It’s sometimes the case that we don’t notice a car because it seems rather average, whether in appearance or performance (or both). In the ease of the early DSMs, or Diamond Star Motor collaborations between Chrysler and Mitsubishi, the Chrysler Conquest and Mitsubishi Starion tend to get all the love. Shortly after this phase of the collaboration ended, we saw the arrival of the next generation of sports coupes, which included the Mitsubishi Eclipse, the Plymouth Laser, and the Eagle Talon. This is a Plymouth model, with the desirable turbocharged engine, listed here on Facebook Marketplace for $4,500.

Thanks to Barn Finds reader Mitchell G. for the find. Now, the Starion and Conquest got a lot of love from enthusiasts based solely on its appearance: staggered wheels, big box flares, pop-up headlights, and a typical 80s-era interior with overstuffed leather seats and a fighter jet-style cockpit. The Laser and its siblings looked positively tame in comparison, even while offering a respectable increase in performance. The Laser is perhaps the least known of the three, as the Talon and Eclipse were simply produced in larger quantities. The real gem is a Laser with the turbocharged engine and all-wheel drive; this one has the motor but is a front-driver example.

Now, the thing about 90s-era hot hatches is that they were fairly cheap in terms of construction. They weren’t meant to be ridiculously high quality in terms of materials or how tightly they were screwed together. I’d imagine getting into one today is a bit of a let down if you’re used to the likes of a modern-day VW GTI or Ford Focus RS; interior quality has come a long way since the days of DSM dominance. As you can see, this Laser is a bit tatty inside, but at least it has the preferred manual transmission (for some reason, it wasn’t uncommon to see these equipped with an automatic transmission.)

The 4G63 powerplant is one of the more legendary engines from the tuner era of the 1990s, and it kicked out a very respectable 195 horsepower, allowing cars like this Laser to scoot to 60 in under 7 seconds. But they also had their share of mechanical faults, and the seller of this surprisingly stock Laser acknowledges his will need some work despite its bone stock condition. There is some smoke under boost, and cylinder 4 appears to be down on compression. While it will need some work, almost all DSMs do at some point and it makes far more sense to start with a bone-stock example like this one.