[Uber Wagon]

Takao Kato will likely be Mitsubishi Motors' next CEO, pending the approval at an upcoming shareholders' meeting. Under his watch, the company won't abandon its the North American market, according to Kato's recent statements.

"Sales are being continued. North America is one of the biggest markets. Therefore, exiting from the sales market would probably not be an option," he said during a press conference, according to Automotive News.

While Mitsubishi won't stop selling cars in America, he'll likely rework the brand's product line to fit the automaker's "small but beautiful" strategy that will aim for tiny, yet steady profit growth.

"If you are a big-scale OEM, of course you will be able to secure a profit. But will that be appropriate for us too, at MMC?" Kato said, according to Automotive News. "This is something we believe we should deliberate on going forward."

After taking the helm, Kato will release a mid-term business plan for Mitsubishi Motors sometime before the fiscal year ends in April 2020. It'll provide a better idea of what to expect from the company with him as the boss.

https://www.motor1.com/news/350521/mitsubishi-probably-not-leaving-us/

Can Mitsubishi truck save the company in US? Or is this another ISUZU path to FAIL in US?

Although the upcoming Mitsubishi pickup truck to enter the U.S. market hasn’t been named yet, the most resounding name that entered the table is the Triton – also known as the L200 or Strada in other global markets except the U.S. The images above are of the Triton Absolute Concept that was showcased at the Bangkok Motor Show in Thailand.

The Triton is one of the rivals of the Ford Ranger in global markets, especially in the U.K. We reckon, bringing in the Triton in the U.S. would be an exciting rivalry in the budding midsize pickup segment.

But, what about the aging Nissan Frontier? As part of the Nissan-Renault-Mitsubishi Alliance, it has been reported that a single platform would underpin the pickup trucks from there three brands, including the Navara, which is the global representative of Nissan in the midsize truck segment.

Will the arrival of the Triton in the U.S. market coincide with the replacement of the Frontier? It isn’t entirely impossible, considering that the next-generation Frontier is now well underway, but it would be an interesting move, nonetheless. The question now is when.

https://www.motor1.com/news/346853/mitsubishi-pickup-truck-us/

 

[burgerbob]

Really though, why would I not buy a Ranger/Colorado?

 

[Uber Wagon]

Really though, why would I not buy a Ranger/Colorado?

Well, Mistubishi does really well with subprime customers, for one.

 

[burgerbob]

Well, Mistubishi does really well with subprime customers, for one.

Low MSRP, massive incentives and loyalty cash.. I can get with that. But if not current model year, must be booked as used making a deal very difficult without loads of cash down or huge dealer fee to lender.. correct? Sky high interest rates and horrible depreciation locking sub-prime buyers in a loan they'll be upside down in for quite awhile. All of this not accounting for any negative equity carried over.

Forgive me if I am way off here... the Mitsubishi trucks I work with on occasion are called Fuso's and quite old :laugh:

 

[Uber Wagon]

Forgive me if I am way off here... the Mitsubishi trucks I work with on occasion are called Fuso's and quite old :laugh:

No need to apologize. I have a strange fetish with Mitsubishis for some reason. Bit off the subject here, but are Mitsubishi FUSOs pretty reliable?

 

[burgerbob]

No need to apologize. I have a strange fetish with Mitsubishis for some reason. Bit off the subject here, but are Mitsubishi FUSOs pretty reliable?

Can be...

Long before I got into the scene, my father sold a Fuso to a customer on the grounds that it would be trouble free for the better part of a million miles. Bold statement for a city type box truck. Well, it overheated and needed towed 3X in the first 10k miles. Customer is not happy. Mitsubishi sent an engineer from Japan all the way to West Virginia Ohio Motor Sales in Wheeling WV because the problem could not be solved. As the story goes.. Engineer asked for cheese cloth, to his surprise the commercial truck sales facility did not have cheese cloth. So he took his sock off, pulled a radiator hose and let it drain. The block was full of casting sand. SO! They pulled the serial number from the block and talked to Mitsu HQ, got the 10 serial #'s above and below and sent that very engineer AND the service writer that originally made the claim around the country to personally inspect all 20 motors. They were also able to find out who exactly was responsible for clearing the casting sand. And that 1 man who was responsible for clearing the blocks after casting was not fired. He was made to stand in "the box". That factory serves their workers breakfast lunch and dinner as they work 12 hours shifts. They break for all 3 meals. "The box" is literally a square in the middle of the hallway leading to the factory cafeteria. Every other employee was able to walk by and shame that particular person for not doing their job, the honor system.

Now... I can not vouch for the accuracy of this story. But the gist is, they are usually extremely high quality trucks that are built with pride. It is not unusual to see a 30 year old Fuso with well over a million miles on an original motor. Unfortunately, Hino (Toyota) has taken over here in the states. Hino has beaten out Mitsubishi and Nissan (UD) in the US box truck market. While Hino's are incredible trucks that can be had in several configurations, I will always miss the Fuso as its what pretty much funded my childhood :laugh:

 

[BRealistic]

Really though, why would I not buy a Ranger/Colorado?

I think there is still an import bias when it comes to the image that a truck is more reliable/will last longer.
That, and everybody forgot about the Dakota rebadge Raider two days after they started selling it.
IOW, they should do it.

 

[Fe2O3]

This might show up about when I'll be in the market for something and I'll take a look for sure. I'm an old Mitsu fan that's always pulling for them to get it going again in the US :beer:

 

[bzcat]

Forgive me if I am way off here... the Mitsubishi trucks I work with on occasion are called Fuso's and quite old :laugh:

No need to apologize. I have a strange fetish with Mitsubishis for some reason. Bit off the subject here, but are Mitsubishi FUSOs pretty reliable?

FUSO is not Mitsubishi. FUSO was never part of Mitsubishi Motors and has been under Daimler ownership for the last 20 years.

As for the thread topic... there is no way Mitsubishi will import the L200 from Thailand because Chicken Tax will make it too expensive. I'm sure they will sell a rebadged Nissan Frontier.

 

[burgerbob]

FUSO is not Mitsubishi. FUSO was never part of Mitsubishi Motors and has been under Daimler ownership for the last 20 years.

As for the thread topic... there is no way Mitsubishi will import the L200 from Thailand because Chicken Tax will make it too expensive. I'm sure they will sell a rebadged Nissan Frontier.

you right.

https://flic.kr/p/2jsYdGA https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/

 

[2 doors]

I'm sure they will sell a rebadged Nissan Frontier.

Wow! Is there a category below sub-prime called "terrible" or something? Who would Mitsu cater to that isn't already served by Nissan?

 

[whitejeep1989]

Wow! Is there a category below sub-prime called "terrible" or something? Who would Mitsu cater to that isn't already served by Nissan?

The closest Mitsubishi dealerships near me is more like a used car dealership, which happens to have a few new cars.
I suppose the customer is someone who is shopping for a used car, but manages to put together the finances to buy/lease a new car.

In related Mitsubishi news, someone near me DDs an I-Miev.
Weird little EV pioneer survivor.

 

[BRealistic]

The closest Mitsubishi dealerships near me is more like a used car dealership, which happens to have a few new cars.
I suppose the customer is someone who is shopping for a used car, but manages to put together the finances to buy/lease a new car.

In related Mitsubishi news, someone near me DDs an I-Miev.
Weird little EV pioneer survivor.

those i-MiEV were crazy expensive for what they were- a glorified golf cart.
I give them credit for trying, and they are probably not terrible to own as they are fairly simple.
As far as new car sales go- they still manage to sell 10k a month.
Outlanders, Outlander Sports, Mirages, and that Eclipse Cross thing.
Outlander Sports are still a good cheap crossover imo.
They drive like a jacked up Protege5.
Anyway, a real truck that looks and drive good could bring in real customers willing to pay MSRP if packaged/priced right.
That's gotta be a good thing.
And even if it's trash.. It's not not anything could hurt Mitsubishi's US image right now.

 

[2.0T_Convert]

you right.

Owned by Daimler AG

 

[burgerbob]

Mitsubishi trucks I work with on occasion are called Fuso's and quite old :laugh:

The trucks I'm referring to are closer to 40 years old now. They are Mitsubishi's just as a Volvo XC90 and a Volvo VNR are not made by the same company but are indeed both Volvos.

In 1970 MHI signed a joint-venture agreement with Chrysler Corporation, establishing the Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC), and MHI transferred its motor-vehicle operations to MMC.

In 1975, MMC opened the Nakatsu Plant at its Tokyo Motor Vehicle Works; five years later, it opened the Kitsuregawa Proving Grounds. Four years after that, MMC merged with Mitsubishi Motor Sales Company. In 1985, MMC and Mitsubishi Corporation established the joint-equity company Mitsubishi Trucks of America in the United States.

 

[Uber Wagon]

Anyway, a real truck that looks and drive good could bring in real customers willing to pay MSRP if packaged/priced right.
That's gotta be a good thing.

If it's priced right, Mitsu truck would sell. They just shouldn't pull that 0/0/0 (0 downpayment/0 interest/0 payments for 1 year) stunt. Even though everybody is pulling similar to that thanks to COVID-19.

And even if it's trash.. It's not not anything could hurt Mitsubishi's US image right now.

THIS. I'm just glad that they are not pulling out of US. But Nissan and Renault might think otherwise, as Mitsubishi is slowly but surely pulling out of Europe.

 

[ImpeccableNEW]

I see many old fuso still running around nyc they must be better than an old mistu 2.0L oil burner

 

[2.0_Mazda]

They should have done that about 7yrs ago. And a new Pajero

 

[WatchOutLaszloPanaflex]

They're toast.

I really don't see Mitsubishi remaining in the US for much longer. Over the past decade, many of their dealerships turned into what resembled small mom & pop used car dealers, and now many of those dealers have been vanishing over recent years.

 

[fireside]

I think that they make an attractive truck. It will probably have an optional manual trans and a decently low price of entry. Sign me up!