In March, Mitsubishi is set to do something they've never done before: Debut a new car in Europe. That's right, at this year's Geneva Motor Show, Mitsubishi will not just be in attendance hoping to catch a glimpse of Lapo Elkann patroling the uber-stylish show, they will be showing off the all new...well, whatever this concept turns out to be.
And whatever it turns out to be will be the first car in Mitsubishi's "Jump 2013" business plan for a "greener and more global Mitsubishi." This includes i-MiEV, 4N1 Clean diesels, Green Plastics and a PHEV.
Not that we can tell any of that from this teaser. What we do know is that it features Mitsu's re-focused design language and is "envisaged as an open design concept, meant to be flexible enough to suit specific vehicle requirements whilst staging Mitsubishi's famous Three Diamond logo accordingly."
It sort of looks like a more masculine Forte which isn't a bad thing. We'll know more in Geneva.
Sometimes merely getting there is not enough; you want to get there really, really quickly. After all, there's nothing like the thrill you get from a car that leaps off the line.
With all due respect to Kermit the frog, these days it's easier than ever to be green, at least when you're talking cars. The reason for this concerns choice: The selection of green transportation keeps growing by leaps and bounds, and buyers have their pick of several pretty satisfactory options.
When you're driving through inches and inches of snow, assistance can be useful, and all-wheel drive provides exactly that. This system sends power to all four wheels, providing traction that can mean the difference between an uneventful ride home and getting stuck in the sludge.
All-wheel drive can be useful on clear pavement at well, as it can serve to improve traction in corners. If you're thinking sedans, you'll be happy to know that there are choices on the market that are both snow-friendly and a blast to drive.
To house a hybrid powertrain as comprehensive as that found in the Mitsubishi Concept PX-MiEV II, you need something as sizable as, er, the Mitsubishi Concept PX-MiEV II. This five-passenger plug-in hybrid SUV concept made its debut here in Tokyo. It's a prelude to a similar vehicle that will, according to Mitsubishi boss Masuko, be introduced "sometime in the 2012 fiscal year."
So, really, the Concept PX-MiEV II is just an incidental wrapper for the hybrid propulsion bits that will probably end up in the Outlander. That fancy hybrid system works like this. Hit the jump.
"We will start work on the project next year, and it will be ready within three. I have set the goal of developing a sporting car featuring electric power." -- Osamu Masuko, President of Mitsubishi Motors.
This latest batch of Evo XI hybrid news comes, like the rest, from Britains Autocar magazine. Masuko was thin on details on the new project, which we'd fully expec't from a product just entering the development phase, but Autocar is still expecting the hybrid Evo to be a diesel.
The illustration above (Mark's handiwork) is all you need to do to in terms of style to bring the Nissan Fuga-based Mitsubishi flagship to the Japanese market.
Oh, I suppose you could take the Nissan logo off the wheels, too. Your call.
-mike
This new flagship Mitsubishi sedan will be the first big Mitsubishi sedan since the slow-selling Diamante and is part of a deal that will send a version of Mitsubishi's Minicab-MiEV to Nissan and an NV200 variant from Nissan to Mitsubishi.
While we can probably do without this particular car, a Mitsubishi-badged G37x with a couple of turbos and a GSX badge is a really nice daydream.
We tend to give auction cars a bit of a pass when they're for charity. See: Kiss Minis, that Freddie Mercury/Lotus thing. It's a flaw. We're just too good hearted.But auctioning off the last Mitsubishi Eclipse to benefit the Japan Red Cross? It's not that the Eclipse is a cheap car, especially not in 265-horsepower GT trim where it rings up at a slightly shocking $29,089, it's just that, uhm, who's going to buy it?
This particular Eclipse, though a 2012 Eclipse SE V6 ($24,699), is special, see; it's the last one to roll off the line after 22 years of Eclipse production. It's also coming in a special Kalapana Black, because when Mitsubishi opened up a Facebook poll to decide the color -- between ANY historic Eclipse color -- why wouldn't you vote for a no-cost paint option currently available? It's also got 18 inch wheels, sunroof, leather, Rockford Fosgate 9-speaker stereo, rear-view camear and HIDs. Oh, and it's also the ONLY one to have the SE package and the V6. Which means that it doesn't get the GT's brakes or suspension, but hey, the rocker panel graphics match the wheels and the mirrors are black.
The auction takes place at the Mecum St. Charles, IL Auction on Sept 15-18. The Eclipse will be sold at 1:55pm on Saturday, get your bids in fast. There's no auction estimate, we'll see if it ends up higher than simply pushing the Eclipse into that lake and claiming the insurance on it. Though that probably violates the spirit of charity (and US law) or something like that.
Mitsubishi thinks that they've just cleared the deepest part of the sales valley. In 2007, the automaker responsible for the Eclipse, 3000GT and the EVO sold 127,993 vehicles -- the last time they went over 100,000. In 2010 they sold a disasterous 55,683, a number that's already been eclipsed for 2011. "We are quickly recovering from the bottom years of 2009 and 2010. We want to be getting back as quickly as possible to 100,000 units in a few years." said Yoichi Yakozawa, CEO of Mitsubishi Motors North America.
And helping them get there will be the new Mitsubishi Lancer SE. The Lancer SE will be the least-expensive model in Mitsubishi's lineup with all wheel drive. Though at $20,000, it will be more expensive than the Subaru Impreza and the Suzuki SX4 and on par with a base Legacy.
It's a solid move as AWD is getting more and more popular in the U.S. with analysts estimating that 30% of all cars sold in the U.S. will be AWD by 2013, but is it too late for this Lancer?
Perhaps the biggest news here is that the Mitsubishi Eclipse ad Endeavor are still in production, though, not for long.
The automaker announced that Eclipse, Eclipse Spyder and Endeavor production would cease at the company's Normal, Ill plant. Gallant production, however, will continue at the facility and Outlander production is scheduled to ramp up in Ill.
In our "What's New" for 2011 feature, we noted that the 2011 Mitsubishi Eclipse would soldier on with reduced ride height (half an inch), a blacked-out roof, standard alloy wheels on the GS and standard heated leather on the GS sport. How could that fail?
The Endeavor, too, got some new features for 2011, like standard Nav and Sunroof on SE models.
Mitsubishi is currently sitting on a 180-day supply of the Eclipse, and a 23 day supply of the Endeavor (which I'm seeing more and more of lately with dealer plates.)
So: Should we mourn or be happy that they're finally gone after a long battle with relevance?
Insofar as rumors go, this is a good one. Autocar, who you'll remember started this whole kerfuffle, has some new information from Mitsubishi on the exaggerated death of the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution.
First, the reasonable: Mitsubishi President and CEO, Osamu Masuko, has said that "Production of the current Lancer Evolution X continues as planned. As for its successor, regulations and market feedback will dictate its engineering package and architecture." Which has been the company line all along.
He concludes, “The new direction, the technologies involved, and corresponding products will be disclosed in due course.”
"Mitsubishi, Keep the Evo Alive Mitsubishi wants to discontinue or desecrate the Evolution. Let's show the company how many people disagree with its plan."
"We don't want a hybrid Evo or larger vehicle with another name that uses a similar 4WD system - the current recipe of the Evolution is what we need. If you agree, please join our cause."
They have 671 members so far and are looking for more. Check 'em out here.
You're going to be shocked to hear this, but a Dodge Neon SRT-4 and a Mitsubishi Lancer, were involved in some illegal street racing on New York's Long Island Expressway. Even more shocking, the drivers were men in their early 20s.
The pair exited the LIE after being clocked at over 140 MPH and promptly crashed -- one into a gas station (pictured) and one into a Hooters ( unfortunately not pictured). And then they were promptly arrested. A passenger (a passenger?! If my buddy was driving and pulled this stunt I'd have to punch him until he stopped or crashed into something nicer than a hooters) was injured upon impact with the Hooters, but no other injuries were reported.
Mitsubishi isn't taking this whole "Lancer Evolution is dead after 2013" thing lying down. Recent Facebook posts and emails with Inside Line show that the company is at least sitting up a little to fight the rumor.
Via FB: "Further to some comments published in the press recently, production of the current Lancer Evolution continues as planned. As for its successor, regulations and market feedback will dictate its engineering package & architecture. Stay tuned"
And our emails to the company were returned with an official statement...
AutoCar UK is reporting today that Mitsubishi is killing the Lancer Evolution -- a blow to its image which will be hard to overcome. Although the rumor remains unconfirmed by the company's U.S. PR team, there's little financial reason to keep it around.
OK, so we're a few days late on this one, but the video is still good so take it easy. Besides, it's not like you're dying for rally results, right?
It was an ending which surprised everyone -- including rally winner Antoine L'Estage. Seriously, just watch the guy's reaction in the video interview. Even he was surprised to beat former American and British Champion (and new Subaru factory driver) David Higgins by a mere 17 seconds. Higgins' reaction, meanwhile, was sufficiently humble.
It's been seven years since the Mitsubishi Diamante was sold in the U.S. During that time, the Japanese manufacturer has lacked any sort replacement with luxury leanings. But if rumors pan out, that void may be filled by a new Diamante based on ...the Infiniti M.
You may need a bit of an introduction for this post to make sense. Here goes: Mitsubishi still makes the Eclipse, Endeavor and the Gallant. There. Done. Moving along.
As part of something called Jump 13, Mitsubishi has officially announced the cancellation of the Eclipse, the Endeavor and the Gallant in favor of smaller, fuel efficient cars for sale both here and in emerging markets. Mitsubishi's range will include six new hybrid, electric and plug-in hybrids by 2015. Their plant in Normal, Illinois will remain open and will most likely build the new Outlander Sport.
Mitusbishi's Lancer Evolution Challenge concluded yesterday at Infineon Raceway, with one talented winner walking away with a free one-year lease on a 2011 Lancer Evo MR. An offshoot of the partnership Mitsubishi began with the Jim Russell school back in 2009, as far as driving challenges go, you couldn't have asked for more appropriate weather than the day-long deluge that greeted contestants and Mitsubishi's all-wheel-drive phenom.
Eleven finalists made the trip to the soaked Infineon Raceway north of San Francisco, some from as far afield as Peru. Invitees were those who'd enrolled this past year in the Lancer Evolution Experience, ably run by instructors from the Jim Russell school. Students who'd taken the $995 one-day course and turned the fastest lap among their classmates were invited back to Infineon to compete against the other fast-lap turners for prizes, including the Grand Prize of the one-year MR lease.
For the Challenge, a series of autocross courses were coned out on Infineon's expansive asphalt lots, with the entertaining day's vibe resting somewhere between the Race of Champions (ROC), and Marty's mall-lot DeLorean romp in Back To the Future. At the end of the day, the driver-against-driver tournament produced a champion: Reno, Nevada's Mark Nason. Nason narrowly edged out Frank Michell who had travelled back from Peru for the challenge finale.
