1998 Mitsubishi Galant Es Sedan 4-door 2.4l on 2040-cars

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2014 Mitsubishi Outlander

A Good Start On Halting The Slide
We'd like to say that Mitsubishi has had a tough time of it lately, but "lately" isn't exactly the proper descriptor since the brand's troubles have slowly built over the past decade or so. It cut back on its marketing and it cut model lines while leaving what remained in the equivalent of a product cryo-freeze. Then there was the financial crash and replacement models that didn't possess the same edge we expected from the house of the triple diamond. There was the lack of a North American chairman to fight for market-specific initiatives, and hence, models that lacked some of the details that US customers desired and that could sway buying choices in close races. True, that's a battle with an overseas headquarters that you'll hear from the US reps for almost every foreign automaker, but as you pile on the obstacles they multiply exponentially, not additionally. Or there's this: For more than a year, while its competition has been trumpeting new product, Mitsubishi hasn't had any new models. Like, at all.
That changes with the arrival of the 2014 Mitsubishi Outlander, an SUV that we're told will begin a new-product offensive over the next 18 months that - along with a much larger marketing budget - should begin to turn things around. This is the third generation of Mitsubishi's volume model, one that hasn't really been changed since it arrived in 2006 and wasn't just showing its age, but practically crowing about it.

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Discussion Topics for Autoblog Podcast Episode #321
Unibody Ford Ranger replacement

Junkyard Gem: 1992 Mitsubishi Expo LRV

Chrysler did reasonably well selling first-generation Mitsubishi Chariots in North America with Dodge/Plymouth Colt Vista badging during the 1980s, and so Mitsubishi Motors decided to take a shot at selling the second-generation Chariots with its own company's badges when those vehicles went into production in 1991. Those vehicles were known as Mitsubishi Expos here, with sales beginning in the 1992 model year and continuing through 1995. Here's one of those ultra-rare first-year Expos, found in a Colorado self-service car graveyard recently. The Chariot line had split into two in its home market by that time, with the regular four-door wagons still called Chariots and a shortened three-door version given the RVR name, which stood for Recreational Vehicle Runner (actually ßVR, with the Cyrillic first character). In the United States, the Chariot was sold as the Expo Wagon while the ßVR was dubbed the Expo LRV. The LRV's door setup is a bit odd. On the driver's side, there's just one door. On the passenger side, there's a sliding rear door (with interlock to prevent it from tearing off the fuel-filler door if it's open). In right-hand-drive markets, Mitsubishi put the slider on the left side while keeping the fuel filler on the right. Chrysler sold its own versions of the ßVR, of course. The Eagle version was known as the Summit Wagon. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Dodge and Plymouth dealers sold the ßVR as the Colt Vista. Since this is the base-model Expo LRV for 1992, it has the 1.8-liter SOHC 4G93 engine, sending 113 horsepower and 116 pound-feet in the general direction of the front wheels. The all-wheel-drive and Sport versions got a 2.4-liter 4G64 rated at 136 horsepower and 145 pound-feet. The emissions sticker tells us that this car was sold new in California. It was built in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. This one has the optional four-speed automatic, which cost $670 extra (about $1,460 in 2023 dollars). Not even 100,000 miles passed beneath this Expo's wheels during its 31-year career. Why is it in this place, then? Here's the reason: a crash that mangled the left front suspension. The ignition key dangles from the kind of lanyard used by car auctions, so we can assume this car got totaled instantly by the insurance company and had no chance of being sold to any customer other than a junkyard. The MSRP for this car was $11,537, or about $25,132 today.