Remember the Eagle Talon? Essentially a facelifted Mitsubishi Eclipse from the early 1990s, it has become a cult classic in the world of American tuner culture. Even if you’ve never heard of the Talon, you’ll be very familiar with it after reading this article, including this one capable of beating a McLaren 765LT in a drag race.
Don’t be fooled by this McLaren’s flashy sticker kit: it’s bone stock. That means 755 horsepower coming from a twin-turbo V8 engine. With a good driver and a grippy surface, it can hit 60 mph in less than three seconds and cover a quarter mile in 10 seconds, making it among the fastest production cars on sale today.
And then there is the Eagle. This particular car is a 1990 model, from the Diamond Star era, when Chrysler and Mitsubishi were friends and Eagle was still alive. In top trim, the Talon used the same turbocharged Mitsubishi 4G63 engine and all-wheel drive system as the Eclipse. This particular Talon is decidedly non-stock, with the owner claiming around 800 horsepower at the wheels from a carefully constructed engine. There’s a safety cage in the otherwise bare interior, and yes, there’s a parachute in the back.
The McLaren driver discovers why this parachute is necessary in the first race. It was supposed to be a heads-up race, but the 765LT jumped the gun. This doesn’t matter, as the Eagle sinks into the tarmac and takes off. The car hits the side while furiously overtaking the McLaren, cruising to a victory by two car lengths.
This is where it gets interesting. To balance things out, the McLaren enjoys an advantage in car length and hits from the start of the next race. But it still doesn’t matter. The Talon driver’s reaction time is just about perfect, and he hurtles down the track to another two-car victory. And just to flex, he pulls his parachute to slow down.
This is obviously not a race for apples. But it’s nice to see an old Eagle Talon getting some attention. Often overshadowed by the Eclipse, these cars were solid performers at the time. Obviously, this one still has a lot of charm despite its age.
