Mitsubishi, once the poster child for how to kill an auto company, is on the rebound. Bloomberg reports that Mitsu posted a 14 percent gain in global sales during the last financial quarter. That's higher then even Toyota, who only posted a 3.4 percent gain. Proving there's life after [Chrysler's] bad management and marketing decisions, covering up quality issues and offering lackluster products, the company showed their first profit in three years for the 12 months ending March 31. Mitsu credits "re-establishing public trust and boosting quality" for the recovery. While sales are climbing on the world scene, it's a different matter on the home front. Sales in Japan are down 16 percent, reflecting an aging population and shrinking market. Come to think of it, this all sounds like a couple of American manufacturers whose overseas sales are keeping the home-market operation afloat.. Huh.
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Mitsubishi's woes primarily came from two sources. 1) Establishing the worst credit practices ever seen in our business. 2) Trying to sell a full line of cars when their R&D resources couldn't sustain such an effort. Strangely enough, I've actually found that Mitsubishi sedans from that time period are very good in terms of durability… so long as the car wasn't a lease or financed vehicle. Their designs are awkward but the powertrains are actually quite well done. A two year old Galant or Lancer is usually an excpetional value if you're strictly looking at the financials.
It’s like the early 2000s all over again when Mitsu will come out of a slump and use the line “the fastest growing import brand” or some such thing. While true, informed consumers should also realize they’re “fastest growing” b/c they screwed the pooch in the not-too-distant past.
Hopefully their next Galant isn’t blanderific and can (also) help boost sales. The current model is/was a huge miscue IMO.
Now if we could just get them bring back the Galant VR-4 I may pick up a baby brother for our 1990 Eclipse GSX :)
The 1990 Eclipse GSX was the last great car they made IMO. That was one really fun ride and stuck to the road like glue.
My bad on blaming GM on the original headline and in the text.
I’m working on a GM DW and I just had a brain fart.
My apologies.
While I am glad to see corporate turnarounds, the percent quoted gains are a bit misleading. From the article: “Mitsubishi Motors projects global sales of 1.32 million vehicles this business year” compared to 4.72 million vehicles for the first 6 months of the year for Toyota.
When you get to be Toyota’s size, I should hope that you aren’t adding customers at a 14% gain in one quarter.
I maintain hopes that Mitsubishi will pull itself out of its slump, partly because I owned a 2001 Mitsubishi Eclipse GT (V6, 5-speed)–it was tuned too softly, but it made a lovely semi-sporting grand tourer, and it was dead-nuts reliable.
That said, Mitsubishi is one of the most frustrating brands on the market to root for. Nearly all of their vehicles in recent years have been good, solid efforts rendered uncompetitive by one big, stupid oversight: the Galant’s fixed rear seatback, the Endeavor’s missing third-row seat, the new Lancer’s underpowered Four.
Judged purely on driving dynamics, they’re often among the better cars in their respective classes (new Eclipse excepted). Mitsu does good steering feel and fabulously smooth, torquey V6s, and that’s about it (Evo excepted). Here’s hoping that a little extra cash flow gives Mitsu’s product planners the freedom to cut fewer corners elsewhere.
Uh, before we get off too quickly blaming Chrysler for yet another boneheaded move, didn’t Daimler have something to do with the problems, too?
Hard to believe considering that local dealer I once mentioned on here who I commented about having an entire lot full of Eclipses and it seemed like he never sold any of them. I guess he really didn’t as that dealership is now shutdown and abandoned and the website is gone.
I gotta say, Mitsubishi really had the tuner market in the palm of their hands and they completely pissed it away and that’s a damn shame. They had a future as *the* company that does tuner cars once Toyota dropped out of the sports car game and it’s almost, but not quite, impossible to revive. Starting with the Starion and and on into the 1G and 2G Eclipses and GTO/3000GT they had built a solid sporty reputation featured in some prominent movies like the first Fast and the Furious. They could have done sporty better than Nissan, but they’ve missed the boat. The Lancer Evo is awesome on rally roads, but the interior is a penalty box and it’s not much of a halo car for their econoboxes. Great for them for seeing a sales increase, but I have a feeling a lot of it has to do with a global credit and capital crunch and the move towards cars that are cheaper to own and cheaper to operate and they definitely have lots of value there. That was their original value to Chrysler during the Arab oil embargo, and they should concentrate on doing that and doing it well. I do want an AWD 4G Eclipse though. I loved my 2G and am serious considering buying a used 2G GSX.
Hmm… how did this happen? I’ve always found their lineup to be insipid, and very similar to the domestics. The last gen Eclipse even looked like a Pontiac, and had an interior that wasn’t much better. I feel like Mitsu is riding on the rep of Honda and Toyota somewhat, as people now think that if it’s japanese it must be reliable and have good build quality and such, which isn’t the case for Mitsubishi. Nissan may be riding on some of that good will as well.
Positive sign or the last shot of adrenaline left in a soon dead horse? Methinks it is the latter. The fact that they had a large sales increase after their only product with legs (lancer) got a redesign is not a shock. They have some work to do. The ’99 eclipse was their last great product. What I would give for a reasonably priced sporty coupe with good driving dynamics.
The new Lancer is quite handsome, and the rumored Ralliart version they might come out with to rassle with the WRX and Mazdaspeed 3 (and the… uh… Cobalt SS haw haw) might do them right. I’ve had great respect for Mitsubishi ever since my mom drove a Plymouth minivan for 12 years with a Mitsubishi engine and failed to kill it after years of neglect and mistreatment. Now if they can get back on track with a proper Eclipse and revive the 3000 GT, the Fast and the Furious crowd might have to pony up for a new Mitsubishi.
Hoonda owns the Fast and the Furious crowd.
“Proving there’s life after [Chrysler’s] bad management and marketing decisions”
I disagree. Chrysler (and really Daimler) never had that much control over Mitsubishi. Steven Lang got it right. Their troubles were their own and could have been avoided.