2006 Blue Pearl Mitsubishi Eclipse Gt Hatchback 2-door 3.8l on 2040-cars

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1,400 Mitsubishi vehicles lost in shipping tragedy

A cargo ship carrying 1,400 Mitsubishi vehicles from Japan and Thailand collided with another vessel off the coast of Belgium and the Netherlands yesterday. The 485-foot Baltic Ace was carrying cars from Zeebrugge, Belgium to Kotka, Finland when it collided with the 439-foot Corvus J. While the Corvus J sustained damage during the incident, it is not in danger of sinking, and its 12-man crew is currently still on board.
The Baltic Ace, meanwhile, went under. Three ships from the Royal Dutch Sea Rescue Organization, two navy vessels, four helicopters and one coastguard aircraft spent the evening searching for survivors, but rough seas and high winds hampered the effort. Eighteen of the Baltic Ace's crew, including the captain, were rescued after being found in life rafts, but six remain missing. The search for survivors has officially been called off.
The collision occurred in one of the busiest shipping lanes in the North Sea, and the managers behind the Baltic Ace said they believed human error was to blame for the incident. Dutch police are currently looking into whether or not they can investigate the sinking despite the fact that the collision took place outside of the country's territorial waters.

Mitsubishi planning three all-new concepts for Tokyo show

Even with new models like the 2014 Outlander and Mirage in its stable, Mitsubishi could sure use a little excitement injected into its lineup. Fortunately, it looks like a trio of concepts headed to the Tokyo Motor Show could finally help spark some enthusiasm for the troubled automaker.
All we have to go on right now is a pair of teaser images for the three concepts, but it does reveal a possible new design language for Mitsubishi. The Concept GC-PHEV (shown above) is a fullsize, plug-in utility vehicle, and it could very well be a harbinger of the Montero/Pajero replacement that we heard about earlier this year. Mitsubishi will also unveil a compact plug-in crossover called the Concept XR-PHEV designed to look like a "sport coupe" as well as the Concept AR compact MPV, which will utilize a small-displacement, turbocharged engine.
There is still no word on the next-gen Lancer, Galant or subcompact sedan mentioned in recent reports, but the announcement below does show promise for Mitsubishi's lineup of plug-in cars.

2014 Mitsubishi Mirage arrives in US this fall

Mitsubishi dealers have been painfully starved of fresh product for ages now, with their most recent new model, the bubble-shaped i electric car, already requiring a serious sales jumpstart. We've known for a while that help is on the way in the form of an all-new Outlander crossover, but we've basically only had loose confirmations to go on that the Japanese automaker would eventually reintroduce its Mirage subcompact to the American market. Today, those rumors have turned to reality, as Mitsubishi has confirmed that the five-door economy car will hit US dealerships this fall.
Every subcompact player needs a trump suit, from Ford's tech-rich Fiesta to Honda's impossibly space-efficient Fit, and the Mirage's calling card figures to be its fuel economy. Mitsubishi says it expects its 2014 Mirage to achieve 37 miles per gallon in the city and 44 on the highway (combined rating of 40 mpg) when equipped with a continuously variable transmission. Those figures are good enough, Mitsu says, to earn it the title of the most fuel-efficient gasoline vehicle sold in America that isn't a hybrid.
Of course, Mitsubishi isn't outlining any additional specs at the moment - not even engine configuration. We're expecting the company's 1.2-liter three-cylinder, which in European spec delivers a modest 79 horsepower and 78 pound-feet of torque. The Continent's Mirage weighs under 1,900 pounds, but the normally aspirated triple still makes for leisurely acceleration of 11.7 seconds to 62 miles per hour. It will be interesting to see if Mitsubishi makes some powertrain alterations to better suit American expectations.