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Mitsubishi has 6 all-new models in the works, plus 5 redesigns

Mitsubishi has revealed its plans for the next three years, and they're all focused on expansion. The company wants to improve unit sales and revenue by 30 percent, which would have it selling 1.3 million cars worldwide. It also plans to improve profit margins from 0.3 percent to 6 percent. This will entail an investment of nearly $5.3 billion. To do this, the company will work on reducing development and manufacturing costs and concentrating on improving in existing markets. But the most interesting part for consumers and enthusiasts: its expanding product plans. Mitsubishi says it will have 11 new model launches over the three-year expansion period. Of these models, six of them are completely new, and the other five will be significant updates and redesigns of existing models. Two of the new vehicles have been shown already including the Eclipse Cross, a compact crossover we'll get in America, and the Xpander (shown below), a minivan-type thing that won't come to the States. The addition of redesigned and new models should be great news for Mitsubishi dealers, especially in America where the company only offers two flavors of aging Outlander, and the bargain-basement Mirage. Fans of Mitsubishi cars might not have much to be excited for, though, since the company says it will be focusing on SUVs and trucks. In fact, it expects that its five best-selling models and 70 percent of its sales will be SUVs, trucks, and plug-in hybrids. If we had to guess what the next four Mitsubishi models could be, we imagine that at least one of them will be some type of full-size crossover. Something sized similarly to the foreign-market Pajero SUV, but designed for pavement pounding. This would especially make sense given other companies entering that space such as VW with the Atlas, and Subaru with its Ascent. As for the three other slots, it's harder to guess. The future Outlander will grow, and the Outlander Sport will shrink, so Mitsubishi will have its midsize and subcompact bases covered, and with a hypothetical full-size crossover, it would have a full line. Those three other slots could be cars, or perhaps specialty crossovers, maybe even a sporty one based on the e-Evolution. But they could also be vehicles aimed at other regions in segments that don't really exist in the U.S. For instance, they could include new microcars for Japan's Kei class of vehicles, or possibly ultra-bare bones, low-cost compacts for Southeast Asia, India and China. Related Video:

Recharge Wrap-up: Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV Finishes AXCR, Nissan Leafs drive 528 million collective miles

The Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV has successfully completed the Asia Cross Country Rally 2014. The plug-in Mitsu finished first in the EV class, and 14th overall, clocking in at 19 hours, 17 minutes and 12 seconds. For its second year in the competition, the Outlander PHEV used a new suspension with more ground clearance to help it tackle the race's treacherous terrain. Besides the glory of taking on the challenging competition, the rally helped Mitsubishi gather valuable data for EV development. The race took place over 1,367 miles of varied terrain from Thailand to Cambodia. Read more at Hybrid Cars, or visit Mitsubishi UK's Facebook page. Nissan Leaf drivers have driven more than 528 million miles worldwide. That accounts for a reduction of 150,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions since the EV's 2010 launch. Nissan projects that Leaf drivers will surpass a collective 1 billion electric kilometers (621 million miles) by January 2015, or perhaps even sooner if sales keep increasing. The mileage data was collected through the car's CarWings telemetry. Read more at Green Car Congress. 40 percent of luxury cars will be powered by some form of electrification by 2030, according to Audi. Whether it's battery-electric, hybrid, or plug-in hybrid, electrons will be doing their share to get the well-heeled from place to place. According to an article at The Sydney Morning Herald, PHEVs are "the most promising option." The BMW i8 is a fine example, as is the Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid, and Audi and Mercedes-Benz have plug-in plans of their own. Lexus, not so much. Read more at The Sydney Morning Herald. PGA golfer Hunter Mahan has taken delivery of a BMW i3 he won by scoring a hole-in-one. BMW offered a free, all-electric i3 to the first player to score a hole-in-one in the 2013 BMW Championship at Conway Farms Golf Club, which Mahan did on the 17th hole. The BMW Championship raised money for Evans Scholars Foundation. BMW Hole-in-One Scholar Melyzjah Smith, who was awarded a full four-year college tuition and housing scholarship in honor of Mahan's slick shot, was on hand to meet the golfer as he received his i3. Read more in the press release below. Uber has hired President Obama's 2008 campaign manager as its senior vice president of policy and strategy. David Plouffe will help the ride-hailing app navigate government policy and relations. The Taxicab, Limousine and Paratransit Association didn't think the move was a good one.

VW was 2018's top-selling automaker — but

TOKYO — Volkswagen Group has held on to its position as the world's top-selling automaker for the fifth year in a row, although the German group was edged out again by the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance in the light-duty vehicles segment. Renault SA, Nissan Motor Co Ltd and Mitsubishi Motors Corp together sold 10.76 million passenger cars and light commercial vehicles in 2018, according to Reuters' calculations after new data released on Wednesday. The group doesn't sell heavy trucks. Nissan said on Wednesday it sold 5.65 million vehicles last year, down 2.8 percent on the year. Mitsubishi reported an 18 percent rise in sales to 1.22 million units while Renault sold 3.88 million units, up 3.2 percent on the year. Volkswagen's deliveries rose 0.9 percent to a record 10.83 million last year, including its MAN and Scania heavy trucks, the German company said earlier this month. Excluding heavy trucks, it sold 10.6 million units. Toyota Motor Corp retained its third spot, announcing on Wednesday that it had sold 10.59 million vehicles last year including its Toyota and Lexus brands, along with minicars made by subsidiary Daihatsu and light and heavy trucks produced by its truck division Hino Motors Ltd. Excluding Hino trucks, Toyota sold 10.39 million units last year. The automaker has said it expects to sell a total of 10.76 million vehicles in 2019. Many automakers are trying to boost sales volumes to achieve economies of scale and reduce costs amid soaring investments needed to develop next-generation technologies, including self-driving cars and electric vehicles. This has been a focus of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Motors group, which is looking to share more vehicle parts and consolidate production platforms to trim R&D and manufacturing costs, while raising profitability. The alliance, which brought Mitsubishi Motors into its fold in 2016, is currently in crisis with its former Chairman Carlos Ghosn arrested and indicted on charges of misconduct. Nissan has also been indicted, and Renault appointed new top management last week. Related Video: Earnings/Financials Mitsubishi Nissan Toyota Volkswagen