2000 Mitsubishi Eclipse Gt Coupe 2-door 3.0l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV US launch delayed over battery shortage

Mitsubishi resumed full-scale battery production in August after a five-month shutdown due to a safety investigation. Supplier Lithium Energy Japan has been delivering 4,000 battery packs each month since September, but that's apparently still not enough to fill the overseas inventory pipeline for the Outlander PHEV and i subcompact EV while launching the Outlander PHEV here in the US. So instead of the previous tentative launch date of Fall 2014, the plug-in hybrid's Stateside on-sale date has been pushed back until 2015.
That's according to Automotive News, which also notes that Mitsubishi has sold 11,300 plug-in Outlanders this year, though that number reflects the production stoppage over the battery issues. As of April, battery supplier LEJ will be able to supply 5,000 packs per month just for the Outlander, but company president Osamu Masuko has gone on record saying that production will have to rise above that in order to make the US launch.
Every Mitsubishi dealer (and hopefully a fair number of consumers) will be looking forward to a crossover that, for the moment, doesn't really have natural rivals. The Outlander PHEV can drive 32 miles on electricity alone, has a top speed of 75 miles per hour in EV mode and offers all-wheel drive with a towing capacity of over 3,000 pounds. The model should get an impressive MPGe rating from the EPA when it finally arrives and it figures to be a bellwether for the plug-in Outlander Sport and Pajero utility vehicles that are expected to arrive after it. Hopefully 2015 will be its year.

Facts point to legal violations by Carlos Ghosn, says Nissan external review

YOKOHAMA, Japan — An external committee reviewing governance at Nissan Motor Co said on Wednesday there were enough facts to suspect violations of laws and the private use of company funds by ousted chairman Carlos Ghosn. Following a three-month audit of Nissan's governance after a scandal that shook the global auto industry, the committee put the blame squarely on what it called Ghosn's concentration of power. It also acknowledged Nissan CEO Hiroto Saikawa's role in Ghosn's salary arrangement at the heart of the scandal. Twenty years to the day since French automaker Renault SA agreed to rescue Nissan, the committee described a corporate culture at Nissan "in which no one can make any objections to Mr. Ghosn," who was "in a way deified within Nissan as a savior who had redeemed Nissan from collapse." A representative for Ghosn replied in a statement that the allegations made against the former Nissan chairman "will be revealed for what they are: part of an unsubstantiated smear campaign against Carlos Ghosn to prevent the integration of the Alliance and conceal Nissan's deteriorating performance." The group issued 38 recommendations to bolster Nissan's governance, including that top executive positions at the Japanese car maker should not be held by people serving in executive positions at Renault or junior partner Mitsubishi Motors. It also proposed that the majority of directors, including the chairman of the board, be independent, outside directors and that the role of company chairman be abolished. Responding to the committee's comments, Saikawa told reporters on Thursday that Nissan would seriously consider the committee's recommendations, which he characterized as "tough." Saikawa, who was speaking outside his home, did not specifically address his responsibility in the scandal but has previously said that top management, including himself, were responsible for weak governance which led to the misconduct. The recommendations from the external, seven-member committee came weeks after Nissan and Renault said they would retool their alliance, one of the world's biggest automaking groupings, to break up the all-powerful chairmanship previously held by Ghosn. "There are facts sufficient to suspect violations of laws and regulations, violation of internal rules and private use of company funds and expenses ... by Mr. Ghosn," the committee said in its report.

Mitsubishi's nip-and-tucked Eclipse Cross shows its face for the first time

Mitsubishi's long-promised new models are right around the corner. It released a dark image to preview the 2022 Eclipse Cross, which will boast comprehensive visual updates when it arrives in the first quarter of 2021. Although the photo keeps the full design under wraps, we can tell the Eclipse Cross falls in line with the rest of the Mitsubishi range by adopting new-look headlights with swept-back LED accents and thick pieces of C-shaped trim. Few would qualify these changes as revolutionary, but bigger modifications are found out back. The preview image suggests — and earlier spy shots confirm — that stylists have smoothed out the crossover's rear end, which some have likened to the unfortunate Pontiac Aztek. The end result is a sleeker, less hunchback-like design. Mitsubishi claims the nip-and-tuck makes the Eclipse Cross look more upscale and energetic. We'll wait until it shines more light on its entry-level crossover to decide if it has achieved its goal. Our hopes are high, because the Eclipse Cross will usher in the design language that will permeate all of the brand's new models in the 2020s. "The Eclipse Cross is the first step toward the next generation of Mitsubishi Design, and there is so much more to come," said Seiji Watanabe, the general manager of the company's design department, in a statement. Mitsubishi focused on exterior design, but we're assuming the 2022 update will also bring a new-look interior. We don't know if the firm will make mechanical changes. As of writing, the Eclipse Cross is only offered with a turbocharged, 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine that makes 152 horsepower and 184 pound-feet of torque. It spins the front wheels via a continuously variable transmission (CVT), though all-wheel drive is offered at an extra cost. Additional details about the 2022 Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross will emerge in the coming months. When it arrives, it will join the updated Outlander PHEV (which will receive an improved hybrid powertrain) and the redesigned Mirage in showrooms. Finally, the next-generation Outlander is due out in the second quarter of 2021. Mitsubishi Crossover