Mar 8th, 2011 by Ross Edwards
The 2011 Mitsubishi Eclipse Spyder is a fun, stylish four-seater convertible for buyers who want a good-looking drop-top instead of an all-out performance machine. With an available 265 horsepower V6 engine, the 2011 Eclipse Spyder is no slouch, but it can’t compete with the high-powered Ford Mustang or Chevy Camaro. The Eclipse Spyder will also be attractive to buyers who aren’t impressed by the retro styling of the American convertibles.
The Mitsubishi Eclipse Spyder is available with a 162 hp four-cylinder engine or a 265 hp V6. Both the four-cylinder and V6 engines are only available with automatic transmissions, which will turn off some buyers looking for a fun drive. The four-cylinder Eclipse Spyder comes with a four-speed automatic transmission, while the V6 model gets five gears. The four-cylinder engine is rated at 19 miles per gallon city and 27 mpg highway, while the V6 gets 16 mpg city and 24 mpg highway.
The 2011 Mitsubishi Eclipse competes with the 2011 Volkswagen Eos, 2011 Ford Mustang and 2011 MINI Cooper, all of which are stylish convertibles that offer buyers a fun driving experience and a back seat. All of the convertibles except for the Ford Mustang have front-wheel drive, so they are legitimate year-round drivers in cold weather states. If you’re looking for performance, the Mustang is the obvious choice, but buyers who deal with snow every year might be drawn to the front-wheel drive Eclipse with the powerful V6, which will leave the four-cylinder Eos and MINI in the dust.
All of the fun convertibles the Eclipse Spyder competes with have better gas mileage than the Mitsubishi. The Mustang V6 gets 19 mpg city and 29 mpg on the highway, the 2011 MINI Cooper is rated at 28 mpg city and 35 mpg highway and the 2011 Eos gets 21 city and 31 highway miles per gallon.
The 2011 Mitsubishi Eclipse Spyder also has a smaller trunk than the competition. With just 5.2 cubic feet of trunk space in the Eclipse Spyder, you’ll surprisingly find a lot more room in the back of the Eos with 6.6 cubic feet of trunk space and the MINI Cooper with 6.0 cubic feet. The Mustang has a comparatively cavernous 9.6 cubic feet of trunk space.
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