GSX

SUMMARY OF VEHICLE CONDITION
Condition: Engine non-working, but reparable. Fair body & paint condition; Suspected problem: Off timing, valves possibly hitting pistons; Confirmed symptom: Little to no compression; Major Modifications: Balancer shaft taken out. Interior upholstery, accessories, and wheels downgraded; Title: None, filed as junk (see below) (Clean Ownership History Guaranteed).

Episode I - The Beginning
This GSX was purchased in 1997 by my brother Paul. In the first half of 1998, oil leakage began to occur and progressed to the point where it was necessary to add oil every week. Paul then brought the car to his mechanic friend (who works at a Mitsubishi dealership service center) who fixed the problem by replacing a host of seals and gaskets.

During the repair, the mechanic noticed that the balancer shaft had been missing. On the other hand, since this vehicle was purchased, to the day it was last operable, the lack of balancer shaft has never caused any problems, nor was it detectable when driving - the car was ferociously fast (almost as fast as a stock non-turbo 90+ 300ZX) and ran as smooth a well-maintained car from 1991.

Episode II - Project
In the second half of 1998, the discovery of the lack of balancer shaft has made Paul lose faith in the car and want to sell it. At that time I was driving a base model 1990 Eclipse. Seeing the opportunity, I convinced him to let me keep his GSX and use it as a "parts car" for my base model Eclipse.

Over a month's time, I swapped the following components between the two cars: power windows, power door lock, power mirrors, front & rear seats, and wheels. (That includes all wiring harnesses specific to the power accessories.) In other words, the GSX now had manual windows, door lock, and mirrors, had less supportive & stylish seats, and a set of wheels of smaller rim size. Nothing else was swapped.

At the end of the project, the title of the car was transferred to my then-girlfriend Charlotty, who began driving the car regularly.

Episode III - Noise
Some time in the beginning of 1999, Charlotty started up the car one morning at her house and heard a moderately loud noise coming from the engine. She and I immediately drove it to a gas station two blocks away for a repair. The gas station diagnosed the problem as a broken starter hanging on one ear with the other ear rubbing against the timing belt (that's what I remember anyways). They fixed it (and adjusted timing in the process). Or, so it seems.

The day they fixed it, the car was indeed up and running fine again. However, the next morning when Charlotty again started up the car, she heard a much louder noise. Whereas the in the previous incidence the noise sounded like very un-smooth mechanisms, this time it sounded a lot like mechanical parts hitting each other. Immediately, we drove it again to the same gas station two blocks away. For the first time, the car seemed to have lost all its power. It had little throttle response and became very difficult to drive.

Episode IV - Liability

The gas station was able to quickly tell me there was no compression in the cylinders, but denied they had anything to do with the problem. They diagnosed the problem as off timing.

In fact, they even gave me a new quote for a second repair. Refusing to be ripped off like that, I drove it back to Charlotty's home (two blocks away).

Later conversations with Paul's Mitsubishi mechanic friend revealed that the GSX has special timing adjustment procedures uncommon even to other DOHC vehicles, and that a local gas station with a repair guy in his 20s is unlikely to be qualified for such a job. Thus, in all likelihood, that gas station repair guy screwed up.

Unfortunately, I was unable to hold them as responsible because, like all repairs, I had signed a Release of Liability agreement prior to the first repair.

Later, I had the car towed on a flatbed truck (as required for this AWD car) to a Mitsubishi dealership service center, who basically gave me the same diagnosis: off timing, no compression, valves probably hitting pistons. I don't even remember what was the repair cost estimate now, but it was expensive.

Episode V - Hibernation
In the following months, while the car was sitting at the parking lot of the Mitsubishi service center, I turned to a government mediator agency to pursue claims against the gas station, without success. After the failure I decided not to pursue this matter further, which would have meant fighting a legal battle in small claims court.

Thus the GSX sat there and endured rain's and shine's, slightly deteriorating its body paint. (See Additional Photos.)

During this period, due to my negligence the car's registration expired (without renewal). When I finally got to it and wanted to file it as Non-Operation, I had passed the deadline. Unfortunately, renewal required a smog inspection on the car, which obviously was out of the question. The only feasible solution was to file the vehicle as junk and get a "junk receipt" and surrender the title to DMV (see "Records"). And that's what I did (a few months ago).

Finally, in early December 2000 I had the car towed, again on a flatbed tow truck, back to Charlotty's apartment's (she has moved in early 2000) garage. And that's where the car is now.

NOTES:

Label on door pillar. Note that the character before "ME" in the VIN is zero (0).

Records
Regrettably I have been very poor at record keeping. As for the title, I actually do not remember whether I surrendered it at the DMV (probably), or merely lost it later on. However, as explained below, this is not significant.

As for the original junk receipt, I lost it. I do, however, have a junk receipt copy issued by DMV.

Rest assured, when buying/selling a vehicle that has been reported junk, it is not necessary to transfer any title, since there is no longer any title associated with the car at all. Also, it is not necessary to register or renew the vehicle, because again the vehicle is not officially registered.

CarFax.com History
You can also see the vehicle's history listing from CarFax.com by:

clicking here to see a copy of it.
asking me to forward the e-mail I got from CarFax.com containing the same info.
getting a live version at CarFax.com yourself. (If asked for a zip code, use 94132.) You may have to register and pay a fee.

Miscellaneous (as of last operation - no guarantee) All major repairs ever performed on this car to my knowledge have been described in this article. Thus, the following "fully functional" components are likely in good condition: Fully functional:
Air Conditioning system Starter Charger Turbo Transmission Differential	Headlights and pop-up mechanism Clutch [replaced once] Turbo timer (I'm not sure on this one) ( installed by previous owner) (before Paul) All other components except those listed below as "Not fully functional" [Never been in major accidents since Paul got the car.]
Not fully functional:
Original factory alarm (maybe I just never figured out how to use it; but it just doesn't seem to work well.) Battery is probably dead. Factory alarm not fully functional. Rear hatch's hydraulic lifts (shocks) need replacing. Currently they don't hold up the hatch by themselves.

CLEAN OWNERSHIP HISTORY GUARANTEE
THIS VEHICLE IS GUARANTEED TO HAVE A CLEAN OWNERSHIP HISTORY. IF, WITHIN THREE MONTHS AFTER PURCHASE OF THIS VEHICLE, YOU FIND OFFICIAL INFORMATION (SUCH AS DMV, GOVERNMENT, CARFAX.COM RECORDS) GROSSLY CONTRADICTING THE STORY AND DESCRIPTIONS GIVEN IN THIS ARTICLE PERTAINING TO OWNERSHIP, TITLE, AND REGISTRATION HISTORIES, YOU MAY RETURN THE VEHICLE FOR A FULL REFUND OF THE PURCHASE PRICE UPON PRESENTATION OF SUCH INFORMATION. THIS OFFER EXCLUDES MINOR TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS AND REASONABLE DATE INACCURACIES. BUYER AGREES THAT THIS VEHICLE IS OTHERWISE BEING SOLD AS-IS (SEE DISCLAIMER BELOW).

DISCLAIMER
This vehicle is being sold AS-IS. Except for the Clean Ownership History Guarantee, nothing else about this car is guaranteed. In particular, although I have in good faith pointed out virtually all problems with this car, it is possible there may be other problems (e.g. mechanical, electrical, cosmetic, etc.).

THIS IS A RELIST (for your information)
This car has been auctioned on eBay as items 534931024 and 548193561 with final bid prices of $1,125 and $1,525, respectively. In both cases the buyers backed out of the transaction, have not made any payments, and have not seen the car. Both claimed that major mishaps happened to them and disabled them from completing the transaction.

PAYMENT and VEHICLE TRANSPORTATION / TOWING
FULL PAYMENT MUST BE RECEIVED WITHIN 24 HOURS of close of auction. DO NOT bid on this auction unless you are confident you can make the payment in 24 HOURS AND arrange for transportation of the car by 2/10 SATURDAY (see below). I accept PayPal, Billpoint, bank checks, cashier's checks, and money orders ONLY. No cash or personal check. In addition:

Payment is non-refundable except where covered under the Clean Ownership History Guarantee.

Buyer must arrange for towing/transportation by 2/10 Saturday and pay all associated costs, and must agree that the car CANNOT be driven away. The car is located inside a house garage on 37th Ave between Geary and Anza. After receipt of payment, the car must be picked up Thursday after 9:30pm, Friday after 6:30pm, or Saturday after 2:30pm all day.

If you cannot meet ALL of the above conditions, DO NOT BID. If payment is not received in 24 hours, I will immediately leave negative feedback and pursue all available legal channels to collect payment. I apologize for the tight timeframe and stringent conditions, but I have already had two buyers backed out of the sale of this car, each time causing me great waste of time and effort, and stress (I work full time and take night classes). I must get the car out of the garage ASAP as that is the promise, already broken twice, I have made to the residents of the house (I do not live there).

VEHICLE MODEL SUMMARY This is the top model Eclipse, featuring AWD (all-wheel drive) with Viscous Coupling Limited Slip Differential, DOHC 16-valve with Turbo.	Label on door pillar
Emblem at back	Label on side ("B") pillar