2003 Mitsubishi Eclipse — 2.4L

The 2003 Mitsubishi Eclipse sits near the tail end of a turbulent period that peaked during 2000–2001, when complaints reached 314 and 316 respectively, investigations were active at 2–3 per year, and TSBs climbed to 140–167. By 2002, the complaint count had dropped sharply to 104 with zero investigations, and 2003 shows 166 complaints alongside 5 recalls and 115 TSBs—a notable volume indicating that while the worst of the federal scrutiny had passed, the vehicle still generated significant service and defect reports. The 22 crash-related complaints and 7 fire complaints for 2003 are figures that warrant attention within this dataset. Comparing to the subsequent years, 2004 drops to just 14 complaints, suggesting the 2003 model year was among the last to feel the aftereffects of whatever quality or design issues drove the earlier spike. The top complaint categories—structure at 33, powertrain at 19, and air bags at 11—indicate no single overwhelming defect but rather diffuse concerns across critical systems. The 2003 Eclipse therefore appears to be a transitional model within this generation's reliability arc, benefititing from some resolution of the 1995–2001 issues but still carrying elevated complaint and TSB activity relative to the cleaner 2004–2005 period. A buyer should weigh the lower purchase price against the higher likelihood of encountering age-related structural or powertrain issues compared to the later, more refined model years.