2019 Mitsubishi Fuso Fe160 14ft Utility Truck With Liftgate on 2040-cars

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Nissan slashes profit forecast as Ghosn arrest hurts brand appeal

TOKYO — Nissan cut its profit forecast for the fiscal year through March on Wednesday to reflect slowing sales, higher costs and the fallout from a criminal investigation of its former chairman, Carlos Ghosn. Nissan Motor Co. expects to post a 319 billion yen ($2.9 billion) profit for the fiscal year, marking a 22% drop from its earlier 410 billion yen ($3.7 billion) forecast. Nissan said the downgrade reflects higher costs in the U.S. from a warranty extension campaign for some vehicles and falling sales due to "corporate issues," alluding to the Ghosn scandal. Ghosn was arrested in November and is facing charges of underreporting his income and breach of trust. He says he is innocent. He was released on bail in March and is awaiting another court decision on bail after his re-arrest on April 4. Nissan, which is allied with Renault SA of France, has seen sales lag in France and Japan, where Ghosn is widely known. In the U.S. and China, buyers aren't as affected by the scandal, but the markets there overall have slowed. Other factors contributed to the revision, such as production not keeping up with demand for the Note, an extremely popular model in Japan. But the high-profile scandal has weakened the brand appeal of the maker of the Leaf electric car, Infiniti luxury model and X-trail sports utility vehicle. Nissan said it expects to sell 5.5 million vehicles in this fiscal year. Earlier it predicted it would sell 5.6 million. The company sold nearly 5.8 million vehicles in the fiscal year that ended in March 2018. The automaker reduced its sales outlook by 0.2% for the fiscal year through March 2019 to 11.5 trillion yen ($103 billion), compared to its previous forecast. It was Nissan's second downgrade for its outlook following one in February that cited faltering sales in China and the U.S. At that time, Nissan also logged costs about 9.2 billion yen ($83 million) related to the alleged underreporting of Ghosn's compensation. Nissan has promised to strengthen its corporate governance to prevent a recurrence of what it says is serious wrongdoing by Ghosn. Ghosn was sent by Nissan's French alliance partner, Renault SA, to help turn the Japanese automaker around when it was near bankruptcy 20 years ago. The future of the alliance is one of many questions clouding Nissan's future following Ghosn's ouster since he was the main liaison for the alliance, which includes smaller Japanese automaker Mitsubishi Motors.

Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV gets more power, range and capabilities

We've driven the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV a couple of times now, and enjoyed it quite a bit. Even though it's the same version that's been kicking around other markets in its current form for a while now, it was efficient, pleasant to drive, and offers something that is pretty rare right now: a relatively affordable plug-in hybrid midsize crossover. Now, in its home market of Japan, the 2019 Outlander PHEV is getting some significant updates, including more electric power and a bigger gas engine, a bigger battery, improved suspension, two new drive modes and some design tweaks. To start, the PHEV's battery capacity increases from 12 kWh to 13.8 kWh. That boosts its all-electric driving range from 37.8 miles to 40.4 (under Japan's testing cycle). The rear electric motor/generator also gets a slight boost in power. The gas engine increases its displacement from 2.0 to 2.4 liters. The vehicle now offers Sport and Snow modes, and its 4WD Lock mode has been adjusted to better handle poor road surfaces. To improve its ride and handling, Mitsubishi added larger front and rear dampers with a new type of damper valve to the Outlander PHEV. A faster steering ratio and retuned electric power steering control promise better steering feel and response. Mitsubishi has also increased the structural rigidity in parts of the body. Design-wise, the updated Outlander PHEV gets full LED headlights and an updated grille up front. In the rear, there's a new spoiler that improves aerodynamics and gives it a sportier look. Inside, the leather seating gets a new diamond-quilt pattern, along with the door trim. The front seats are also reshaped for more support. The new updates seem like they'll make the Outlander PHEV even more attractive both in terms of performance and design. We doubt that Mitsubishi would choose not offer these improvements in other markets, including the U.S. We've reached out to Mitsubishi to see if and when we can hope to see the improved versions stateside, and we'll update if we hear back. Related Video:

Junkyard Gem: 1991 Mitsubishi Mighty Max Super Max

While the Montero SUV sold well enough in the United States, Mitsubishi-badged pickup sales didn't quite measure up to those of their Toyota, Nissan, and Mazda rivals. Second-generation Mighty Maxes are hard to find, so this '91 in Colorado was worthy of inclusion in the Junkyard Gem canon. The ADX Florence Supermax federal prison is just 100 miles to the south of this self-service wrecking yard, but it opened several years after this truck was built. The garish lettering and striping has the look of a dealer-installed option package. Chrysler sold rebadged Mitsubishi pickups for decades, as the Plymouth Arrow and Dodge D-50/Ram 50. When Mitsubishi began selling vehicles under their own brand in the United States in 1982, the Triton pickup got the Mighty Max name. The Dodge Ram 50 always outsold its near-identical Mighty Max twin, but the debut of the all-Detroit Dakota in 1987 cut into Ram 50 sales; by 1995, truck shoppers who wanted a Mitsubishi pickup had no choice but the Mighty Max. After 1996, the Mighty Max was mighty gone. This one is quite solid and doesn't appear to have been wrecked, and the odometer shows a surprisingly low mileage figure for a 26-year-old Japanese pickup. The 2.4-liter 4G54 four-cylinder engine is gone, purchased by a junkyard shopper. This engine family went into everything from the Mitsubishi Galant to the Hyundai Sonata, not to mention the Chery V5. The sunroof has an aftermarket look, which fits with the SUPER MAX dealer-option theory. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Mitsubishi trucks were pitched as cheap, cheap, cheap in the United States.