**negotiable** 2005 Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart **negotiable** on 2040-cars

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2022 Mitsubishi Outlander Black Edition adds a bit of menace

The Mitsubishi Outlander is a competent SUV that's still trying to shed the stigma of the company's post-Evo doldrums. To give shoppers a reason to take a second glance, Mitsubishi has just introduced the new-for-2022 Outlander Black Edition, a trim package that, albeit largely cosmetic, adds a hint of sinister flair to its unique sheetmetal. The Black Edition builds off of the Outlander SE grade, and as such can be ordered with either drivetrain, front-wheel-drive or in Mitsubishi's Super All-Wheel Control all-wheel-drive. From there, it adds popular features like dual-zone climate control and a panoramic roof. Propulsion comes from the standard 2.5-liter inline-four mated to a continuously variable transmission. Of course, the selling point of the Black Edition is the black trim that sets it apart from other Outlanders. As such, it's treated to black 20-inch wheels that look a bit snazzier than the standard dual-finish rollers. Black trim covers the side mirrors and garnishes the door handles as well. And cabin-wise, the headliner and pillars are now finished in black. Apart from the rims, these are barely noticeable changes. The main visual difference comes in the front and rear bumper lower bumper areas that give the vehicle a statelier vibe. Oh, and the name Outlander is now spelled out in black letters across the prow. The Outlander Black Edition starts at $29,995, which is a pretty good deal considering that items like the panoramic roof and dual-zone climate control aren't even standard on the more expensive SEL trim. For certain buyers, the Black Edition will fall in the sweet spot in terms of options and features. Mitsubishi joins many other car companies that have put out Black Edition trims across their lineups. It can seem a bit frivolous, but if it brings a few more customers to the table, especially with the option mix, it will have done its job.

Nissan CEO Uchida says he's willing to be fired if turnaround fails

YOKOHAMA — Nissan's new chief executive said on Tuesday he would accept being fired if he fails to turn around Japan's second biggest automaker which is grappling with plunging sales in the aftermath of the scandal surrounding ex-chairman Carlos Ghosn. Makoto Uchida, who took over the top job in December, put his job on the line at the automaker's shareholders' meeting, where he faced demands ranging from cutting executive pay to offering a bounty to bring Ghosn back to Japan after he fled to Lebanon. Nissan's worsening performance has heaped pressure on Uchida, formerly Nissan's China chief who became its third CEO since September, to come up with aggressive steps to revive the company. On Tuesday, Uchida, who was repeatedly heckled by shareholders, said he was ready to face dismissal if he failed to improve profitability at the company, which is on course to post its worst annual operating profit in 11 years. "We will make sure that we steer the company in an effective way so that it is visible in the eyes of viewers. I will commit to this: if the circumstances remain uncertain you can fire me immediately," he said. Uchida, 53, did not give a timeframe for improving Nissan's performance. The new boss must prove to the board he can accelerate cost-cutting and rebuild profits at the 86-year-old Japanese giant, and that he has the right strategy to repair its partnership with France's Renault, sources have told Reuters. Uchida pleaded with shareholders to be patient while he comes up with a plan by May to recover from crumbling profits and a corporate shake-up following Ghosn's arrest in Japan in late 2018 over financial misconduct charges. "If you can be patient a little bit longer, on a day-to-day basis you will be able to sense we are changing," he said. Ahead of the meeting, some shareholders demanded more clarity about Uchida's plan. "I just want to know what the plan for recovery is. At the moment, the share price has dropped again, and the value of the company has plummeted," said a 70-year-old former employee who owns shares in the company. "If this is the situation, part of me thinks that we would be better off with Ghosn ... If we don't get a clearer vision of the path the company is taking, it will be a worry." Nissan's shares are trading around their lowest level in more than a decade following its latest earnings.

Junkyard Gem: 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage Hatchback

Remember the front-wheel-drive Dodge and Plymouth Colts (not to mention the Plymouth Champ and Eagle Summit) of the late 1970s through the middle 1990s? Those were Mitsubishi Mirages, and you could buy them here with Mitsubishi badging from 1985 through 2002. Then, for the 2014 model year, the Mirage returned to North America, as the cheapest new car you could buy here. Now, barely a half-decade later, I'm seeing significant quantities of these Mirages in the car graveyards I frequent. Here's a pretty clean '15 in a yard located within sight of Pikes Peak in Colorado. I began seeing the current generation of Fiat 500 in the cheap U-Wrench yards when those cars hit about six or seven years of age, and the same goes for the Sebring-based Chrysler 200s. The Mirage beats that dubious distinction by a year or two. Really, the only shorter showroom-to-junkyard average interval I've witnessed in my 38 years of junkyard crawling was achieved by the genuinely miserable early Hyundai Excels, which started to be discarded in quantity when they hit about age four; I recall seeing dozens of them in Southern California yards with 25,000 miles on the clock and hardly any interior wear-and-tear. Even the Yugo did better (and this is why I remain amazed by the generally high quality of Hyundai products starting in the early-to-mid 1990s; Hyundai gets my personal "Most Improved Automaker" award for that achievement). That said, I don't agree with the legions of my car-writer colleagues who love to trash the humble Mirage. I reviewed the 2014 Mirage, and then— just because I feel such affection for cheap commuter-mobiles— went back and wrote up the 2017 Mirage GT. These cars aren't much fun to drive, they have decidedly low-rent interiors, and you don't look like a serious car expert when the masses see you behind the wheel of one. And yet, if you're 22 years old in your first "real" job and you'll get canned if you're late even once, choosing a new car with a strong warranty, with non-ball-busting credit terms and a somewhat lower monthly payment than those other subcompacts that provide more road feel when you're at the limit of the performance envelope, you know, when you're trail-braking for a late pass on your favorite two-lane freeway offrampÂ… well, the Mirage looks like a pretty good deal on a transportation appliance.