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Mitsubishi's new Outlander could herald the return of Ralliart

Mitsubishi is on the cusp of reviving its dormant Ralliart performance line, and a new report suggests the label will return on a sportier version of the latest Outlander PHEV. The model could make its debut in late 2021. Ralliart's unexpected revival was announced during a presentation made to investors in May 2021, though no further details were released. Japanese magazine Best Car learned from unnamed sources that the new Outlander PHEV (pictured) expected to break cover in the coming months will be the first Ralliart-branded model in several years. How Mitsubishi will make the Outlander PHEV worthy of a name rooted in rallying remains to be seen. The transformation will include a race-inspired body kit, according to Best Car, and we're hoping more power from the electrified powertrain is part of the equation as well. While the Ralliart label could merely denote a sporty-looking trim level, like Mercedes-Benz's AMG Line designation or F Sport in Lexus-speak, there's a chance it will sooner or later be linked to racing. Mitsubishi boss Takao Kato revealed his team is considering returning to the rallying scene in the coming years to renew ties with the company's racing heritage. He stressed a rally program hasn't been approved yet, partly because racing is expensive, and he clarified that a new Lancer Evolution is not in the cards even though shareholders are requesting one. Interestingly, we should have seen the Outlander Ralliart already; it was reportedly scheduled to be unveiled at the 2021 edition of the Tokyo Motor Salon but the event was canceled due to pandemic-related concerns. Mitsubishi could keep the model under wraps until the 2022 show opens its doors, or it might introduce it elsewhere a little earlier. Regardless, if the report is accurate we won't have to wait long to find out how Ralliart has been reinvented. As for the next Outlander PHEV, it will land in late 2021 first in Japan and arrive in U.S. showrooms halfway through 2022. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Junkyard Gem: 2006 Mitsubishi Raider

When I'm scouring the rows of a big, fast-inventory-turnover vehicle boneyard for fascinating examples of automotive history, I keep strange examples of badge engineering at the top of my shopping list. Subarus with Saab emblems, Isuzus with Acura emblems, Hyundais with Mitsubishi emblems, Austins with Nash emblems, Mazdas with Mercury emblems, all the vehicles that sprang into existence because Carmaker A wanted to fill a vacant slot in the showrooms and Carmaker B proved willing to offer a vehicle that fit that slot. While I have yet to unearth a discarded Suzuki Equator pickup, I've found this truck with a far more convoluted model-name history: a 2006 Mitsubishi Raider in Phoenix. Chrysler sold rebadged Mitsubishis over here for decades, beginning with the Dodge Colt in the 1971 model year. Trucks joined the mix in the middle 1970s, with the Plymouth Arrow and then the Dodge D-50/Ram 50 pickups. The Dodge-ized Mitsubishi pickups soon faced competition from their Mitsubishi-badged twins, in the form of the Mighty Max, and then Chrysler began selling first-generation Mitsubishi Monteros with Dodge badging. That truck became the Dodge Raider, available with "Imported for Dodge" emblems in North America for the 1987 through 1989 model years. Raider owners loved their tough little SUVs every bit as much as Montero owners loved theirs, and so the Raider name continued — decades later — to have positive connotations in the world of Dodge and Mitsubishi truck owners. So, when the American outpost of the Mitsubishi Empire needed a pickup to offer in their showrooms (the Mighty Max having been axed in 1996), they turned to their friends at Chrysler and the Dodge Dakota pickup. With some new bodywork and tough-looking Raider badges, the Dodge/Mitsubishi Raider circle had been closed. Raider sales began in 2005 for the 2006 model year. Sales numbers proved disappointing, and 2009 was the last year for the Raider. This one got crashed hard, then picked over for mechanical goodies by Dakota owners. You won't find many pickups this new with manual transmissions, but this one had one. The engine is long gone, but would have been an American Motors-developed 4.7-liter V8 or 3.7-liter V6. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. With Dodge going murderously macho with their ads last decade, Mitsubishi had no choice but to follow that formula with the Raider. Related Video:

Mitsubishi ending US production

Mitsubishi is closing the doors on its US production as part of a "strategic move," Japan's Nikkei news service reports. According to Automotive News, the company declined to comment on the factory, and instead said it had "no plans to stop selling" vehicles in the United States. That's not what we asked, folks. According to the Nikkei news, the company is in the process of finding a buyer for is Normal, IL factory, which it opened as part of a joint venture with Chrysler back in 1988. The facility currently employs 918 UAW workers, whose jobs Mitsubishi is attempting to save as part of its negotiations with labor reps. The Normal plant is the only Japanese production facility with UAW representation, Automotive News reports. Normal is responsible for production of the Outlander Sport, building nearly 70,000 examples last year. Production is continuing on, according to the vice president for the local UAW Local, Kyle Young. "We haven't heard anything," Young told AN in a phone interview. "We're supposed to have negotiations coming up" in August. It's not clear how much the Mitsubishi will be selling the Normal plant for, nor is it clear if any parties are interested in picking up the facility, which contributes around $120 million to the local economy each year.