Revista Presei - Mitsubishi News -

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GENEVA 2018 LIVE: Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV a primit modificări majore la substratul tehnic

https://piataauto.md/Stiri/2018/03/GENE ... ul-tehnic/

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Mitsubishi Is Planning To Add Another SUV To Its Lineup

https://www.carscoops.com/2018/03/mitsu ... uv-lineup/

Mitsubishi Halts Mexico Factory Expansion Over NAFTA Concerns

https://www.carscoops.com/2018/03/mitsu ... -concerns/

Mitsubishi Outlander SUV with seven-seat option plays value card

http://www.news.com.au/technology/innov ... cc1e506c55

Mitsubishi May Be Plotting a New SUV. Return of the Montero?

http://www.motortrend.com/news/mitsubis ... a-new-suv/

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Nou model în gama Mitsubishi: japonezii vor să lanseze încă un SUV, posibil hibrid

http://www.automarket.ro/stiri/nou-mode ... 83315.html



Mitsubishi se pregătește să lanseze un nou SUV în gamă, modelul fiind deja în stadiul de dezvoltare. Japonezii susțin că viitorul model ar putea să beneficieze de propulsie hibridă.


Cererea în creștere pe segmentul SUV-urilor, atât în Europa, cât și în restul lumii, i-a determinat pe producători să își regândească strategiile și să vină cu noi modele care să satisfacă dorințele clienților.

Nu fac excepție nici cei de la Mitsubishi, care au anunțat că vor introduce un nou SUV în gama lor, fără să dezvăluie însă data lansării oficiale.

“Da, este un lucru la care ne gândim, un nou SUV. Acest segment este încă în creștere, atât în China, cât și în Europa, așa că ar fi o decizie bună pentru Mitsubishi,” a declarat Tsuneshiro Kunimoto, vicepreședinte și șeful designerilor de la Mitsubishi.

Japonezul nu a dezvăluit data la care noul SUV își va face debutul. Însă, el a spus că modelul se află deja în faza de dezvoltare și că ar putea beneficia de o propulsie hibridă. În gama niponilor se mai află SUV-uri precum ASX (foto), Eclipse Cross, Outlander sau Pajero.

Alianța cu Renault și Nissan i-ar putea ajuta pe oficialii de la Mitsubishi să lanseze pe piață un SUV competitiv și care să asigure creșterea vânzărilor brandului.

Via Carscoops

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Mitsubishi Pajero (Montero) may not be dead after all

https://www.leftlanenews.com/mitsubishi ... 00079.html



Mitsubishi Motors' COO wants the next Pajero to be a plug-in electric hybrid.

Mitsubishi is interested in reviving the Pajero SUV, known during its stint on US shores as the Montero. However, if revived, one Mitsubishi boss thinks a plug-in gasoline-electric hybrid will be the optimal powertrain.

The Mitsubishi Montero hasn't been sold in the US since 2006, but elsewhere in the world it went on to a lightly redesigned fourth generation about the time it left our markets. That generation, produced since 2006, is over a decade old now, and with no successor in the works it seemed that it, too, would soon follow the US Montero's footsteps into oblivion.

However, speaking to Australia's Motoring at the Geneva Motor Show, Trevor Mann, Mitsubishi Motors' Chief Operating Officer, says that the company intends to build a fifth-generation Pajero.

"We don't have a firm plan as yet, but I would say we have an intent," Mann told Motoring. "It's a car people still want to drive, particularly in places like Australia, and it's part of our heritage," he continued.

Mann believes it would be an ideal candidate for a plug-in hybrid drivetrain, much like the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV. It could use electric motors to control the secondary drive wheels, rather than a differential-activated four-wheel-drive system, a technology Mitsubishi pioneered with the Lancer Evolution MiEV concept back in 2005. Electrification would also help the large vehicle to pass tightening emissions regulations around the world.

There have also been rumors that Nissan and Mitsubishi would jointly develop a Patrol (aka Armada) and Patrol together. Mann told Motoring this had not been ruled out, but that it was "a challenge."

"They are two very different vehicles, but also we would want to keep a level of Mitsubishi-ness and our heritage in what we do," Mann explained. Nissan took a controlling stake in Mitsubishi in 2016.

The Pajero is famous for its go-anywhere off-roading capability, and for having won the Paris-Dakar Rally 12 times, including a a then-record seven consecutive times from 2001 to 2007. In any case, it will take several years before the new Pajero is on the market, if it happens at all.

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Posesorii Mitsubishi pe locul 17 - https://www.carscoops.com/2018/03/2018- ... ajor-flaw/

Toyota And Subaru Have The Most Loyal Customers

Mercedes might be the most valuable automotive brand but it doesn’t have the most loyal customers.

According to the 2018 Edmunds Trade-In Loyalty Report, which studied more than 13.9 million vehicle transactions from 2007 to 2017, customers are most loyal to Japanese brands such as Toyota, Subaru and Honda. Rounding out the top five spots were Ram and Chevrolet which both had a loyalty rating of 54%.

At the opposite end of the mainstream spectrum were brands such as Chrysler, Smart and Dodge. All three had less return customers than Fiat and Mitsubishi.

Over the past decade, there have been some major winners and losers. Subaru and Mazda saw significant jumps in customer retention while the latter brand’s CX-5 crossover had the highest number of return customers of any vehicle in 2017.

The loser’s bracket saw customers flee from Chrysler and Dodge vehicles. Both brands saw their loyalty rating nearly cut in half over the past decade and Buick didn’t do much better as its rating dropped from 35% in 2007 to 29% in 2017.

In the luxury segment, buyers are most loyal to Lexus, Audi and Land Rover. They were closely followed by Mercedes, Porsche and BMW. The least loyal luxury customers belong to Infiniti, Jaguar and Volvo.

The love affair with crossovers was also evident as Edmunds notes passenger car loyalty hit its lowest point in eight years. Cars only accounted for 36 percent of all new vehicles sold last year and it helps to explain why the Honda Accord isn’t flying off dealer lots. Another interesting finding was the fact that crossovers and SUVs dethroned trucks in customer loyalty for the first time ever.

To help build and maintain a loyal following, Edmunds says automakers need to “leverage emotional design, offer a wide array of SUVs and have a solid history of reliability.”

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Report: Mitsubishi developing new Montero SUV as possible Ford Bronco-fighter

http://www.nydailynews.com/autos/news/m ... -1.3872111



With just the Outlander, Outlander Sport, Eclipse Cross and Mirage sedan and hatchback, Mitsubishi’s current U.S. roster looks as sad as they come.

The Japanese automaker however wants to bring a Ford Bronco competitor, and might revive an old nameplate to do it, according to a recent report from CarBuzz.

Speaking with the automotive news blog at the Geneva Motor Show last week, Tsuneshiro Kunimoto, VP and general manager of design for Mitsubishi, said a new SUV is currently in development. The new SUV should sport similar sheet metal to the new Eclipse Cross, a compact crossover using the resurrected nameplate of the iconic Eclipse coupe.

Kunimoto also mentioned that the plug-in hybrid powertrain found in the Outlander PHEV crossover could be developed for the new SUV should it be deemed necessary.

Just last week, Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi announced that Fred Diaz, the former head of Ram trucks, who left that job to develop the Nissan Titan, will be Mitsubishi’s CEO for North America. With a truck design guru tapped to be Mitsu’s top brass, along with Kunimoto’s eagerness to bring a new SUV to market, a Ford Bronco or Jeep Wrangler competitor might be in the cards.

Since Nissan is already working on a new Frontier mid-size pickup truck, the platform pickings look ripe for Mitsubishi to pluck.

“Mitsubishi is robust and ingenious,” Kunimoto said. “Look at the Pajero at Dakar, for example. Thanks to the new alliance, we have so many choices. Mitsubishi will continue to grow.”

The Pajero SUV, which is still sold in several international markets, was once offered here in the States as the brutish Montero up until the 2006 model year. With that hint, all signs seem to point to the large, truck-based SUV making a comeback, and with Mitsu already comfortable repurposing defunct nameplates, we wouldn’t consider it a stretch to say the new SUV will be the second coming of the Montero.

While the 100-year-old automaker enjoyed a sales bump last year thanks to the Outlander lineup of crossovers, the brand overall has struggled tremendously since its sales peak 20 years ago. With a new utility vehicle in development, Mitsubishi might finally be swinging back after being nearly down for the count.

In 2016, Renault-Nissan acquired Mitsubishi in a 34-percent controlling stake valued at 237 billion yen, or $2.2 billion. Mitsubishi was at the time, digging its way out of a massive fuel efficiency scandal where Mitsu gave minicars built for fellow Japanese automaker Nissan exaggerated fuel economy figures. The resulting fallout led to Mitsu’s shares taking a nosedive, and Nissan, which happened to be the whistleblower in the scandal, swooped in to take Mitsubishi under its wing.

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Mitsubishi Colt Supermini Tipped To Return With Renault-Nissan Platform

https://www.carscoops.com/2018/03/mitsu ... -platform/

Having become part of the Renault-Nissan Alliance, Mitsubishi is now considering reviving the Colt nameplate on an upcoming B-segment hatchback.

If it gets approved for production, it could arrive in the next five years. It’s something that’s already on the table, and would need to sell over 100,000 units worldwide to justify its development costs.

In fact, Mitsubishi is so serious about it that its Sales and Marketing chief for Europe, Guillaume Cartier, confirmed at the Geneva Motor Show that they’re “working on” such a car, Autocar reports. “It’s a question of what is needed”, commented Cartier, adding that “when we have this association [with the Colt name], we must make sure the car’s personality suits it.”

Nevertheless, the Colt name is only one of three possible choices when it comes to the rumored supermini, but given that Mitsubishi’s hatchback used to be called the Colt until it was replaced by the Mirage/Space Star in 2012, it is the most likely candidate.

As for its underpinnings, there’s a new generation Renault Clio that’s expected to be launched later this year. As a result, the two cars will likely share the platform along with the Nissan Micra.

Additionally, this architecture is rumored to be adopted by Dacia, too, with a first model tipped to launch in late 2019 or early 2020 in Asian market, with the same body as the current Duster.



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Renault-Nissan cross-shareholding ratio will remain the same, Nissan says

http://www.autonews.com/article/2018030 ... ame-nissan


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Nissan, flush with cash, may get chance to weaken France's grip on Renault partnership

TOKYO -- Nissan Motor said the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance had no plans to change cross-shareholding ratios of its member companies, after Reuters reported that it was in talks with Renault over a closer tie-up that would lead to a merger.

Any discussion about a share transaction involving Renault, Nissan or the French state is speculation, a Nissan official said, echoing earlier statements made by a Renault-Nissan spokesman.

Reuters reported on Wednesday that the French and Japanese automakers were discussing plans in which Nissan would acquire the bulk of the French state's 15 percent Renault holding.

The automakers are in talks with government officials over proposals by Renault-Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn that would see Paris give up influence at Renault and the French automaker relinquish control over Nissan, people close to the matter told Reuters.

But any deal still faces significant hurdles -- not least its extreme political sensitivity in France -- and has yet to win government approval, they said. To do so, it must balance French and Japanese interests, avoiding the appearance of a takeover.

The Renault-Nissan alliance, underpinned by cross-shareholdings, has wrestled intermittently since its 1999 inception with plans for full mergers that have foundered on objections from France, Renault's biggest shareholder.

But with Ghosn, the alliance's main architect, now beginning his final term as Renault CEO, the government has been pressing for a tie-up to secure the future of Renault-Nissan, the world's largest automaking group by sales last year.

Renault holds 43.4 percent of Nissan but agreed to limit formal control of its larger partner in a 2015 shareholder pact that defused a boardroom standoff with the French government.

Nissan currently owns a 34 percent controlling stake in Mitsubishi and 15 percent of Renault, but no voting rights.

Under Tokyo market rules, Renault would lose all voting rights on its Nissan holding if the Japanese automaker raised its Renault stake to 25 percent or more.

Renault shares fell 1.4 percent in early session trading on Thursday, following Nissan's comments. The stock gave up some of the gains it made in the previous day, when it ended 5.6 percent higher after Reuters reported that Nissan would acquire most of the French state's 15 percent Renault holding.

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Renault-Nissan names teams to find more synergies

http://www.autonews.com/article/2018031 ... -synergies

PARIS -- The Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance continued its management reorganization by naming members of new teams designed to find new synergies in purchasing, engineering and other departments.

Alliance Chairman Carlos Ghosn said last autumn that the three combined companies were targeting annual synergies of 10 billion euros ($12.4 billion) by the end of 2022, compared with $6.2 billion in 2016.

Early this month Ghosn announced team leaders for converged functions in purchasing, engineering and manufacturing, and new cross-company teams to coordinate, quality, after sales and business development.

On Wednesday he detailed executives who will fill out those teams, and said they would begin operations April 1. The alliance now has nine cross-company teams, with leaders reporting directly to Ghosn. "Through incremental revenues, cost savings and cost-avoidance measures they will contribute to double annual synergies," Ghosn said in a statement.

Ghosn has stepped away from daily operational duties at Nissan and Renault to focus on ensuring that the alliance is sustainable, though he was reappointed to another four-year term as CEO at Renault this year. Last year the alliance became the largest automaker in the world by volume, with more than 10.6 million vehicles sold, however by some measures the Volkswagen Group is slightly larger.

Among the appointments:

In business development, led by Senior Vice President Hadi Zablit, Ogi Redzic will direct connected vehicles and mobility services; Gerard Detourbet, breakthrough innovations; Jacques Verdonck, partnerships with Daimler (which holds small stakes in Nissan and Renault) and other automakers; Francois Dossa, the investment fund Alliance Ventures; and Nils Saclier, product planning.
In engineering, led by Executive Vice President Tsuyoshi Yamaguchi, Gaspar Gascon will direct engineering, and Takao Asami will direct advanced engineering and research.
The quality team, led by Executive Vice President Christian Vanderhende, includes Arnaud Bouthenet and Hidenobu Miyagi.

[Vasea]

Mitsubishi Triton Barbarian SVP II for UK – 250-unit run

https://paultan.org/2018/03/21/mitsubis ... -unit-run/

Mitsubishi Colt may be revived – Renault engine/tech?

https://paultan.org/2018/03/20/mitsubis ... gine-tech/

SPYSHOTS: Mitsubishi Triton facelift – pick-up truck spotted with latest Dynamic Shield front-end

https://paultan.org/2018/03/20/spyshots ... front-end/

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Appreciating the i-MiEV: oldest modern electric car still in production after 10 years

https://www.greencarreports.com/news/11 ... r-10-years

MITSUBISHI: Outlander PHEV leads sales charge

http://www.autonews.com/article/2018032 ... 4F780ACEC6

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Mint 1991 Mitsubishi 3000GT VR-4 Brims With High Tech, But Is It Worth $50k?

https://www.carscoops.com/2018/03/mint- ... worth-50k/

The Mitsubishi 3000GT VR4 is one of those rare high-performance sports cars from the ’90s that has remained under the radar of petrolheads. While the majority of enthusiasts obsess over the Toyota Supra and Nissan Skyline GT-R, the 3000GT VR4 was considered not to be on par with its aforementioned competitors despite sporting a lot of high tech.

The reason was that it was deemed too anodyne compared to its rivals. Perhaps Mitsubishi’s sports car was ahead of its time, thus it was unjustly overlooked, something that seems to have changed as prices for 3000GT VR4s have been all over the board recently.

Last March, we saw a seller asking $18,800 for an example with 6,000 miles on the clock. While that price seemed a little high, it wasn’t that outrageous and the car looked like it was in great condition.

But then, we caught wind of someone that was asking $1 million for a ’98 3000GT VR4 in Flint, Mich. That was just just absurd, and we doubt anyone would pay that kind of money for it.

Lux Sport out of New York has a ’91 3000GT VR4 with just 2,190 miles on the clock. The dealership is asking $49,995 for the coupe, which is a bit rich. Still, this is probably the closest an enthusiast will ever get to buying a model in near-new condition, as this could be the lowest-mileage 3000GT VR4 in the U.S.

The 3000GT VR4 features a twin-turbo 3.0-liter V6 that produces 300 horsepower and 307 pound-feet of torque, four-wheel steering, electronically controlled suspension and a variable-note exhaust system, which makes it a quite advanced piece of kit.

It also punched way above its weight when it came out, with a zero-to-60-mph time of roughly 5.2 seconds and a top speed of 155 mph (250 km/h). So, it’s quick, high tech, and has the looks to match – but is it worth nearly $50k?

That’s a difficult one to answer. Especially when you consider that a twin-turbo Dodge Stealth R/T, which was an identical twin to the 3000GT, sold for just $8,518 on Bring a Trailer last year. Then again, that car had 100,000 miles on it, so it’s not really a fair comparison.

The question is, would you pay 50 grand for a ’90s sports car with a Mitsubishi badge that’s unlikely to appreciate any more in the future?

[Vasea]

Renault și Nissan negociază o fuziune: Ghosn ar urma să conducă noul constructor

http://www.automarket.ro/stiri/renault- ... 83707.html



Renault și Nissan poartă negocieri pentru o fuziune în urma căreia să rezulte un singur constructor, însă Franța și Japonia vor avea un cuvânt greu de spus în decizia finală.


Renault și Nissan au format o alianță în 1999 pentru a dezvolta anumite tehnologii, platforme și motoare în comun cu scopul de a reduce costurile, însă oficialii celor două marci au precizat în mai multe rânduri că forma de organizare nu este suficient de bună pentru situația actuală.

Speculațiile despre o posibilă fuziune între cei doi producători circulă de mai mult timp, însă Bloomberg anunță acum că oficialii Renault și Nissan s-au așezat la masa negocierilor.

În cazul în care discuțiile se vor concretiza într-un acord, în urma fuziunii va rezulta un singur constructor al cărui nume nu a fost încă stabilit, iar la conducerea noii companii se va afla Carlos Ghosn. Una dintre variantele discutate în prezent este ca noua companie să păstreze ambele sedii centrale din Franța și Japonia sau să se relocheze într-un sediu unic la Londra sau în Olanda.

O astfel de fuziune ar urma să fie una dintre cele mai mari din istorie, întrucât Renault are în prezent o capitalizare de 29 de miliarde de euro pe bursa de la Paris, în timp ce Nissan valorează echivalentul a aproape 35 de miliarde de euro pe bursă de la Tokyo.

Cu toate acestea, este de așteptat ca negocierile să fie dificile și de lungă durată. Renault deține în prezent 43% dintre acțiunile Nissan, în timp ce Nissan deține 15% dintre acțiunile Renault.

Pe de altă parte, statul francez deține 15% dintre acțiunile Renault și și-a exprimat în mai multe rânduri intenția de a limita influența japonezilor în cadrul Alianței. Prin urmare, este greu de crezut că statul francez va fi de acord cu o fuziune în absența unor beneficii majore din punct de vedere economic și/sau social. "Franța va decide dacă rămâne sau nu. Nici nu vreau să deschid subiectul, eu trebuie doar să-mi mulțumesc acționarii în cel mai bun mod posibil și să mă asigur că ei înțeleg strategia noastră", declara Ghosn cu o lună în urmă.

În plus, o astfel de fuziune va avea nevoie și de o aprobare din partea guvernului japonez, iar Ghosn a menționat anterior ca niponii nu vor accepta o fuziune în urma căreia statul francez să rămână acționar. Negocierile durează deja de câteva luni, însă până în prezent nu s-a ajuns a niciun acord. De altfel, sursele Bloomberg au admis că este posibil ca negocierile să eșueze.

Alianța Renault-Nissan a anunțat la sfârșitul anului trecut o strategie comună pentru 2022 care vizează lansarea a 12 mașini electrice și 40 de mașini cu funcții autonome, dar și utilizarea a 4 platforme și 22 de motoare comune.

Via Bloomberg

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Mitsubishi North America COO Don Swearingen to retire in June

http://www.autonews.com/article/2018032 ... re-in-june


MITSUBISHI: Outlander PHEV leads sales charge

http://www.autonews.com/article/2018032 ... les-charge


SPIED: Mitsubishi Pajero Sport in M’sia, launch soon?

https://paultan.org/2018/03/29/spied-mi ... unch-soon/