1998 Mitsubishi Eclipse, No Reserve on 2040-cars

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2016 Mitsubishi Outlander First Drive

"There is a golden hour between life and death. If you are critically injured you have less than 60 minutes to survive. You might not die right then; it may be three days or two weeks later – but something has happened in your body that is irreparable." That quote is from Dr. R. Adams Cowley, widely viewed as the father of modern-day trauma medicine. It's an apt description of the straits Mitsubishi finds itself in here in the United States. The company's golden hour has been a long time coming, but with the death of the Lancer Evolution, and a stable that consists of the ancient Lancer, the lamentable Outlander Sport and the abhorrent Mirage, the 2016 Outlander marks the start of this vital 60 minutes. It was with this in mind that we shipped out to San Francisco to test the company's latest compact CUV. Technically a facelifted version of the crossover that debuted at the 2012 Los Angeles Auto Show, Mitsubishi made over 100 changes as part of this refresh. The exterior changes strip away some of the Outlander's boring, conservative elements in favor of a new design language called "Dynamic Shield." Most of the work is from the A-pillars forward, where an assertive chrome-lined grille, restyled headlights, and a new hood are found. Larger LED taillights sit in back, along with chrome elements. As is the fashion nowadays, LED running lights have been added as standard, while the GT gets LED low beams and halogen high beams, as well. The cabin receives similarly small upgrades, updated materials, and a new navigation system. Plastic is the dominant surface, although it's no better or worse than the stuff usually encountered in this segment. Mitsubishi added piano-black accents on the bottom half of the leather-wrapped steering wheel and around the touchscreen navigation system, to class up the cabin. The cloth seats on the entry level models have also been updated, although the leather on the mid-range SEL and top-of-the-line GT we drove is unimpressive. The same can be said of the seats themselves, which are wide and unsupportive, particularly if you suffer from lower back issues, as your author does. You'll get eight-way powered adjustments on the SEL and GT, although lesser trims get by with manually-operated, six-way adjustability. Neither of those setups include lumbar adjustments. The steering wheel tilts and telescopes, at least, regardless of trim level. A standard third-row of seats has long been one of the Outlander's strongest points.

Question of the Day: Most heinous act of badge engineering?

Badge engineering, in which one company slaps its emblems on another company's product and sells it, has a long history in the automotive industry. When Sears wanted to sell cars, a deal was made with Kaiser-Frazer and the Sears Allstate was born. Iranians wanted new cars in the 1960s, and the Rootes Group was happy to offer Hillman Hunters for sale as Iran Khodro Paykans. Sometimes, though, certain badge-engineered vehicles made sense only in the 26th hour of negotiations between companies. The Suzuki Equator, say, which was a puzzling rebadge job of the Nissan Frontier. How did that happen? My personal favorite what-the-heck-were-they-thinking example of badge engineering is the 1971-1973 Plymouth Cricket. Chrysler Europe, through its ownership of the Rootes Group, was able to ship over Hillman Avanger subcompacts for sale in the US market. This would have made sense... if Chrysler hadn't already been selling rebadged Mitsubishi Colt Galants (as Dodge Colts) and Simca 1100s as (Simca 1204s) in its American showrooms. Few bought the Cricket, despite its cheery ad campaign. So, what's the badge-engineered car you find most confounding? Chrysler Dodge Automakers Mitsubishi Nissan Suzuki Automotive History question of the day badge engineering question

2015 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport gets power bump

Mitsubishi is working to keep its products up to date. While the prospect for a midsize sedan might be on hold, and the Outlander Plug-in Hybrid keeps seeing delays; the Outlander Sport is at least getting a more powerful, optional engine for two trims in the 2015 model year. The Japanese brand's compact crossover is now offered with a 2.4-liter four-cylinder making 168 horsepower and 167 pound-feet of torque, and it's hooked up to a CVT. That works out to a jump of 20 hp and 22 lb-ft over the current 2.0-liter four-cylinder in the Outlander Sport. Fuel economy is rated at 23 miles per gallon city, 28 mpg highway and 25 mpg combined for the front-wheel drive version or 23/26/24 for all-wheel drive models. The larger engine is only available on the ES and GT trim levels. Prices for the 2.4 ES start at at $21,295, plus an $850 destination charge on all models, and it also gets a black center bumper. The 2.4 GT rings up for $23,595 and adds things like a power driver's seat, black roof rails and LED turn signals in the mirrors. Additionally, customers can option the GT Premium Package for an upgraded stereo, moonroof and auto-dimming rearview mirror. There's also the GT Touring Package with leather seats and a seven-inch navigation system. MITSUBISHI MOTORS INTRODUCES MORE POWERFUL 2015 OUTLANDER SPORT New 2.4-liter engine produces 168 horsepower – 20 more horsepower than currently offered 2.0-liter engine The 2.4l engine will be available in two trim levels: 2.4 ES and 2.4 GT Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) has introduced a more powerful version of the 2015 Outlander Sport 5-passenger crossover that includes a larger displacement 2.4-liter MIVEC 4-cylinder engine producing 168 horsepower – a 20 horsepower increase over the current 2.0-liter engine. With a starting MSRP of $21,295, the 2015 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport 2.4 ES features a black center bumper to visually differentiate this model from the standard ES trim level. The 2015 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport 2.4 GT has a MSRP of $23,595 and includes additional features such as a power driver's seat, leather-wrapped parking brake handle, aluminum pedals, and exterior enhancements including a black center bumper along with black roof rails and outside mirrors with LED turn indicators. The 2.4 GT model includes an optional GT Premium Package that consists of a 710-watt Rockford Fosgate® premium sound system with 9 speakers including 10-in.