Mitsubishi Will Not Withdraw From US...

[Pupik]

In short, they've barely managed to increase their reliability since they entered the US market in 1982. They are a little more maintenance-intensive than your average Asian import car, they are built a little more flimsily, provide more flash than substance in many cases, and their residual trade-in values are on the lower end of the scale. The interiors always seem a bit closer to 5-10 years behind average in assembly fit and finish.

We can cheer the Lance Evo until the cows come home, but it's a decked-out, boy-racer, limited-production car of limited practicality that's expensive to maintain, and that alone will not going to woo 100,000 new buyers, simply because its a singular niche car that costs $40K. Nothing in their portfolio of practical offerings has been praised by the public or by automotive journalists are anything ground-breaking nor noteworthy in many years: Maybe their best stuff is overseas, but that's not really part of the discussion; a good deal of their USDM offerings are actually built in the United States.

I think they're great values for leasing, but I wouldn't own one...Build (on) a solid reputation and that will get you somewhere in the US marketplace.

 

[homeforsummer]

Nothing in their portfolio of practical offerings has been praised by the public or by automotive journalists are anything ground-breaking nor noteworthy in many years: Maybe their best stuff is overseas, but that's not really part of the discussion; a good deal of their USDM offerings are actually built in the United States.

And that could be part of the problem, of course. Though as far as I'm aware the Outlander, Outlander Sport and Lancer (which coincidentally all share the same platform) are all built in Japan, or at least that's what Wikipedia claims.

Outlanders we get in the UK are built in the Netherlands. I'm not sure what they're like quality-wise as I've only driven a Japanese-built one in the States.

None of their models, Evo aside, seem to get brilliant reviews over here, but nor do they get poor ones. Over here at least they don't seem to have much trouble being better than any of the American cars we're given in each respective class though, so I'd assume that unless reviewers are blinded by patriotism there then Mitsubishi's products are at least capable of covering in the lower end of the market?

They have their place in the market though, and the Outlander Sport seems to be quite a nice car. One of the best styled small crossovers, IMO.

 

[emotionap1]

I think they need something fresh to get them back in the game styling wise. A new model Eclipse or EVO isn't going to do it. Mitsu's cars have been looking horrid lately. Hyundai has done a better job and seems to be taking their spot along with Honda/Toyota's. Japanese car manufacturer's aren't what they use to be...

 

[GT_Prologue5]

One thing I would tell Mitsubishi, and many of you will disagree with me here, but the styling of even there best cars is horrid. They took the Evo X's alright nosejob, and made it awful trying to graft it to Endeavors, and the worst culprit of them all, the Eclipse. The Eclipse used to be a great model, now I would rather own a Civic Si that's how bad they lost the small coupe market. The Lancer is a slight marketing oddity, being that you can buy a cheaply cheap one for $18,000, or you can spec it with Dual-Clutches and a giant turbo and pay $40,000. No one does that. Here's what Mitsubishi needs to do if they need some help:

-Bring the Colt to the U.S. Market. Subcompacts are getting hotter now, and we need to see some effort.

-Make a car to replace the lower end models of the Lancer. Perhaps change the Galant smaller for the comapct 20K sedan.

-Dump the Endeavor. We have an Outlander already.

-Offer the Lancer in it's 2 highest specs, GSR (5-Speed Manual) and MR (6 Speed TC-SST) The Lancer is not popular in its lower models.

-Offer the Lancer Sportback with the 291hp Turbo 4, the engine range is weird with this car.

-Take some time off and rethink the Eclipse. Many automakers are going back to some older roots, and this is one car that deserves it.

 

[Anghammarad]

I've owned a few Mitsubishis, a Galant V6, a Colt and I currently drive a 13 year old Carisma for my commute to work. They have all been very low maintenance with very good engines. I agree that the current models sold in Europe are far from sexy but I would still not hesitate to buy a Mitsubishi if they offered a model that suited my needs.

 

[astrosdude91]

-Offer the Lancer in it's 2 highest specs, GSR (5-Speed Manual) and MR (6 Speed TC-SST) The Lancer is not popular in its lower models.

Actually, the Lancer sells pretty well in it's base models.

 

[Peter]

Mitsubishi wants to sell more? Well, they need to get back into racing. WRC with the Evo X, if they can have some success and perhaps steal a championship from Loeb and Citroen, or give them a run for their money, that'll beef up sales a lot. Bring out a 3000GT successor to go up against the Nissan GTR, enter in JGTC, and FIA GT1. Use their pick-ups and SUV's in whatever other Rallies are out there, and have some success there as well. And maybe, just maybe, give LMP a go.

 

[homeforsummer]

I've owned a few Mitsubishis, a Galant V6, a Colt and I currently drive a 13 year old Carisma for my commute to work. They have all been very low maintenance with very good engines. I agree that the current models sold in Europe are far from sexy but I would still not hesitate to buy a Mitsubishi if they offered a model that suited my needs.

One of my best mates has a Carisma. They've got slated a lot but if you're not after something "sporty" or "cool" they're not that bad. His is an automatic with the direct-injection petrol 1.8, and it seems to be a comfortable if not particularly interesting space to spend time. Pulls well, gets good economy, reliable and you can chuck quite a bit of stuff in the back. Plus, they're very cheap now.

I think Mitsubishi have a good market for the most part. EVOs aside they cater to a more conservative audience who aren't necessarily interested in anything fun but want something easy to drive and dependable. And they seem to deliver, for the most part.

 

[The Vanishing Boy]

-> If ever Mitsu-boys put a slight effort on its Galant...make it more of a Subaru Legacy competitor than a beigeriffic Camry contender:

Mitsubishi Galant

- ES = 2WD, entry-level decently equipped.
- GTS = 2WD, mid-grade, anti-Kizashi.
- Ralliart = AWD (non-turbo), sporty model, anti-Passat 4MOTION.
- VR-4 = AWD (turbo), performance model, anti-2.5GT Legacy.

 

[GT_Prologue5]

-> If ever Mitsu-boys put a slight effort on its Galant...make it more of a Subaru Legacy competitor than a beigeriffic Camry contender:

Mitsubishi Galant

- ES = 2WD, entry-level decently equipped.
- GTS = 2WD, mid-grade, anti-Kizashi.
- Ralliart = AWD (non-turbo), sporty model, anti-Passat 4MOTION.
- VR-4 = AWD (turbo), performance model, anti-2.5GT Legacy.

See! That's better! Although the chrome is much, that is a lot better than the car we have now. Is that one at Paris?

 

[The Vanishing Boy]

^ Nope, that was from TGS 3 years ago in the form of Concept-ZT.

 

[Omnis]

The ZT = the outgoing Hyundai Sonata.

 

[The Vanishing Boy]

-> I have to admit, I like the design though (same goes with the ver.1 outgoing Sonata).

 

[niky]

Mitsubishi reliability has been hit-or-miss over the years. They had suspension issues in the mid-90s (particularly nasty on some of the Galants, where a ball-joint failure could leave you stranded on the side of the road with one front wheel half-off) and the infamous cracking turbos on the Pajero.

Aside from those odd problems, their cars are pretty good... the GDIs were way ahead of their time, the V6s are nice and trouble-free, and the drivetrains are sound (though I've never liked INVECS).

But they've fallen well behind the curve. From being one of the technology leaders of the 90s, and the source of start-up technology for two other major automakers, Hyundai and Proton, they've become just another midfielder... and a small (and shrinking) one, at that...

It's a shame. The Lancer should have been the car that put them back on the map. It drives well, has class-leading space (of course, it has class-leading size to go along with it...), a good chassis and sound handling and good engines. But the lack of attention to NVH and interior quality has doomed it to being an also-ran.

 

[CodeRedR51]

Funny because I've been seeing a lot more Lancers lately.

Same here, they're all over Phoenix. And love their design over the new Impreza's.

I for one, given no funds limit, would like to put an EVO X drivetrain into a new Eclipse. Make my own GSX of sorts. 👍

 

[lizayuen]

Lancers are one of the great car now a days and I am happy to see that there is lot of design now.

 

[Kent]

All the mechanics I talk to have nothing good to say about mitsu, its going to take many years of reliability before that reputation is washed clean. Likewise the hardcore purists love evos but many owners I meet complain about their older evos due to lacking features like a refined ride and no cruise control. While Im a fan of some of their products I'd say mitsu has an uphill battle ahead.

 

[Joker-GTBR]

Bad times in America, but Mitsubishi is gambling high in Brazil, their plant extension will be completed at late 2012 or mid-2013, and it's confirmed the Lancer will be made in Brazil.

 

[astrosdude91]

Lancers are one of the great car now a days and I am happy to see that there is lot of design now.

My money is on this guy being a spambot.

 

[AlexGTV]

^ I think he is saying the styling of newer Lancers is better than before.

 

[The Vanishing Boy]

-> The Mitsu boy's just shot themselves on the foot:

According to Gayu Eusegi, head of global product development for Mitsubishi, the Lancer Evolution X will be the last Evo the Japanese automaker ever builds. Eusegi says the move is part of a shift in strategy to put the company's product focus and ethos on leadership in EV technology.

To that end, Autocar indicates that Mitsubishi will release eight fully-electric or hybrid-electric cars by the time 2015 rolls around, and make a grab for a big portion of the CO2-reduction market share. It goes without saying that the fun-yet-fuel-swilling Evo just doesn't fit that mindset, particularly since it apes a rally car that no longer exists.

Despite the Evo's huge popularity, Mitsubishi apparently isn't scared of the step and says it's confident that consumers will glom on to the idea and rally behind the brand. By killing the Evo, they're making their intentions plain to an increasingly environmentally-conscious car-buying public.

Eusegi killed dead any notion that the brand would roll out a performance-oriented hybrid as well. "Maybe the world can change, and maybe someday we can do a motor race by electric vehicles. Maybe then we can enter the market agian," he said.

This report of the Evo's death would seem to stand in contrast to multiple reports that an Evo XI is in the works with a hybrid drivetrain. We're taking this latest Autocar missive with a few grains of salt, as we can see how Eusegi may have simply meant that an Evo that relies exclusively on internal combustion is dead – a hybrid Evo would seem to offer a nice technological bridge to Mitsubishi's more electrically minded future.

^ Mitsubishi just gave up the market plain and simple, and I pity them. The Evo is considered by many as the company's 'Halo Car' since the demise of the 3000GT/GTO VR-4.

-> Now this guy Eusegi is mentioning that the i (aka. iMIEV) will be their new/next flagship car!? The Outlander series and the Lancer (or the upcoming Colt) combo won't be enough to keep this suicidal comapny afloat.

-> IMHO, the only cars that signifies the word Mitsubishi are:

- Evo series (will be dead soon)
- Pajero/Montero/Shogun (not avail in NA anymore)
- L200 series (N/A in NA)
- Galant (dead)
- Eclipse (dead)
- 3000GT/GTO (dead)

-> I think Mitsu US will be gone within the next 10 years max if this stupidity continues.