| CAR | 07.01.28.1 | 1999 Mitsubishi Eclipse GS-T |
| Car | 07.01.28.2 | 1996 Honda Civic EX |
Locating a stock front-wheel-drive Eclipse is about as easy as finding pistons for a rotary- impossible. Power Pages always consist of Hondas -they're a dime a dozen-but finding a stock Eclipse is pretty much impossible. Here at Tuner, we've had one turbo Eclipse and two normally aspirated Eclipses since the start of the magazine, which tells us that's not enough.
Most of Eclipses we see are all-wheel drive, a challenge because they're impossible to run on a two-wheel-drive dyno. The gods were smiling upon us the day that Aries Dizon from Dynamic Autosports called to inform us about a stock front-wheel-drive GST they were about to perform surgery on.
The EngineThe 4G63 engine housed in the '99 Eclipse turbo is the same engine that motivates Sean Glazar and Brent Rau down the quarter mile in nine seconds. The potential in this 2.0-liter turbocharged engine is limitless and, considering the stock mill is factory rated at 210 ponies and 214 lb-ft of torque, already gives it an edge over the competition. As far as aftermarket support on this beast, you name it and you can bet your ass a company will have it.
Performance ComponentsFor these "Power Pages," we called upon some of best companies to get a taste of the potential in a GS-T. It's always best to start out with the basics; since our car is in turbo trim, this gives us the ability to up the turbo pressure in our second half of this two-segment "Power Pages." We started with the basics; an aftermarket air filter, upgrade exhaust system and turbo downpipe.
Our intake system is made by Injen Technology. This showcase piece comes in a polished aluminum and is also offered with and without blow-off valve inlet flange. Since most aftermarket blow-off valves vent into the atmosphere rather than routing back into the intake track, Injen eliminated plugging an unused hole in the intake by offering two different intakes for the two different types of blow-off valves. The filter is an open element type, complete with a cast aluminum mass air adapter.
The exhaust system is the same type used by most of the Eclipse pros. Thermal Research & Development makes a full stainless-steel, 3-inch system, complete with all hardware needed to bolt the exhaust system to the factory downpipe. The muffler is also stainless, equipped with a 4-inch polished tip. For OBDII vehicles, the second O2 sensor bung is also available.
Buschur Racing has been in the Diamond Star tuning business since the beginning of the turbo Eclipse era. One of its hardest hitting products is a 2.5-inch downpipe that features a complete bolt-on installation. The piece is made of mild steel that bolts to the factory O2 housing and OE catalytic converter. Although this unit doesn't remove the OEM cat, it is still considered an off-road power adder.
Dyno TestingBaseline testing was performed with the GT Sport ADR-50 wheels on Falken 451 tires. Our foundation is set at 165 hp at 185.0 lb-ft of torque. Considering the circumference difference, horsepower was still at a nominal level for a stock GS-T, so upgrading the looks of our Eclipse didn't affect the horsepower output much.