Last Eclipse made in Ill. destined for charity

NORMAL, Ill. — The last Mitsubishi Eclipse the company’s plant in Normal made is headed for a charity auction instead of a dealer’s lot.

The Pantagraph newspaper in Bloomington (http://bit.ly/r3KV2L ) reports the car will be auctioned to raise money for earthquake relief through the Japan Red Cross. The auction will be Sept. 17 in St. Charles.

Mitsubishi started making the Eclipse in Normal in 1990.

The plant made its last Eclipses, Spyders and Endeavor SUVs last week. It will now retool to make the new Outlander Sport crossover SUV and continue making the Gallant model for another year.