2007 Mitsubishi Spyder Gs on 2040-cars

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Mitsubishi shows five concepts headed to the 2020 Tokyo Auto Salon

Mitsubishi will storm the 2020 Tokyo Auto Salon with seven concepts, five based on production models getting early previews. This year's haul more than doubles the trio of concepts Mitsubishi took to this year's Tokyo Auto Salon, and it's obvious the company put more effort into all of them as well. The wildest among the five could be the Delica D:5 imagined by Japanese director, producer and writer Teruo Ito. With the idea to rework the Delica into the idea of embodying charm "like a dog or a member of a family," Ito threw out the van's rectangular headlights, working with Mitsubishi designers to replace them with large round units inset like eyes. The anthropomorphic face is so important that the concept is apparently called the "D:5 eye," according to Google Translate. The van wears a "light army green" hue from its roof to its MLJ Daytona wheels, the interior done up in a olive tartan pattern.   Right behind it in the "Look at me!" stakes is the eK Cross Wild Beast Concept, a contrast to the "Cute Beast" that is the standard eK kei car. Drenched in yellow, with gray X graphics, a contrasting black roof and tailgate, black cladding, mud flaps, chunky rocker panels, roof rack and basket, and all-terrain tires, this one is meant to evoke a "playful outdoor image." In case the striking livery doesn't convey the message, the command to "Play the Nature" appears on the hood, roof rack and fuel filler cap. Inside, all-weather floor mats and a load bay mat stand ready to protect the interior from mud. Or Play-Doh. The Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV NERV is the widest combination of real and imaginary usefulness. Re: the latter, NERV is the fictional Japanese paramilitary organization that battles creatures called Angels in the "Neon Genesis Evangelion" anime. Warfare between the Evangelion units and the Angels tends to destroy a lot of animated real estate, hence the usefulness of a disaster relief vehicle like the Outlander PHEV, coordinated by the Gehirun Corporation that's also in the anime. For real-world service, designers installed a KYMETA u7 planar satellite antenna that can pick up signals from Sky Perfect JSAT Corporation — a Japanese-based satellite television and Internet company, and the Asia-focused Michibiki emergency broadcast and GPS service.

Mazda, Mitsubishi, and Subaru expand global Takata recalls by 715k [UPDATE]

UPDATE: Subaru of America spokesperson Michael McHale tells Autoblog that the company is recalling 78,000 Imprezas from the 2004 and 2005 model years in the US. This is a national expansion of the company's previous regional recall for the Impreza. The Takata airbag inflator recall just keeps growing. The latest expansion encompasses 715,000 vehicles from Mazda, Mitsubishi, and Subaru. Many of the affected models are in Japan. The largest expansion from these three automakers comes from Mitsubishi. According to Reuters, the company is adding 100,000 vehicles in Japan and 412,000 outside of the country without identifying any specific regions. Mazda is issuing safety campaigns for 112,000 vehicles in Japan, and some of these include models that the company produces there for Mitsubishi and Nissan, according to Reuters. In statement to Autoblog (embedded below), Mazda said that it is still evaluating the situation in terms of a possible effect on the US. Finally, Subaru is calling in 91,000 Imprezas in Japan. At this time, it isn't clear whether Mitsubishi's or Subaru's expansions affect the United States, but Autoblog has reached out to them for more information. According to research by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, exposure to moisture can cause the propellant in these inflators to ignite too quickly and cause these dangerous ruptures. Takata has also been investigating the problem. Related Video: Mazda statement "We are aware of the NHTSA/Takata announcement, and are evaluating the effects of it on Mazda. As soon as we have had a chance to fully evaluate the situation – number of vehicles affected, age of those vehicles, where they're located, etc. – we will be able to share those details."

Mitsubishi cheated on Japanese fuel economy test since 1991

Mitsubishi now says that its cheating on Japanese fuel economy tests stretches as far back as 1991. The automaker has hired an independent panel of investigators to get to the bottom of what happened, and the company will give them three months to prepare a report about the deception. Mitsubishi's cheat involves how the company calculated driving resistance to determine fuel economy. In 1991, Japan's Road Transport Vehicle Act established a coasting test to establish the driving resistance, but Mitsubishi's engineers used their own "high-speed coasting test," according to its statement. In 2007, the company decided to only use the country's mandated evaluation, but the employees kept utilizing the high-speed test in the field. In the most recent scandal, workers selected low values for driving resistance from the results, which made the fuel economy look better. Mitsubishi's presented these details in a report to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism. "We are currently investigating the reasoning behind each of the decisions," the company said in a statement. It also hired three former prosecutors to figure out why this happened for so long. At this time, Mitsubishi only confirms the incorrect figures for some of the company's minicars, but this investigation could discover more transgressions. This fiasco started when Nissan discovered fuel economy discrepancies in some of its Mitsubishi-made tiny kei-class cars in Japan. Mitsubishi came clean and admitted the problem affected about 625,000 vehicles in the country. Japanese media have alleged more vehicles have incorrect mileage, including the Outlander. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in the US has also requested data from the Japanese automaker to confirm similar deceptions didn't happen for vehicles here. Related Video: Regarding the Report to MLIT Concerning Improper Conduct in Fuel Consumption Testing of Vehicles Manufactured by Mitsubishi Motors Corporation Tokyo, April 26, 2016 The following is a summary of the report submitted by Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) today, pursuant to instructions received from MLIT on April 20 to investigate improper conduct in fuel consumption testing of vehicles manufactured by MMC. Report Summary 1.