[2][3] Mitsubishi began marketing the Starion in 1982, during a period in which a number of Japanese grand tourer (GT) sports cars were available, including the Nissan Z cars, Mazda RX-7, Toyota Supra and to a lesser extent, the Honda Prelude, Isuzu Piazza and Subaru XT.

It was manufactured in two body configurations, a narrowbody and widebody; the narrower style complied with Japanese exterior dimension regulations taxing larger vehicles and engine displacement exceeding two liters.

The cover of the original Japanese Starion sales brochure, published by Mitsubishi (May 1982) carried the text: "the name STARION — derived from the combination of star and Arion, Hercules' horse in Greek mythology, symbolizes a sense of the universe, and of power and high performance.

Many came with a limited slip differential and anti-lock brakes (single channel, rear wheels only) as standard features.

The move to the 2.6 L in all markets was spurred by emissions restrictions around the world tightening to meet the American standards for lead in fuels.

From 1984 until 1987 in Japan a 12-valve (two intake, one exhaust) SOHC intercooled version of the 2.0 L G63B was made available in the top-spec GSR-V (and some GSR-VR) trim grade Starions.

This setup was known as the Dual Action Super Head (or DASH for short) due to its ability to activate the third intake valve above a certain RPM, thereby increasing top end response, flow and overall engine performance.

The Starion GX was offered without power windows, air conditioning, independent rear suspension, fuel injection or power-assisted steering.

The front seats were adjustable for lumbar, angle, knee support, position and featured variable-angle side-braces.

[7] For model year 1987, Mitsubishi introduced a passive restraint system for front occupants which featured automatic shoulder belts.

The TD05-12A (Mitsubishi Heavy Industries) turbocharger was also fitted to the earlier, non-intercooled narrow-body models, producing 145 hp (108 kW).

Andy McLennan driving a Simmons Drums sponsored Starion was very successful, picking up many race wins and a Monroe championship, this against the semi works car of Colin Blower.

[9] In the Netherlands, John Hugenholtz won the over 2L class in the Dutch Championship, with the Colin Blower-prepared Mitsubishi Dealers car.

In the United States, the Starion became best known for successes in endurance racing at several SCCA sanctioned events, and in Japan at the Japanese Touring Car Championship.

Endurance Championships three of those four years, competing against the fully factory-backed (Wolin's team was only partially sponsored by Mitsubishi) efforts from Chrysler, Audi, Nissan and Mazda.

Although not commonly seen in modern motorsports, a number are still raced on both circuit and in special stage rally events, usually by privateers.

The car was developed with a turbocharged and intercooled version of Mitsubishi's 2.0 L fuel injected engine, but the final goal was to use a turbocharged and intercooled 261 kW (355 PS; 350 hp) version of the Sirius Dash engine that Mitsubishi announced at the 1983 Tokyo Motor Show, which switched electronically at 2500 rpm from one inlet valve per cylinder to two.