2001 MITSUBISHI ECLIPSE SPYDER Power Train Problems

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2001 MITSUBISHI ECLIPSE SPYDER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE TRANSMISSION FAILED DUE TO AN INTERNAL SPRING FRACTURING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO REBUILT THE TRANSMISSION. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT INCLUDED IN NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 01V011001 (POWER TRAIN). THE DEALER AND MANUFACTURER HAD BEEN NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE AND INDICATED THAT THERE WAS NO SERVICE CAMPAIGN AND RECALL TO PROVIDE A SOLUTION. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS NOT AVAILABLE.

WHILE DRIVING FROM THE HIGHWAY ON AN OFF RAMP AT 50 MPH, ENGINE (RPM) STARTED BOGGING DOWN, THEN BOTH FRONT TIRES LOCKED UP TO A SCREECHING HALT. I ALMOST SLIDE OFF THE RAMP AND ALMOST GOT REAR ENDED BY A SEMI TRUCK BEHIND ME. FRONT TIRES WERE LOCKED UP, WOULD NOT MOVE OUT OF THE ROAD AND WOULD NOT COME OUT OF GEAR. HAD IT TOWED TO REPAIR SHOP AND WAS QUOTED $3,000 JUST TO PULL THE TRANSMISSION FOR DIAGNOSTICS. WAS TOLD TRANSMISSION FAILED AND VEHICLE WOULD NOT BE WORTH THE MONEY TO FIX BECAUSE FRONT STRUT TOWERS BOTH WERE RUSTED. HAD VEHICLE TOWED HOME AND I WILL TRY TO PERFORM THE REPAIR MYSELF. *TR

Mileage: 110,000

ON 2/21/10 EARLY SUNDAY MORNING I WAS DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY AT APPROX. 55MI/HR WHEN MY MITSUBISHI ECLIPSE JUST STOPPED. IT WOULD NOT GO FORWARDS OR BACKWARDS. THERE WAS NO NOISE OR SOUND OF ANY KIND TO INDICATE SOMETHING WAS WRONG. I HAD TO COAST TO THE SIDE OF THE FREEWAY AND SAT THERE FOR 3 1/2 HRS FOR A TOW TRUCK. CAR WAS TAKEN TO SOUTH PARK MITSUBISHI IN BETHEL PARK. IT WAS DIAGNOSED AS A TOTAL TRANSMISSION FAILURE AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. MY CAR HAD ONLY 57183 MILES AND I WANTED THE TRANSMISSION REBUILT. THEY WOULD NOT DO THAT. I HAD THE CAR TOWED TO AAMCO. I READ ON LINE COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE TRANSMISSION USED IN MY CAR AND ALSO CERTAIN CHRYSLER MODELS WITH A DEFECTIVE "WAVE SPRING" THAT BREAKS SUDDENLY AND CAUSED CATASTROPHIC FAILURE IN THE TRANSMISSION. I ASKED AAMCO TO SAVE ALL BROKEN PARTS. THE WAVE SPRING BROKE, WENT THROUGH THE PUMP, AND BROKE THE GEARS JUST AS DESCRIBED IN THE ARTICLE "MITSUBISHI F4A51 AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION HAZARD PROBLEM". THIS PROBLEM WAS WELL KNOWN BY MITSUBISHI BECAUSE THE WAVE SPRING WAS REDESIGNED BUT TOOK NO ACTION TO NOTIFY OWNERS OF THE HAZARD THAT EXISTED. BY SWAPPING OUT A REBUILT TRANSMISSION, THE MITSUBISHI DEALER DOES NOT MAKE THE CUSTOMER AWARE OF THE PROBLEM AND JUST ASSUMES THE TRANSMISSION WENT BAD AND NEEDED REPLACED THEREFORE NOT MAKING THE ACTUAL PROBLEM WELL KNOWN. I SHOULD HAVE BEEN NOTIFIED OF THE PROBLEM AND HAD THE PART REPLACED WITH THE NEW DESIGNED WAVE SPRING. THIS ACTION WOULD HAVE SAVED ME A LOT OF MONEY AND NOT PUT MYSELF AND OTHERS IN DANGER OF HARM OR DEATH. MITSUBISHI KNEW OF THE PROBLEM AND DID NOTHING, THEY NEED TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THEIR ERROR AND MAKE OTHER OWNERS AWARE SO THAT THE PROBLEM CAN BE RESOLVED BEFORE SOMEONE GETS KILLED. THEY CAN NOT STAND BEHIND THEIR CLAIM THAT THE CAR IS OUT OF WARRANTY BECAUSE THIS IS NOT A JUST WEAR AND TEAR CASE. IT IS A DEFECT AND I WANT OTHER OWNERS OF CARS WITH THIS DEFECTIVE PART NOTIFIED AND MY EXPENSES REIMBURSED. *TR

Mileage: 57,183

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2001 MITSUBISHI ECLIPSE SPYDER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT SPEEDS OF 50 MPH, THE TRANSMISSION FAILED. HE WAS ABLE TO MOVE THE VEHICLE OFF OF THE ROAD AND THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE TRANSMISSION WAS CONTAMINATED AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE HAD NOT BEEN REPAIRED WHEN THE COMPLAINT WAS FILED. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGES WERE APPROXIMATELY 106,000.

Mileage: 106,000

THE CLUTCH IS WEARING OUT FAST, IT SEEMS EVERY 1500 MILES A NEW CLUTCH IS NEEDED, TO ME IT THE HORSEPOWER OF THE ENGINE CAN ONLY BE BROUGHT TO THE ROAD AT THE EXPENSE OF EXCESSIVE FLYWHEEL AND CLUTCH WEAR. *TR

Mileage: 65,000

I HAD TO BRING IN MY 2001 MITSUBISHI ECLIPSE SPYDER GS TO A MECHANIC DUE TO AN APPARENT LEAKAGE. THE MECHANIC SAID THAT CAR WAS UNDER A RECALL WHICH HE PRINTED FOR ME. IT IS 01V011001:AUTOMATIC TRANSAXLE HOSE ASSEMBLY WHICH IS THE EXACT PROBLEM I AM HAVING. MITSUBISHI REFUSES TO MAKE THE REPAIR AND SAYS MY PARTICULAR CAR IS NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL. I DON'T UNDERSTAND HOW THIS COULD BE IF MY MECHANIC PULLED IT FROM THE NHTSA BULLETIN. *JB

LEFT REAR WHEEL HARDWARE ATTACHING THE WHEEL, BACKING PLATE, BRAKE CALIPERS TO REAR AXLE FAILED. THERE WERE FOUR ATTACHING BOLTS THAT SHEARED OFF UNDER STRESS OF CRASH AVOIDANCE THAT CAUSED THE REAR WHEEL TO FALL OFF AND LOSE CONTRO OF THE VEHICLE. *AK

Mileage: 30,650

AFTER 39,000 MILES ON MY 2001 MITSUBISHI ECLIPSE SPYDER, THE MANUAL TRANSMISSION IS EXPERIENCING PROBLEMS. SPECIFICALLY, THE CAR HAS TROUBLE SHIFTING INTO FIRST AND SECOND GEARS (WORST WHEN COLD), STUDDERS WHEN FIRST ACCELERATING, AND MAKES A CONTINUOUS RATTLING NOISE WHEN THE CLUTCH IS NOT ENGAGED. THESE PROBLEMS ARE APPARENTLY THE RESULT OF A DEFECT IN THE TRANSMISSION INVOLVING THE CLUTCH PLATE/THROW-OUT-BEARINGS/SYNCHRONIZERS. I HAVE LEARNED OF HUNDREDS OF OTHER PEOPLE WHO HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM, SAME SYMPTOMS, AND SAME CAUSE. MITSUBISHI SHOULD ISSUE A RECALL FOR THIS PROBLEM BUT HAS NOT DONE SO.

Mileage: 37,000

TRANSMISSION HAS BEEN JUMPING AND SLIPPING SINCE PURCHASE. THE DEALER FROM WHOM I PURCHASED HAS GONE OUT OF BUSINESS. *AK

Mileage: 1

SINCE I PURCHASED MY CAR BACK IN NOVEMBER OF 2001, A 2001 MITSUBISHI SPYDER GT, I HAVE HAD PROBLEMS WITH MY CLUTCH SLIPPING WHEN STARTING IN 1ST GEAR, WITH EXTREME STUTTERING AND SHUTTERING OF MY VEHICLE AND HAVE INFORMED MY DEALERSHIPS (WOBURN MITSUBISHI WOBURN, MA AND PETER FULLER-WATERTOWN MA) OF THE PROBLEMS IN WRITING. THEY ALL BLOW ME OFF TELLING ME THAT NOTHING COULD BE WRONG THIS EARLY ON, WITH SO FEW MILES ON THE CAR. WELL THE CAR IS STILL STUTTERING, EVEN HAS STALLED OUT, EVEN WHEN GIVING PLENTY OF GAS. IF THIS WERE TO HAPPEN OVER TRAIN TRACKS, IN THE MIDDLE OF AN INTERSECTION, ETC. I WOULD BE INVOLVED IN A MAJOR ACCIDENT THREATENING MYSELF AND MY PASSENGER(S). BECAUSE I HAVE BROUGHT THIS UP TO THE ATTENTION OF MY DEALER BEFORE I EVEN HIT 10K, AND HAVE BROUGHT THIS UP AT EACH SUBSEQUENT MAJOR VEHICLE SERVICE TIME, AND I NOW HAVE 38K ON MY WARRANTY HAS EXPIRED WITH NO HELP. ITS LIKE THE DEALERSHIPS HAVEN'T EVEN CALLED THE TECHNICAL SUPPORT HOTLINE TO VERIFY THAT THIS IS A KNOWN PROBLEM. THIS IS NEGLECT ON THE PART OF THE DEALERSHIPS AND ON THE PART OF MITSUBISHI TRAINED PROFESSIONALS, AND IF NO WARNING HAS BEEN PUT OUT THEN IT IS ALSO MITSUBISHI MOTORS ITSELF THAT SHOULD BE HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY RELATED INJURIES. THE STUTTERING OF THE CAR HAPPENS TO THIS DAY, COLD WARM, IT DOESN'T MATTER. I'VE BEEN DRIVING A STICK SINCE I WAS 16, AND I'VE NEVER SEEN THIS OCCUR ON ANY OTHER VEHICLES. *JB

Mileage: 10,000

THE SHIFTING KNOB ON THE MITSUBISHI ECLIPSE SPYDER LOOSENS OVER A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME CAUSING THE SHIFTING KNOB TO COME FREE OF THE SHIFTER. LEAVING THE DRIVER WITHOUT THE CAPABILITY OR SHIFTING CONTROL OF THE METAL SHAFT. THE DRIVER MUST THEN TRY AND SLOW TO A STOP AND RE-INSTALL THE SHIFTING KNOB. THIS HAS HAPPENED SEVERAL TIMES WITH THE DEALER INSTALLING NEW SCREWS, WHICH WORK FREE WITHIN A WEEK OR SO. THE DEALER HAS BEEN UNABLE TO STOP THE PROBLEM FROM RECURRING.*JB