2005 Mitsubishi Endeavor Limited Sport Utility 4-door 3.8l on 2040-cars

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Japanese automakers kick in $800k for new charging-station company

Cynics may say that gathering $800,000 (total) from four of Japan's largest automakers is merely a rounding error. Still, Toyota, Nissan, Honda and Mitsubishi, along with the Development Bank of Japan, are putting those funds to good use. So, that's something. Last week, those five entities officially founded Nippon Charge Service LLC. The company was established to promote plug-in vehicle charging installations across Japan and the automakers seeded it with 80 million yen, or about $786,000 US. Those funds will be used to help business owners deploy charging stations at convenience stores, highway-side locales and other locations that will make it easier for plug-in vehicle drivers (of Toyotas, Hondas, Mitsubishis and Nissans, obviously) to get their juice. The automakers first announced they'd collaborate last year, when they said they'd work with the Japanese government to more than triple the country's publicly accessible chargers to about 17,000 units. No targets were disclosed as far as how many charging stations would be deployed this time out, but, in a move similar to the EZ Charge system in the US, Nippon Charge Service will also have universally-accepted charging cards available by the end of the year to drivers all of those brands' plug-in vehicles to make the charging process a little more seamless. Check out Honda's press release below. Japan Automakers Advance Electric Charging Infrastructure with New Company, Nippon Charge Service -Established to help build charging infrastructure for electric-powered vehicles (PHVs, PHEVs and EVs)- Toyota Motor Corporation Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. Honda Motor Co., Ltd. Mitsubishi Motors Corporation Development Bank of Japan Inc. TOKYO, Japan, May 30, 2014 - Toyota Motor Corporation, Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., Honda Motor Co., Ltd., and Mitsubishi Motors Corporation jointly established a new company, Nippon Charge Service, LLC, on May 26 to promote the installation of chargers for electric-powered vehicles (PHVs, PHEVs, EVs). The goal is to help build a charging network that offers more convenience to drivers in Japan. The new company will promote the installation of chargers, for the good of society and to expand the use of electric-powered vehicles. Related industries are also expected to benefit. Development Bank of Japan Inc.

Mitsubishi rolls out new Triton pickup [w/videos]

Of all the automakers producing pickup trucks these days, even among just the Japanese automakers, Mitsubishi might not spring to mind first. But maybe it should. The Diamond-Star company has been in the game now for 36 years, selling over four million pickups around the world. These days that comes down principally to the Triton, of which it sold over a third of a million units last year alone for a total of over 1.2 million produced since its introduction in 2005. Now, after nine years on the market, Mitsubishi has launched a new version.
Clearly drawing its stylistic influence (if not the hybrid powertrain) from the GR-HEV concept Mitsubishi showcased at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show, the new Triton aims to combine "the comfortable interior of a passenger car with the functionality and reliability of a pickup." It's more stylish, more comfortable and safer than the model it replaces, and comes in an array of configurations.
Buyers of the new Triton (known in some markets as the L200, among other nameplates it's worn over the years) will be able to choose between Single, Double and Club Cab variants. Powertrain choices will vary by market, but will be based around three engines: a 2.4-liter gasoline unit, a 2.5-liter turbodiesel and a new 2.4-liter turbodiesel with electronic valve timing.

Mitsubishi's first US chairman since 2007 charged with revitalizing brand

Have a look at Mitsubishi North America's vehicle page and you'll find seven cars in four model lines: i-MiEV electric hatch, Lancer sedan, Lancer Evolution and Sportback, Outlander and Outlander Sport, and Galant sedan. The Galant has 3.9 tires in the automotive grave, and the only hope for mainstream excitement, the Eclipse coupe and Spyder, had hemlock poured down their crankcases last year. Increasing the quotient of bleak, the Lancer isn't due for a refresh until 2014, the coming Outlander PHEV will sell in miniscule numbers when it does arrive, a little sports car has been nixed and the only other Mitsu being considered for our landmass is the Colt, which, for its stellar fuel economy numbers, looks like a car designed by Pikachu. There's also that matter of declining NA market share in a rising overall market, Mitsubishi's piece of the total pie currently hovering around the 0.4-percent mark according to Automotive News.
The company has decided to do more about it, reassigning Executive Vice President and Head Officer of the Headquarters Product Projects & Strategy Group Gayu Uesugi to be the new chairman of Mitsubishi Motors North America. It will be the first time in five years that someone has filled the chairman position at MMNA.
The hope is that with Uesugi's 35 years with the company, his experience in the company's global product plan and his success in emerging market strategy, he's the man to "[develop] a product plan and growth strategy for the US market" that will put things right. Or at least better. He will work with Yoichi Yokozawa, who has been CEO of MMNA since last year. There are more details on the move in the press release below.