2003 Mitsubishi Eclipse Spyder GT - In a Class of One
Sunday was a great day. It's usually better than most as it is, with church in the morning and the afternoon spent with family or better yet, snoozing. What made this Sunday particularly sweet was the cold, crisp air and sea to mountain azure sky. Finally, the day before I had to return the new Mitsubishi Eclipse Spyder the clouds parted, rain ceased and needless to say, top came down.
Going roofless changes the Mitsubishi convertible's personality completely. Visibility goes from being near confining, as its oval shaped rear window is rather small, to all encompassing. Its few shakes and shimmies, the result of a bit of cowl flex due to its lack of a body stiffening hard top, are lost in the moment, air blowing through the hair and sun warming the cheeks.
While not as 'tight' as some convertibles the Eclipse Spyder handles commendably. It stays relatively horizontal to road surfaces when pushed and tracks extremely well through switchback corners. It gets the same independent front MacPherson struts and independent rear multi-link setup on coil springs that makes the coupe such an enjoyable dancing partner. The rack-and-pinion steering is reasonably direct with fairly quick turn-in but not in the same motorsport league as some of its competitors.