Brought my car in for routine service last Friday. I mentioned that I’d seen the SRS (supplementary restraint system) warning light go on a few times; they checked it out and ended up having to replace both side-impact airbags. Yikes.

Also replaced under warranty was the sunroof switch cover (which kept coming loose and jamming the switch), and a couple other parts they had to replace as a result of replacing the side airbags. I really love my Eclipse GT but it seems every time I bring it in for service they have to replace a few more parts on warranty. The quality really seems to lag far behind my previous car, a comparatively plain and modest Honda Civic.

Therefore it’s probably a good thing that I got the extended warranty option on this car—at the rate it’s depreciating there’s very little point in me selling it to get another car so I’ll probably hang on to it for a few years. (I sold my Civic after two years, for only a couple thousand less than what I originally paid for it.)

However, it bodes ill for my plan to upgrade the car later this or next year. I’ve really got my eye on the RIPP Modifications Supercharger Drive System to add a bit more “oomph” to my car’s performance… but installing it would void my warranty and make these kinds of repairs rather costly. Maybe it would only void the powertrain warranty; seeing as the engine is the only part made in Japan, hopefully it outshines the rest of the car in terms of quality.