We just got our son a '98 Eclipse GS. Kinda basic car but has a few mods such as cold air intake, header, strut bars and a body kit. I have done a little research and it seems there have been issues with the engines in these cars. I could be mistaken. I am an old school gearhead currently owning a '67 GTX w/440, '69 Hurst SC/Rambler w/390 and a '73 AMX w/401. The purpose of our post is to get more familiar with the Eclipse and learn of all the mods available. While he will be on a budget, (his money), we are looking for the easiest mods first. Thanks for your help and look forward to any and all suggestions.

Gary

 

Start with the exhaust. Turbo or no? If not don't go bigger than a 2.5" exhaust if it does have a turbo go for a 3" exhaust (I'm refering to the piping not the muffler outlet mind you).

Also is it an automatic or stick? Look into getting strut tower braces and if a manual look at better clutches (I run an ACT in my Conquest).

 

he said its a gs, sounds like its more show then go so im gonna guess its n/a

 

hay there is nothing wrong with a GS! lol. but i am also swaping my motor with a 1g eagle talon motor! GOT BOOST any one

o ya get rid of the cold air and get a short ram less chance of vapor lock, this is your kids every day driver right! but if he is not going to race it why mod it, just make it look cool and he will get the chicks!

 

o i wasnt sayin that theres anything wrong with it, but from what CT67GTX was sayin its got on it, it doesnt seem like they focused too much on makin it fast, thats why i didnt think that they wouldve put a turbo kit in it, plus im sure thats something he wouldve mentioned if it did have one

 

first mod-remove body kit

 

First off, thanks for all the replies. Hey Sang, it is not turbo so do they make a 2 1/2 inch cat back kit for the exhaust? It is a stick and already has a strut tower brace.

Hey Bud, thanks for the info on the cold air vs short ram. What is the benefit of the short ram?

David, why remove the body kit? It looks pretty good. What would I go with if I were to take it off? Thanks all for the info.

Gary N

 

98 eclipse's just look so good with some factory bumpers

 

The major problem youll find with that car is that the head gaskets suck. They are known to fail. The engine itself is a good engine. But with that N/A car its really hard to add alot of HP without big $$. If you want a little more looks get maybe some good lowering springs. Exhaust is a good idea.

 

the benefit of the short ram is that you run a lower risk of water getting sucked into the intake and hydrolock. When I had a 95 Nissan Maxima, for winter and spring seasons, I changed my cold air intake that was in the fender to a short ram intake, it seemed to be a bit louder, and I didn't notice any loss of power.