2009 Mitsubishi Eclipse

No clear pattern

0% of complaints about the 2009 Mitsubishi Eclipse arrived in its first year of service. That is an unusual figure for a 2009 vehicle, but with only 44 complaints on record the sample is too small to call it a pattern — the margin of error covers the range where ordinary vehicles sit. The figures below are reported without a verdict. The most-reported system is service brakes (27 complaints), typically at 6.8 yr or about 67,000 miles.

Complaints: 44
Median age at failure: 6.8 yr
Median mileage: 67,070 n=24
Crash / fire / tow: 22.7% of reports
Safety recalls: 1

Safety recalls — NHTSA campaigns

15V337000 2015-06-02

Service brakes, hydraulic:antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip:control unit/module

Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) is recalling certain model year 2006-2009 Eclipse vehicles manufactured April 20, 2005, to February 13, 2009, and 2007-2009 Eclipse Spyder vehicles manufactured December 23, 2005, to February 13, 2009. Due to corrosion inside the antil-lock brake system (ABS) unit, one or more of the internal valves may seize. In a braking event that uses the ABS, a seized valve would increase brake pedal travel and reduce braking ability.

A sudden reduction of braking performance may increase the risk of a crash.

In owners’ own words

Service brakes 75,000 mi 6.0 yr in service

DRIVING IN A RESIDENTIAL AREA AND HIT MY BRAKES TO AVOID A CAR STOPPING ABRUPTLY. MY BRAKES WENT SOFT AND I HAD TO SWERVE TO AVOID SLAMMING INTO THE BACK OF THE VEHICLE. MY BRAKES REMAINED VERY SOFT WITH LITTLE TO NO BRAKING POWER FOR AT LEAST A DAY. THIS IS THE SECOND OCCURRENCE IN A MONTH. THE BRAKES WHEN PRESSED WERE VERY SOFT AND WHISTLED WHEN I LIFTED MY FOOT. I RECORDED THE SOUND FOR DOCUMENTATION. *TR

Service brakes 132,245 mi 6.9 yr in service crash / fire / tow

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 MITSUBISHI ECLIPSE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING 20 MPH, THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED AND CAUSED THE CONTACT TO CRASH INTO ANOTHER VEHICLE. THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED AND THERE WERE NO INJURIES. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN TO A DEALER OR INDEPENDENT MECHANIC. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 132,245.

Service brakes mileage not reported 6.7 yr in service

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 MITSUBISHI ECLIPSE. THE CONTACT RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 15V337000 (SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC); HOWEVER, THE PART NEEDED TO DO THE REPAIR WAS UNAVAILABLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE MANUFACTURER EXCEEDED A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME FOR THE RECALL REPAIR. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE ISSUE. THE CONTACT HAD NOT EXPERIENCED A FAILURE.

Other Eclipse model years

How to read this

This is what owners reported, not a reliability rating. People file with NHTSA about alarming failures, not routine ones, and complaint volume tracks how many cars were sold.
Failure ages come from the incident date on each complaint, populated on about 83% of records. Mileage is shown where reported — NHTSA’s 2021 system change cut mileage capture to roughly 15%, so it thins out sharply after MY2020.
Every rank compares this vehicle only against others of the same model year. A 2025 car has not had time to accumulate five-year failures, so comparing early-failure share across years is meaningless.
Fourteen make-months distorted by media storms and mass recalls — Toyota in February 2010 ran 11× normal volume across 33 models — are excluded.
Recalls are manufacturer actions and authoritative; complaints are not. A recall listed here may already have been performed on any individual car. Check a specific VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

2009 Mitsubishi Eclipse

When each system is reported — middle 50% of complaints

Safety recalls — NHTSA campaigns

In owners’ own words

Other Eclipse model years

How to read this