A practical sports car

I've had my 2001 Mitsubishi Eclipse GT for about a week now. The one I bought has the 205 horsepower V6, the A21 Leather, Sun, and Sound package, and the automatic transmission with SportTronic.

I was considering more expensive cars like the Infiniti I30 and the Acura 3.2TL, but decided to get the Eclipse because of the significant cost savings and the "fun factor" of owning my first sports car.

Things I Like:
1) The Eclipse is very fast. It accelerates very quickly, and cruises at 90 mph like my old car did at 45. The ride is smooth at any speed. I commute on an interstate with a speed limit of 70 mph, and I always find myself going much faster than that when I am not paying attention.


2) It handles like it's on rails. I remember riding in a new Plymouth Laser in high school, which was essentially an Eclipse by another name. I wanted one ever since then. It was a fast car, but it would corner like the road was an extension of the vehicle. This new Eclipse is no different, hugging the curves with its low profile Goodyear Eagle tires and 17" aluminum wheels. It's a joy to drive.

3) The interior is very nice. I opted for the black leather interior, and the manual-adjustment drivers seat. The premium package included an electronic front seat, but the difference in cost did not justify the extra features to me. The drivers seat is very comfortable, and can be adjusted by sliding forward and back and leaning forward and back. It also has a wheel that lets you adjust the seat height vertically, and a lever to set three different levels of lumbar support. The vertical adjustment is especially welcome, since I am 6'2" and my wife is 5'4".

4) The SportTronic transmission is a lot of fun. My wife insisted I get an automatic for the times when she might drive it, but I like the option of a manual override when cruising down a twisty road. The transmission shifts equally smoothly in manual or automatic mode.

5) The sunroof/moonroof is a joy. It has one-touch opening and closing. Wind noise is minimal when open and nonexistent when closed. I've never had a sunroof in a car before, but I'll never have a car without one again.

6) The 7-speaker Infinity sound system with CD player is great. The bass is boomy, and the treble is crisp. This is one of the best stock car stereos I have ever heard.

7) It's kid-friendly. The back seat has room for a kids to sit, and more importantly, you can get a car seat back there. We have a Britax car seat with a built-in tether, and I was happy to find out that the Eclipse has tether latches in the back to secure car seats. This is a minor thing, but a nice touch all the same.


Things I Don't Like:
1) Rear visibility is not that great. The mirrors work well for what they show you, but the rear window is small, and you just can't see that much out the back.

2) The turning radius is large. My wife drives a Ford Expedition, and its turning radius seems about the same as the Eclipse. That's not as bad as it sounds (the Expedition turns a lot tighter than you might think), but I still find myself being careful around corners in the parking garage at work, where I would fly around them with abandon in my old Escort.

3) My head touches the ceiling sometimes. I am rather tall (6'2" as I said), but it still is odd to me that the ceiling is low enough that my hair brushes against it now and then. A minor thing, but worth noting to anyone taller than I am.


Conclusion
This car is not the pocket-rocket that the Eclipse used to be. Then again, I was 16 back then, and I'm 27 now with a wife and a small child. The Eclipse is not a "family car", but it's a practical sports car, which is as much as you could hope for in such a fun, exciting package. I feel like I'm commuting to work in a Ferrari.