The storied Eclipse nameplate may not be dead, after all: a Mitsubishi executive reportedly hinted at the return of the Mitsubishi Eclipse sports car after its recent demise.
Greg Adams, Vice President of marketing and product planning at Mitsubishi Motors North America, hinted to Ward’s Auto during a recent media event that the Eclipse may not be fully dead and gone, saying it “always comes back around sooner or later.”
The case for bringing the Eclipse bask may be tough, especially as Mitsubishi puts its focus more and more on smaller, global, and efficient vehicles. It doesn’t help that the Eclipse sold fewer than 7000 units through August of this year, shortly before Mitsubishi pulled the last unit off of the assembly line and auctioned it off for charity.
That’s a spectacular fall from grace: in 2002, just after it starred in The Fast and the Furious opposite Paul Walker and Vin Diesel, the Eclipse sold more than ten times that amount. Sales totaled a solid 72,040 units.
In any case, Adams said Mitsubishi’s tuned into the recently spiked demand for inexpensive sports cars. He’s right: a new Eclipse could battle against future sports cars like Subaru BRZ and Scion (Toyota) FR-S, as well as newer hot hatchbacks like the Ford Focus ST.
If more competition is what keeps the Eclipse from going to the great street race in the sky, we can’t complain. Should Mitsubishi bring back the Eclipse? Let us know in the comments section below.
