Mitsubishi Starion: the turbo coupé before the Eclipse

The Mitsubishi Starion is a sports car built from 1982 to 1989, with badge-engineered versions sold in North America as the Chrysler, Dodge and Plymouth Conquest. It is a two-door fastback coupé with four seats, a front-mounted four-cylinder engine driving the rear wheels and, in most versions, a turbocharger.

Mitsubishi Starion at a glance

Based on one source: the English Wikipedia article on the Mitsubishi Starion.

History of the Mitsubishi Starion

A Japanese grand tourer

Mitsubishi began selling the Starion in 1982, at a time when Japanese grand tourers such as the Nissan Z cars, Mazda RX-7, Toyota Supra, Honda Prelude, Isuzu Piazza and Subaru XT were all on the market. It was one of the first modern Japanese turbocharged performance cars with electronic fuel injection. In the United States it was the Mitsubishi Starion and the Dodge, Plymouth and Chrysler Conquest; in Britain it was the Colt Starion. It appeared in the 1984 film Cannonball Run II with Jackie Chan at the wheel.

Mitsubishi says the name is a contraction of Star of Arion, referring to a star and to the mythical horse Arion, and the Japanese sales brochure of May 1982 described it as a combination of star and Hercules’ horse symbolising the universe, power and high performance. Several sources attribute the name to Japanese engineers struggling to pronounce stallion, and an early television commercial closed with a stallion’s head.

Chassis and engines

The Starion used a front-mounted engine with rear-wheel drive, a limited-slip differential and, on many cars, single-channel anti-lock brakes on the rear wheels. Its chassis came from the sporting version of the Sapporo, or Galant Lambda, with MacPherson struts, anti-roll bars front and rear and gearbox rather than rack-and-pinion steering. American buyers received the larger 2.6-litre single-overhead-camshaft Astron G54B, while most markets had the 2.0-litre Sirius G63B, later seen in double-overhead-camshaft form in the Lancer Evolution. The two produced roughly the same power, the 2.6 with more torque and the 2.0 with a higher redline; contemporary testers found the 2.0 peaky and exciting and the American 2.6 strong but less rewarding. Both used computer-controlled fuel injection and turbocharging. After 1987 European cars and the Japanese GSR-VR also took the 2.6, as emissions rules tightened, and reviews were negative because the change came with a heavier body.

From 1984 to 1987 Japan had a 12-valve version of the 2.0 in the top GSR-V and some GSR-VR models. Called Dual Action Super Head, or DASH, it opened a third intake valve above a certain engine speed to improve top-end flow, and the redline rose to 7,000 rpm. Turbocharged output ranged from 145 to 200 PS depending on the turbocharger, the intercooler and whether the engine had an eight- or twelve-valve head. A naturally aspirated GX was sold in Japan until 1983 without power windows, air conditioning, independent rear suspension, fuel injection or power steering.

Bodies and equipment

The car was built in narrowbody and widebody forms, the narrow one complying with Japanese rules that taxed larger vehicles and engines over two litres. Only the narrowbody was offered up to the 1985.5 model year, and the arrival of the widebody split the range into a lower-powered non-intercooled narrow car and a high-performance intercooled widebody, usually badged ESI-R or Conquest TSi. Widebody cars were sold in the United States from 1986 to 1989. Seating was 2+2 with rear seats unsuitable for large adults, while the front seats adjusted for lumbar, angle, knee support and position with variable-angle side braces. Front belts were mounted in the doors, and 1987 and later American cars had electrically operated belts; newer cars kept their windows powered for 30 seconds after the engine was switched off. Most models had a five-speed manual, with an automatic available.

Design and features

• Turbocharging: electronic fuel injection and a turbo on both engines.
• Narrow and wide bodies: the widebody arrived for 1986 with an intercooler.
• DASH head: the 12-valve Japanese engine with a third intake valve.
• Conquest: sold in America under three Chrysler badges.
• 2+2 coupé: four seats, rear-wheel drive and a limited-slip differential.

Mitsubishi Starion versions

• Starion (1982): narrowbody with the 2.0 engine.
• GSR-V (1984): Japanese 12-valve DASH engine.
• Widebody (1986): intercooled high-performance version.
• Conquest TSi and ESI-R: American and export names for the widebody.
• Starion GX: naturally aspirated Japanese model to 1983.

The Starion came from the Sapporo chassis and was sold alongside the Cordia and Tredia. Its engine led to the Lancer Evolution, and more cars are in the Mitsubishi collection.

Sources

• Mitsubishi Starion, English Wikipedia: name, chassis, engines, bodies