Squealing belts at startup, inconsistent small leaks of coolant, hesitation at 2k RPM were only pre-cursors. Out of nowhere, while driving on highway, I looked at gauges for no particular reason....noticed the temperature was rising, eventually going as far as it could above h. So I look for smoke in rear view....nothing. I turn down the radio to listen for noises......nothing. Everything seems fine. Hoping that air through the radiator would cool the engine......not working. I decided I better pull over.....the second I safely stopped, huge puffs of white smoke billowed out the hood edges. I jumped out, opened the hood......huge clouds of smoke and smell of burning rubber, I thought the car was on fire. Once the smoke settled, oil could be seen splattered all over the engine. Tow truck comes and while putting on flatbed.....oil drained out like a water faucet. Found out later from the dealer that oil line burst, causing the head gaskets to blow and most likely damaged totaled the engine. New engine quoted at $5000, used 71,000 mile engine in some salvage yard in alabama quoted at $2-3000. Nice chunk of money and the engine still needs to be shipped and installed. What a deal? I actually spoke highly about mitsubishi's in the past, but now I'm having second thoughts. Too bad mitsubishi company has such a bad history of failures, recalls, and poor repair service. I was actually thinking of buying a 2006 eclipse........not any more. I'll miss my 97 eclipse......it was pretty good to me, but this recent event with no warning, did me in and it is just wrong that I have read similar incidents on the internet and mitsubishi does nothing. Time for an american car...............too bad we don't have the sense to make oil and gas-free vehicles though.......the technology is there. Oh well......I guess I better start figuring out how I am going to get to work on monday.
1997 Mitsubishi Eclipse: fire, smoke or burning smell
7 of the 136 complaints about the 1997 Mitsubishi Eclipse describe fire, smoke or burning smell.
- owner complaints
- 7
- of this car's complaints
- 5%
- recalls
- 0
Fire, smoke or burning smell by model year
What owners say
1997 eclipse caught on fire in the engine compartment. *ts
Smoke coming from under front tire. After inspection by mitsubishi dealership in lancaster, pa, it was discovered that head gasket is leaking oil.
Driver noticed smoke coming from under vehicle. Driver stopped vehicle/ put vehicle in park/ looked under car and saw oil was leaking. When pressing gas consumer could see a flame of fire. Took vehicle to dealer, and they stated that vehicle needed a head gasket.
Engine check light was coming on and vehicle was losing gas. Check valve had gone bad and needed to be replaced. Also, dealer said that if in an accident it would't rollover, it could catch on fire.
Vehicle was parked for 2 hrs and caught on fire. Only other prob was at time of purchase when it leaked because it was a convert. Did take it to dealer and it was not fixed. Fired caused exterior damage to my daughters home. Cause is still unkown.. Would not recommend this car to anyone.
While vehicle was parked the car caught on fire due to tail pipe overheating/ melting the body and the trunk of the vehicle.
Service bulletins that may apply
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the 1997 Mitsubishi Eclipse fire or smoke
Is fire, smoke or burning smell a common problem on the 1997 Mitsubishi Eclipse?
7 of 136 owner complaints about the 1997 Mitsubishi Eclipse (5%) mention fire, smoke or burning smell. The model year with the most reports is 1997.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 1997 Mitsubishi Eclipse?
There are 0 recalls and 1 service bulletin for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 1997 Mitsubishi Eclipse
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