Sunday, July 26, 2015

End production in Mitsubishi Motors plant in the United States

End production in Mitsubishi Motors plant in the United States

Tokyo, July 27, 2015 – Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) announced today that Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc., (MMNA) a wholly owned subsidiary of MMC in the United States, is preparing to end production of its sole production model "Outlander Sport" at its Normal plant at the end of November 2015 and its production will be consolidated in Okazaki plant in Japan, pending a final decision by the MMC Board of Directors on July 30.

MMNA will be making efforts to identify a buyer with the help from United Auto Workers (UAW).

Mitsubishi Motors' production in the United States started in 1988 as Diamond Star Motors (DSM, later re-named as MMNA) which was a joint venture company with Chrysler Corporation.
DSM has become a wholly owned subsidiary of MMC in 1991 after MMC bought all DSM shares owned by Chrysler Corporation.
In 2000 the production volume reached more than 222 thousand units, but after that the plant faced very steep reduction in production units due to, among others, the end of OEM supply for Chrysler Corporation and the economic crisis. In 2009, the production volume bottomed as low as 18.5 thousand units.

From 2012 and onward MMNA started production of Outlander Sport not only for North American market and but also for Russia, Middle East and Latin America markets, in order to secure production volume to gain production efficiency and improve utilization.

With the recovery of North American market, production volume increased to 70 thousand units in 2013, however, which is scale-wise low compared to other automobile assembly plants in North America. Then production order from Russia, which accounted for more than 30% of the total production volume, significantly dropped since the second half of 2014, due to Russian economic crisis, which caused the production volume of MMNA plant to be even lower.

Taking the aforementioned situation into account, MMC decided to end production at Normal plant and consolidate the production Okazaki plant in Japan and Outlander Sport will be exported from Okazaki to North American as from next model year.

As the US market is expected grow even more in the future, it will continue to be a very important market and Mitsubishi Motors will continue to make efforts to grow its brand value and increase its sales volume in the US market.

[Outline of MMNA]
1. Location: (Head Office) Cypress, California
(Plant) Bloomington-Normal, Illinois
2. Register Capital: 398,812 thousand US dollars
3. Shareholder: Mitsubishi Motors Corporation
4. Representative: Gayu Uesugi, Chairman of the Board and CEO
5. Number of Employees (June 2015): (Total) approximately 1,650 (Plant) approximately 1,250
6. History

  • Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) and Chrysler Corporation jointly established Diamond Star Motors (DSM, later re-named to MMNA) and started production there in 1988
  • In 1991 MMC bought all shares of DSM which are owned by Chrysler Corporation
  • Starting with "Eclipse" and later addin "Galant" "Spider" "Endeavor", between 1988 and 2012, MMNA produced the models marketed mainly in North America market for Mitsubishi brand, and also supplied vehicles to Chrysler Corporation under contracts until 2005.
  • Currently MMNA is producing "Outlander Sport" for global market.
  • Maximum production volume was 222 thousand units in 2000
  • Production volume in 2014 was 69 thousand units
  • Accumulated production volume is approximately 3,250 thousand units

Thursday, June 18, 2015

New Outlander PHEV Takes On Baja Portalegre 500 Challenge

New Outlander PHEV Takes On Baja Portalegre 500 Challenge

- Developing EV and 4WD technology in X-Country Rallies -

TOKYO, June 18, 2015 – Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) is to enter an Outlander PHEV, the only twin-motor 4WD in production today, in the Baja Portalegre 500 cross-country rally due to be held in the Portalegre municipality in the eastern part of Portugal October 22 through October 24 this year.

The race vehicle will be driven by Mr. Hiroshi Masuoka of MMC who won the Dakar Rally two years in succession in 2002 and 2003. Mr. Masuoka also will be playing a role as the team captain. The team competing in the Baja Portalegre challenge mainly is constructed and led by MMC personnel including the team manager and technical director Mr. Yasuo Tanaka, Expert from EV Component Research Department, Development Engineering Office and engineering supports by four engineers from his department.

Friday, January 2, 2015

New L200 Challenger Has Stunning Looks And Best Ever Value For Money [UK]

CIRENCESTER – Mitsubishi Motors in the UK is pleased to announce the new L200 Challenger - the best value for money pick-up ever from Mitsubishi Motors in the UK.


The Mitsubishi L200 pioneered the pick-up segment with its refined engine and high levels of safety, comfort and equipment. The company continues to innovate in the pick-up market by adding the L200 Challenger to its already robust, versatile and appealing range.

The L200 range comes with the longest warranty of any pick-up truck in the UK – five years or 125,000 miles. It is also available with a three-year fixed price service plan at £600 and a range of finance options, including Contract Hire.

Mitsubishi Motors in the UK has sold over 130,000 L200 pick-up’s since the launch in 1987 and continue to be a strong contender accounting for 20% of the overall pick up market.



The new addition priced from £16,499 is fully loaded with value adding specification. L200 Challenger goes on sale from 1st January 2015.

    175 bhp engine
    Super Select 4WD system
    M-ASTC
    17” alloy wheels
    Cruise control
    Climate control air conditioning
    Automatic rain and dusk sensors
    Privacy glass
    Bluetooth
    Leather steering wheel and gear shift knob
    Optional leather seats
    Long load bed
    Available in all colours in the existing range;

The new L200 Challenger comes with renowned Mitsubishi reliability as standard. But for even greater piece of mind all it comes with the Mitsubishi Assistance Package (MAP) which includes 24/7 UK home and roadside breakdown assistance, and European roadside assistance in over 30 European countries.