I'm still a n00b to this site but I saw this section and figured I'd kick in my story.

I bought my 03 Eclipse GT (manual tranny) in April of this year, my first car. I liked the design and the smooth torque curve of the V6 but it was only after I got it that I became more into Mitsubishis and cars in general, and learned that the 2G is generally better respected among tuners. I didn't really care, I loved driving it. But the perception of the 3G as the bastard child of the Eclipse family probably led to what happened a couple months ago.

I was driving home late one night with my girlfriend when I pull up to a stoplight on a four-lane local road near my house. Kids sometimes race in this area in the wee hours because it's deserted and almost exactly a 1/4 mile straight. I should have expected it when I heard this buzzy weed whacker of a black EJ coupe come up from behind me, pull up and rev but I almost didn't want to believe it - this guy couldn't be serious. I took the blind man's tint, the chromed out rims and the 10-inch Autozone muffler as his way of saying "force feed me humble pie." So I shrugged and figured, why not.

Now my Eclipse has no major mods. The stock GT makes 200 bhp (not sure what it makes at the wheels), and with the Injen cool air intake and Thermal cat-back exhaust that were on the car when I bought it, it probably makes... 200 bhp :P But the light turns green, I drop it into first and the 210 ft lbs of torque immediately spanks that little 130hp 4cyl off the line. By the time I hit redline and throw it into 2nd I'm already a half length in front of him... in the split second that the roar of my exhaust takes a breath during the shift I can hear that fart cannon screaming behind me to keep up and then I realize... the gear changes are too close... there's no way he's even nearing the rev limiter and it dawns on me that he's running an automatic. I push the throttle in further just on principle and at 4500 rpm in 3rd, I'm wiping the floor with a bottle of Vtec, and my girlfriend is pinned back in her seat telling me to stop being so idiotic because our turnoff is coming up.

It wasn't even close, but I slow down to make the turn and can hear the Civic closing the now huge gap between us. He blows by me with authority, and as a parting gift I get to see the little red 'Si' badge on his decklid. I'm no Honda expert but I'm thinking ricer badge aka fake...

Haha, sorry for the long story, just thought you guys would find it amusing. 3G FTW!

Street racing is dangerous. That is all.

200hp at the engine about 160 at the wheels. with intake and exhaust your about 165-170hp at the wheels. engine about 205-210hp