2004 Mitsubishi Endeavor on 2040-cars

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Junkyard Gem: 1989 Plymouth Colt E Hatchback

By the late 1960s, it had became clear to the suits at Detroit's Big Three that their companies needed to start selling subcompacts at home or risk losing large hunks of market share to the likes of Volkswagen and Toyota. Ford and GM developed the Pinto and Vega, but the much smaller Chrysler Corporation couldn't afford such an investment. Instead, the Chrysler Europe-built Hillman Avenger and Simca 1100 crossed the Atlantic and were given Plymouth Cricket and Simca 1204 badges, respectively, while ships full of Mitsubishi Colt Galants with Dodge badges headed east out of Japan. Those were Dodge Colts, sales of which began here in the 1971 model year. The Cricket and 1204 faded into well-deserved obscurity, but American car shoppers loved the Hemi-powered Colt. The Plymouth Division eventually got Colts of its own, and that's what we've got for today's Junkyard Gem. The US-market Colt jumped to the front-wheel-drive Mitsubishi Mirage for the 1979 model year, and that's when North American Plymouth dealerships (which had already been selling the Mitsubishi Lancer Celeste as the Arrow) got their own Mirages to sell. For 1979 through 1982, the Plymouth-badged Colt twin was known as the Champ, after which Chrysler decided that distinction just confused everybody. Then both Dodge and Plymouth (plus, starting in 1989, Eagle) offered near-identical Colts until just before the 1994 introduction of the Michigan-designed Neon. 1989 was the first model year for the more rounded sixth-generation Colt. By the time this car appeared in a showroom, Mitsubishi had been selling Mirages here for six years; this meant that American cars shoppers could choose among four mechanically-identical versions of the same car: the Dodge Colt, the Plymouth Colt, the Eagle Summit, and the Mitsubishi Mirage. All four versions had similar pricing, so it really came down to which badge you liked best and/or which company was offering the best rebates and financing deals at any given moment. The cheapest 1989 Plymouth Colt three-door hatch listed at $6,678 (about $16,340 in 2022 dollars), while the Dodge version cost… exactly the same amount. If you insisted on a sedan, however, you had to get the Summit or Mirage, because the Colt was available only in hatchback form for 1989. Meanwhile, Chrysler had been selling the Simca-derived Dodge Omni/Plymouth Horizon in the United States since the 1978 model year, with sales continuing all the way through 1990.

Mitsubishi Europe boss says two new PHEV crossovers due next year

In an interview with Automotive News Europe, Mitsubishi's European CEO Bernard Loire told the publication, "In the second half of next year we will have a replacement of the current Outlander. It will be on an alliance platform. There also will be another smaller SUV coming at the same time." The statements came in response to a question about expanding the automaker's plug-in hybrid lineup, leading readers to expect that by this time next year, Mitsubishi will have two crossover PHEVs on the market. The current Outlander has been on the market since late 2012, the plug-in hybrid showing for the 2014 model year. We've already seen fairly polished versions of fourth-generation Outlander prototypes out testing, sporting looks inspired by the Engelberg Tourer concept revealed at this year's Geneva Motor Show. Some suspect the 2.0-liter four-cylinder in the current PHEV powertrain will make way for a 2.4-liter mill as in the Engelberg, paired with high-efficiency motors on both axles. The show car also touted features like all-wheel drive improved with active yaw control and enhanced anti-lock braking software. Figure on an EV range that improves the current Outlander PHEV's 22 miles, going perhaps as far as the Engelberg's 43 miles. Loire didn't give away anything about the second model, but an Autocar report from earlier this year quoted "a senior source" as saying "We will not have a unique nameplate" for the second battery-electric vehicle. The magazine said the Eclipse Cross and Outlander Sport are in line for series hybrid powertrains, without indicating which might come first. Loire told AN the brand's doing fine with respect to Europe's coming CO2 legislation, so it doesn't need to make rash moves. With the Eclipse Cross forming 20% of sales on the Continent, the middle crossover would be a rational choice for the next plug-in hybrid, especially since it's retiring the 2.2-liter diesel option around the end of 2020. On the other hand, the Outlander Sport will be 10 years old next year, a replacement can't be far away. The new plug-ins come with the realignment of Mitsubishi's crossover range. The Outlander, sitting on a new architecture shared among the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance, will grow into a proper mid-size choice; the prototype spotted in Michigan is clearly larger than the current vehicle.

Mitsubishi Evo tagged with graffiti faster than you can say 'stop!'

Ladies and gentlemen, meet Maggie Stiefvater, professional artist and musician, New York Times best-selling author and Mitsubishi Evo owner. Because, as she writes, "In my latest novel, The Dream Thieves, a character drives a car that looks just like mine. Only there's a knife painted on the side of his," she decided to graffiti a knife on the side of hers.
And that's how you get the time-lapse video below of Stiefvater, a few aerosol cans and a lot of stencils enjoying a sunny day in the park.