The Mitsubishi Starion was a thing in the 1980s. While American manufacturers were pushing for muscle cars, the Starion was one of Japan's performance vehicles.

Its bodywork has defined what sports cars should look like during that time. Many JDM enthusiasts still customize Starions up to this day. It's quite the collector's item that they want to street-tune for optimum speed.

Surprisingly, it wouldn't cost you a lot to own a Starion these days. You can easily get one for as low as $2500 depending on the condition. It still has the solid fans that add value to it through custom mods.

There's a lot of potential for this once popular Japanese sports car to become a classic. It's underrated enough for you to want one, maybe even as your first car.

Here's What You Need To Know About The Mitsubishi Starion

1987 Mitsubishi Starion
Via: Car Sales Base

The two-door Mitsubishi Starion is considered a low-key sports car by many. It has beaten other sports cars in races during the six years it ran in the market. Even today, some test their tuned-up Starion against modern-day speedsters.

It also had its rebadged variant called the "Conquest." North American brands such as Chrysler, Dodge, and Plymouth picked up on the Conquest during its run.

The Starion ran on an electronic fuel injected turbocharged four-cylinder engine. It's considered one of the firsts to apply such technology with the Isuzu 117 Coupé starting suit.

The best part about owning a Station back then was its friendly price tag. Performance vehicles costed a fortune when it was the epitome of speed during the 80s and 90s.

Though it didn't get the same appreciation as American muscle cars, its technology was still similar to a V8-like rear-wheel-drive system.

Its biggest rivals in the Asian sports car market were the Toyota Celica, Nissan 280ZX, and the Mazda RX-7.

RELATED: Here's What You Need To Know Before Buying A Mitsubishi Starion

What's In The Mitsubishi Starion?

Mitsubishi Starion parked outside
Via autocar.co.uk

Under the hood of the Mitsubishi Starion is a 2.0L SOHC Sirius G63B engine. The American variants had a larger 2.6L SOHC Astron G54B engine. Both have the same horsepower, but the American version has more torque.

The Starion's engine is mounted upfront with a rear-wheel drive. Its steering was a gearbox steering rather than a rack and pinion one. Later models also had anti-lock brakes and a limited-slip differential.

All Starion models ran through a five-speed manual transmission. An automatic transmission option was also available for some models. The same goes for its fuel management system.

It shared the same chassis with classic Mitsubishi models like the Lambda and the Sapporo. A MacPherson strut suspension held its height and balance.

A Timeless Speedster

1989 Mitsubishi Starion
Via: Best Car Mag

Turbochargers are what make four-cylinder SOHC engines sell. The Starion is one of those you need to customize to give you more speed.

The stock engines only made 145 hp at 2500 rpm and a top speed of 135 mph in all-stock. the latter models were a huge leap logging 178hp under the same rpm.

What makes the Starion such a catch is the fact that it was usually pitted and compared to Europe's Porsche 944. The Starion proved to be the more practical one to buy.

It even competes with rival Mazda RX-7 Turbo and six-cylinder cars such as the Nissan 300ZX turbo. The Starion can even hold its own against the early model Toyota Supras.

This has brought tuners to modify their Starions under the hood to be competitive in today's modern car community.

RELATED: This Is Why Mitsubishi Eclipse Is The Most Forgotten Sports Car Of The '90s

Why The Starion Will Become A Classic

Mitsubishi Starion parked outside
Via autocar.co.uk

There's no doubt that the Mitsubishi Starion is already a classic. While you won't appreciate one anymore at bone stock, it's still worth spending money on as a project.

It falls on the level of JDM cult classics such as the Honda Civic EG Hatchback or a Toyota Corolla small body. They don't look the nicest at stock but live up to their full potential after all the mods.

One good thing about classic JDM cars is their affordability. Usually, the cheaper the car, the worse condition it is in. That's not the case with the Starion.

The fact that production stopped and you still see people setting up their Starions means it's already as classic as your 70s muscle cars.

The fact that there isn't a Starion reboot in the making yet means we currently have to make do with the current models we see out there. Artwork mods alone already make it look like the forgotten classic.

You can easily get your hands on one by looking at Mitsubishi Starion listings online. It's a good place to start for when the car starts being considered a classic.

It might not hurt to get your hands on a Chrysler Conquest TSI too since they're of the same manufacturing.

NEXT: 10 Times Mitsubishi Built Awesome Sports Cars