Mitsubishi Without A Midsize Sedan For America
Calling out one’s prediction for Mitsubishi’s demise is an easy activity that requires one to put little at stake. With a stale product lineup, sagging sales and nothing on the horizon save for a B-Segment hatchback, Mitsubishi’s future looks bleak. But that’s not the main reason why I am pessimistic about the brand’s future in America.
The Mitsubishi Galant was precisely nobody’s favorite mid-size sedan, but it was better than nothing. And according to Automotive News, Mitsubishi’s product plans call for bubkis in the D-Segment, which is essentially a death wish in North America, where mid-size sedans are a crucial product.
Tellingly, Mitsubishi doesn’t have one because it lacks any kind of platform architecture to even build a new D-Segment car that would be competitive, an utterly damning indication of how ill-equipped the company is to be competitive on our shores. Even Suzuki had a passable mid-size car in its dying days, one that was quite good at that. For Mitsubishi to lack even a suitable architecture for a D-Segment car is a rather damning statement regarding their readiness to duke it out in an increasingly cutthroat global vehicle market.
Mitsubishi’s product plans appear to hinge on the new Mirage subcompact, a forthcoming Mirage sedan…and that’s it. A new Montero SUV may come here, and we may see a new Lancer within the next two years. The only bright spot is the Evo, which will continue to soldier along, praised by everyone and bought by no one.
More by Derek Kreindler
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When Chrysler cut their ties with Mitsubishi that was when Mitsubishi really declined. The local Dodge dealer where I live in the late 80's and early 90's advertised the Mitsubishi made vehicles for Dodge heavily. Mitsubishi Motors got their start in the US with the Dodge D-50 trucks, Dodge Colts, and Plymouth Arrows. The same was true with Isuzu as well and Mazda is not doing as well either, but Mazda is at least viable. Mitsubishi might not survive in the US market place regardless of what they do. Hyundai and Kia have taken their place and are knocking on Toyota and Honda's door.
Why would anybody want to buy such a poorly engineered car from Mitsubishi? They deliberately design in the need for special tools to remove components. Things like heater cores removal require the entire interior (2000 Galant) to be removed to get the part out. The dash board falls apart and then the dealer wants $1000 for the part. To get both these components replaced was $2300 from the dealer. Point is – When a Mitsubishi product has a KBB value of $4000 or less and needs this type of part replacement, the vehicle is beyond economical repair. Maybe most people have already figured this out and that is why Mitsubishi sales are in the toilet. Don’t buy any Mitsubishi product until they improve their engineering practices. The last person to leave please remember to turn out the lights. RIP Mitsubishi