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Mitsubishi still wants to bolster US sedan lineup, investigating options

Mitsubishi looked healthy in 2014 with a nice sales boost for the year, but so far 2015 hasn't been quite so pleasant with news of product delays or outright cancelations. The Japanese brand isn't letting the setbacks get it down, though, and is still planning for the future. Perhaps the biggest recent disappointment was that Mitsubishi and the Renault-Nissan Alliance scuttled plans to bring a South Korean-built, midsize sedan to the US under Mitsu's branding. The scheme was first announced in late 2013 and would have given the Japanese automaker a replacement for the long-retired Galant. According to Automotive News, the decision came because high exchange rates with the Korean won and Japanese yen against the US dollar made the Asian-built vehicle too costly. Mitsubishi isn't throwing in the towel on the possibility of a larger four-door in the US, just yet. One solution might be retooling the company's US factory in Normal, IL. According to Automotive News, the plant current exports over half of the Outlander Sport units that it builds. That capacity could switch to a new sedan, some of which could also be for shipment abroad. The Outlander Plug-in Hybrid is also being delayed until the second quarter of 2015 in the US. The electrified crossover has proven popular in other markets but has seen multiple postponements in going on sale here. In the meantime, there are a few new products coming down the line. The Mirage Sedan is eventually launching in the US, and the Lancer is reportedly getting a refresh soon. News Source: Automotive News - sub. req.Image Credit: Koji Sasahara / AP Photo Plants/Manufacturing Mitsubishi Sedan

Mitsubishi developing new standalone hybrid Evo successor

Mention the name Mitsubishi to different people and you'll likely get two startling different images. Environmentalists will focus on the company's strides in developing EVs, while performance enthusiasts will point you toward the Lancer Evolution. The prevailing wisdom was that Mitsubishi would cancel the latter to concentrate on the former, but the latest intel suggests that the two will be reconciled with a new Evo around the corner.
Although Mitsubishi is reportedly working to streamline its lineup from 23 models on 12 different platforms to 13 models on 7 by 2016, the next Evo will stand as an exception. Like Subaru did with the formerly Impreza-based WRX (or for that matter Nissan with the formerly Skyline-based GT-R), the new Evo won't have anything to do with the next Lancer, which itself will be based on a Renault-Nissan platform.
On that unique platform, Mitsubishi is likely to install a small direct-injection turbo engine (potentially a diesel) that could be based on the 1.1-liter, three-cylinder turbo engine in the XR-PHEV concept we saw in Tokyo, supplemented by small electric motors with lightweight batteries and driving all four wheels through an enhanced version of the company's Super All-Wheel Control system. As to whether the Evo name will carry over, that remains to be seen, but if these reports prove accurate, its spirit could very much live on.

Mitsubishi Mirage will launch in US with three-cylinder engine [w/video]

We have a date with Mitsubishi Mirage (again). The Japanese subcompact is slated to arrive on our shores in September 2013, and it's one of the product offerings meant to help Mitsubishi's US arm raise sales in its next financial year from 55,000 to 80,000. If next year were 1989, we'd say there's no reason that couldn't happen, but from what we've seen, the Mirage is so magnificently meek (have you seen the interior?) that we aren't sure how it will manage that kind of US sales aggression in the 21st century.
Continuing that theme, Car and Driver reports that the Mitsu will launch here with a 1.2-liter, three-cylinder engine. Make no mistake, this is a very popular engine in the Mirage and responsible for its excellent fuel economy. The hatch is doing so well in other markets with its two naturally aspirated tri-cylinders that the Thailand facility that builds the Mirage will have its capacity increased by 33 percent to try and meet demand. In European spec, the 845-kilogram (1,859 pounds) subcompact with the more powerful engine offering 79 horsepower and 78 pound-feet of torque gets 57.3 miles per US gallon and takes 11.7 seconds to get from zero to 62 miles per hour. The question is whether Mitsubishi will boost the output of that engine for our market. If not, only the 70-hp Smart ForTwo will have less horsepower - but the Mirage, interestingly enough, weighs about the same as the microcar.
On its UK site, Mitsubishi said the reveal of the Mirage in back 2011 meant "redefining the standards by which to judge a compact passenger car." We can't wait to find out if that's still true and what that means when it gets here. To prepare yourself, there's video of the Mirage in action below.