make hauling long objects easier.
Other standard features are a four-speed automatic, front and side airbags with side head-curtain bags as well, four-wheel disc brakes and antilock brakes, foglights, and, of course, power windows and locks, tilt and telescoping steering wheel and air conditioning.
The standard price for the LT Malibu Maxx is $24,610, which is fully equipped. In fact, there were no options on the car, so adding only destination price runs the sticker to $25,235. You could add things like XM satellite radio, or OnStar, and still be under $26,000. ThatÂ’s a pretty good price, and especially with General Motors recently offering any buyer the inside, corporate employee discount on most of its vehicles. As it is, the price puts it under such top-dog competitors as the Honda Accord and Toyota Camry.
However, U.S. car-makers have suffered greatly with their own internal problems in recent years, and they have had to watch import companies take over the intermediate segment pretty thoroughly, where the Accord and Camry have soared above and beyond any competitors in U.S. sales. Other prime competitors, such as the Mazda 6 – my favorite among current models – plus the Nissan Altima, Subaru Legacy, Volkswagen Jetta, and now the new Hyundai Sonata, make that a very competitive battleground.
But while the Malibu and Maxx might sneak under the price of the top competitors, they are the latest examples of how General Motors hopes to save money by building old-technology pushrod engines that ignore the technical advantages of overhead-camshaft design. ThatÂ’s an old and tiresome debate, but all of those above-listed competitors offer smooth-running, free-revving overhead-cam engines with four valves per cylinder, in both four and V6 powerplants. If you compare horsepower, the Camry offers 210 horsepower with the 3.0-liter V6, and 225 horses in a larger 3.3, while the AccordÂ’s 3.0-liter V6 runs away from both with 240 horsepower with a single-overhead cam, 24-valve engine.
The Malibu burns regular gas, a huge benefit, but so does the Accord. General Motors, in general (so to speak), and Chevrolet in particular, have boasted for years that less-expensive and adequate-but-not-high-tech equipment is good enough to dominate the industry. But that domination has slipped away, making the alternate possibility loom larger. Younger buyers in a society that considers any computer or cell-phone more than six months old to be outdated, canÂ’t be expected to consider older engine technology high-tech, just because it’s cheaper for the manufacturer to build.
The most ironic circumstance is that General Motors has a fantastic and very competitive engine – the Cadillac “high feature†3.6-liter V6, which also can be obtained in 2.8 or 3.2 liter displacement options. That engine delivers 255 horsepower in standard form, and General Motors engineers have extracted more in testing. But GM wonÂ’t let anyone outside Cadillac, except for the Buick LaCrosse, to use that engine, presumably because it costs more to build. Too bad, because that engine would push the Malibu Maxx, Grand Prix, G6, and countless other GM sedans and coupes — which are high tech everywhere except under the hood — to vault from adequate to world class.
Otherwise, itÂ’s possible the MaxxÂ’s versatility and flexibility can carry it to some competitive sales achievements beyond fleets, and itÂ’s also possible that being solid and tight, and decidedly…adequate, might be good enough to offset the technologically advanced competition. Time will tell.
(John Gilbert writes weekly new-car reviews and can be contacted at cars@jwgilbert.com.)
About the Author
John Gilbert is a lifetime Minnesotan and career journalist, specializing in cars and sports during and since spending 30 years at the Minneapolis Tribune, now the Star Tribune. More recently, he has continued translating the high-tech world of autos and sharing his passionate insights as a freelance writer/photographer/broadcaster. A member of the prestigious North American Car and Truck of the Year jury since 1993. John can be heard Monday-Friday from 9-11am on 610 KDAL(www.kdal610.com) on the "John Gilbert Show," and writes a column in the Duluth Reader.
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