The 1995 redesign of the Eclipse created, arguably, one of the most beautiful American-sold Mitsubishis to date. This design lasted through the 1999 model year. In 2000 Mitsubishi completely overhauled the Eclipse, giving it what Edmunds calls a more "grown-up" look, but this design turned off some Eclipse enthusiasts. The 1997 Eclipse did not come standard with a radio, but it did have options for an AM/FM radio, a cassette player and a CD player. Replacing the 1997 Eclipse's radio requires removing the center console to access the radio.
Instructions
- 1
Adjust both seats as far forward as they will go. Look on either side of the rear part of the center console, and find the two circular screw covers. Pry the screw covers off with a flat-head screwdriver, exposing the screw below them. Remove both screws with a Phillips screwdriver.
2Position the seats as far back as they will go. Insert the blade of a flat-head screwdriver under the ashtray and cup holder assembly in the center console, and pry the assembly upward until its retaining clips disengage. Remove the ashtray and cup holder assembly.
3Remove the manual transmission shifter knob, if equipped, by twisting it counterclockwise until it's free from the gear shifter. Remove the two screws under where the ashtray and cup holder assembly was positioned.
4Remove the radio bezel -- the trim piece surrounding the radio and HVAC controls -- by prying around its perimeter until you disengage all of the retaining clips, then remove the bezel. Remove the two screws on the upper part of the console, where the bezel once was.
5Lift the center console upward until it clears the gear shifter. If your Eclipse has a manual transmission, guide the shifter boot off the gear sifter. Unplug the wiring harness from the rear of the cigarette lighter. Slide the center console rearward about 8 to 12 inches -- just enough to slide the radio out.
6Remove the four radio-retaining screws, and slide the radio from the dashboard just far enough to access the wiring on the rear of it. Press and hold the locking button on the radio's wiring harness, and pull the harness from the radio with a slight wiggling motion. Pull the antenna cable -- the black cable -- from the rear of the radio. Remove the radio from the Eclipse.
7Plug the wiring harness and antenna cable into the rear of the new radio. Slide the radio into the dashboard, and tighten the four radio-retaining screws.
8Slide the center console forward, and plug the wiring harness into the rear of the cigarette lighter. Set the center console back into place, and side the manual gear shifter into the shifter boot, if applicable. Tighten the two upper screws on the center console -- the ones closest to the radio -- with a Phillips screwdriver.
9Tighten the two screws in the ashtray and cup holder cavity, using a Phillips screwdriver. Set the ashtray and cup holder assembly back into the center console, and press downward to engage its retaining clips. Tighten the two screws on the rear of the center console, and press the covers back over the screws.
10Line the metal clips on the rear of the radio bezel up with the slots in the dashboard and center console. Push the bezel toward the front of the vehicle until the clips snap into place.
