2003 Mitsubishi Evo Evolution Agency Power Gt35r Turbo Ttp Tuned No Accidents on 2040-cars

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Mitsubishi to sell only EVs, hybrids by mid-2030s

TOKYO — Mitsubishi Motors Corp plans for hybrid and battery electric vehicles to account for all new car sales by the middle of the next decade, beefing up its electrification strategy for staying competitive in key markets. Mitsubishi, which is also a junior partner in an alliance with France's Renault SA and Nissan Motor Co, said it will roll out 16 new models over the next five years. The Japanese automaker, known for its Outlander sport utility vehicle, stuck to a previous goal of having half of its new car sales electrified by fiscal 2030 and on Friday newly pledged to raise that further to 100% by fiscal 2035. Mitsubishi considers plug-in hybrids (PHEV), hybrid electric vehicles and battery electric vehicles (BEV) as electrified vehicles. Electrified vehicles accounted for about 7% of the company's total new car sales in fiscal 2021. "Among our existing models, we'll expand the geographical areas where our flagship PHEV Outlander is being offered and build out the sales of the Minicab-MiEV light commercial EV that was relaunched last year," Chief Executive Takao Kato said. Among the 16 new models Mitsubishi plans to roll out, one will be a BEV Renault alliance model, while another will be a Nissan alliance model, Mitsubishi said in presentation materials that were part of its fiscal 2023-2025 business plan. Mitsubishi, an early mover in EVs in the early 2010s, currently has no BEVs in its line-up in Europe. Its new BEV for Europe would mark a comeback in a highly competitive market where new entrants such as Tesla have already rapidly won market share. The model could be a variant of the Renault electric MPV Scenic made in France and expected in 2024, or a variant of the Renault electric city cars R5 or R4 expected respectively in 2024 and 2025 and also made in France, a source close to the matter said. Mitsubishi Europe declined to comment on the matter. Of the other 14 models Mitsubishi plans to launch, seven will be purely combustion engine-powered ones, five will be hybrids and the remaining two will be BEV, the company said. (Reporting by Daniel Leussink and Gilles Guillaume; Additional reporting by Elaine Lies; Editing by Chang-Ran Kim, Shounak Dasgupta and Christina Fincher) Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Green Mitsubishi Electric Hybrid

Watch Mitsubishi Express van bend its way to 0-star crash test rating

Mitsubishi became a champion of economies of scale when it joined the Renault-Nissan alliance in 2016, but the merger triggered at least one undesirable side effect. The Express, a badge-engineered version of the Renault Trafic van, received a zero-star crash test rating from the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP). Released in Australia and in New Zealand in 2020, the Express was damned by the safety watchdog for lacking chest protection, a central airbag to prevent the occupants from hitting each other and an airbag for the passenger sitting in the middle of the three-person bench. ANCAP also noted the model is not available with electronic driving aids, like automatic emergency braking, pedestrian detection and lane-keeping assist. Mitsubishi Express crash test View 8 Photos Consequently, the Express scored 55% for adult occupant protection, 40% for vulnerable road user protection, and 7% for safety assist. ANCAP argued the Express is a safety hazard even to motorists not traveling in it. "The front structure of the Express presented a high risk to the occupants of an oncoming vehicle," it wrote, adding that this gave the van a penalty. It pointed out that more driving aids would have increased the rating, however. While vans often lag behind in the safety department, scoring zero stars is highly unusual, especially in 2021; the last-generation Express managed to score a one-star rating in 2011. The Toyota HiAce tested in 2019 received a five-star rating, while the made-in-China LDV G10 managed to score three stars in a 2015 crash test. In Europe, the Trafic that the Express is based on earned a three-star rating in 2015, though tests have gotten stricter since. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Mitsubishi ready to pull Evo's plug

We have all manner of unofficial metrics in the auto industry. No doubt you've heard some of them, like the butt dyno. Another popular measure is the smiles-per-dollar index - how entertaining is a car versus its price. Cars like the Mazda MX-5 Miata, Scion FR-S and Mini Cooper S, for example, score quite highly, while vehicles like the BMW M5 or Audi RS7 are great to drive, but score lower because of their much higher price tags. For a long time, the king of the smiles-per-dollar index was arguably the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X, which blended hair-raising thrills for the price of a well-equipped Ford Fusion Titanium.
Now, it looks like the Evo will need to hand over its title, as this generation of the rally-derived rocket is likely to be Mitsubishi's last - at least for a while. There's been no mention of just when production of the current car will end, so if you're in the market, we'd suggest trying to find a dealer with inventory ASAP. The news comes from the automaker's Japanese mothership, which says the brand will instead focus on utility vehicles and EVs. While there are no direct plans for a successor, an Evo XI as it were, the door remains open for a different kind of beast, according to Mitsubishi.
"Mitsubishi Motors does not have any plans to design a successor with the current concept, as a high-performance four-wheel drive gasoline-powered sedan," said Namie Koketsu, a spokesperson for Mitsubishi, according to Automotive News. "Mitsubishi Motors will explore the possibilities of high-performance models that incorporate electric vehicle technology."