reboundicon

iTrader: (33)

True the Evo is not their best selling car as that would probably be the Outlander, EV or base Lancer/Galant models. The Evo however defines the company in terms of what they are doing right and what a lot of people respect about them. Every time I walk into a Mitsubishi dealership there are banners everywhere boasting about their rally pride and how many WRC championships they have won. It seems like a very false image as the way things are going now considering they want to go green with everything and kill some of their most exciting models of the past.

It is the car that separates them from Honda, Toyota and Suzuki and gives people a very strong perception of the brand. Also makes guys like me loyal to the brand. If they don't get the next one right, I'm sure it won't affect sales numbers to the extent of closing down the company, but many guys like myself will move on to other brands and makes and it could cost a few loyal customers for sure.

Mitsubishi just doesn't listen to its fan base as much as other companies do. I mean look at Subaru. They made an ugly STI that fans complained about and a couple years after they release the 4 door sedan that fans have been begging for. I've spoke to a few Subaru dealers and they can't keep the sedan on the showroom because of how many people are ordering them. That's the complete opposite of what was going on the last couple of years.

Just my 2 cents.

tripperfx3

iTrader: (6)

Oh I couldn't agree more, but to them were just a small part of the market, but the Evo to them is part of their image and does seperate them from other car makers. They're going to do what they feel is more proftable and from what it seems they may be completely trying to revamp their image towards a "green" company and move away from the "exciting" Mitsubishi they've been known for while Subaru seems to be taking its place and I think Toyota may be moving in more of a middle ground with the upcoming release of their FT-86 coupe and moving away from being a completely gas mileage focused company and hell Mitsubishi could take their place.

I would love to see Mitsu have the same dedication to their fan base that Subaru does and to an extent they did that with the X. I remember a lot of people were complaining that the VIII and IX were just to raw and they lost customer to Subaru due to the fact that the STi was a more comfortable car to drive. So they made the X a little bit more cushy, but still with handling and power to rival the STi, but Mitsubishi probably did lose customers that loved the raw feeling of the VIII and IX's and probably gained some that wanted the evo name plate with the cushier ride. I personally am driving a WRX at the time (not by choice, evo go wrecked and I needed something to get me through til I get out of basic training and A school ), but am getting to the point where I still want to have fun with a car, but I'm currently about to be engaged and married and have a kid or 2 in the next 2-3 years, so I'm going to be getting an X due to the "cushier" feel and the better safety features over the VIII's and IX's. And I'm only 25 btw

madfast

http://www.autoblog.com/2009/10/20/t...re-convention/

its got everything: S-AWC, E-AYC, EV mode, Series hybrid mode, parallel hybrid mode, etc. im convinced the P in the PX-MiEV stands for Pajero, and obviously this concept is a suv, BUT with all the rumors of the evo XI being a hybrid, im realizing that the actual tech can be used for sporting purposes.

so mitsu's foray into ev/hybrids may just be a good thing... i mean S-AWC and E-AYC in an electric car??? as long as its fast and handles like an evo should i dont care what propels it...

all im sayin is that one need not fear ev/hybrid tech. it only takes the right car to show it off. i hope the porsche 918 is that car and mitsu can follow that trail with a sporty ev/hybrid (not necessarily a hybrid evo though )

madfast

mitsu is obviously putting all their eggs in the ev/hybrid market. and in the past i thought it was a bad move. but with cars like the porsche 918 supposedly making it to production, the ev sportscar is getting closer than we think. and its smart for mitsu to get ahead by starting now. as i said in the other post. the PX-MiEV shows off some very exciting things that you can do with a hybrid. turbo lag would no longer be a problem with a small electric motor putting down 100% of its tq from the get go while the turbo spools. there were rumors ferrari was looking into hybrids for this very reason. AWD with front/rear electric motors would make f/r tq distribution easy and opens up the possibility of the evo finally getting f/r tq distribution like the STi and GT-R.

all i hope for is that mitsu is brave enough to put in a 4B11T as the engine and to mechanically connect it to both front and rear wheels, with the electric motors as helper motors essentially, running at low speeds and then the gas engine kicking in at high speeds.

jazket

iTrader: (1)

EXACTLY.

Mitsubishi sat down and said: Ok guys we're late to the race... Do we jump in on the petrol race that's about to end, or do we get a head start in the electric race and lead the way thru?

Jumping early in the EV race is much better than coming late to a gas/petrol party that's about to get busted by EVs.

They're doing the right thing... think about it guys... it makes no sense trying to come with cars to compete against the current mainstream ones... Mitsubishi started the whole EV stuff with the MiEV, then Nissan came up with the Leaf almost overnight, and soon everyone started thinking "sh*t, they're serious about it... lets jump on the EV bandwagon" and go check how Toyota, Ford, and the rest are all readying an electric for 2012/2013...

it's on

GPTourer

How is the Outlander's MIVEC V6 not up to date? Where is Honda's V8? Who said anything about a diesel?

The i-(MIEV) will be more of a halo car for them and their image then the Evo will. The green movement is far more relevant then having a performance car, or a big V8 powered SUV.

madfast

ok maybe "up to date" is a poor choice of words, but it surely isnt a world class V6... its down on power, not exactly a fuel sipper, etc...

honda? the fact that they DONT have a V8 killed a lot of their suv/truck sales back in the day. toyota? not so much... and the V6 RL? how'd that one go?

diesel is where mitsu trucks shine. look at their pajero suv's thats available everywhere but here. awesome suv with true off road capability. the problem is americans dont buy diesel so even if they offered a kickass suv over here no one would buy it.

badreligi0n

iTrader: (8)

I completely disagree that americans wouldnt buy diesel velicles, I live am stationed in the middle of a frozen hell in ND and for being a small town you'd be suprised how many people have diesel velicles that areo't turcks and velichles that run off other methods besides gas (E85).

captobvious75

almost makes it worth it to wait and see if another Evo will be coming or not. If not...maybe i'll delay the RA in 2011 and save longer for a 2012 Evo X before it gets the axe..

I feel the Evo being killed by Mitsu is equal to the Corvette being killed by GM. It won't happen... Mitsu better not forget who thinks of them. Not the general public, thats for sure.

GPTourer

Compared to what though? I'm just curious what you believe is a worldbeater in this segment.

I used Honda as an example because they are considered a poster child of innovation, foward thinking powertrains and fuel economy. I also meant specifically the Honda brand, so the fail that is the Acura RL does not apply here. I would not lump the Pilot in with the Ridgeline because not having a V8 option in the Pilot has not hurt its sales, it isn't what its buyers are looking for in that size category. The Ridgeline has never been a success and I really don't think a V8 would help it.

No one has proven in this country that people will buy a non domestic, non fullsized, diesel powered truck. So you (and I) are just speculating on this, but the facts are it has not been done. I am saying it is not wise for Mitsubishi to jump into this market when so many before have failed. Toyota has failed with the Tundra and the Tacoma is selling less and less every year. The domestics rule the truck market and nothing seems to be able to change that. Mahindra was supposed to come here and give the market a small cheap diesel truck and it has so far been unable to come on board. I don't think Mitsubishi believes it would be wise to spend millions federalizing a diesel Triton to build in Normal.

Noize

iTrader: (24)

There is so much more I don't agree with in this thread than I do.

While I know going green is "politically correct", it's way to darn early for it to be seemless. I feel like it's 1970 all over again, and cars are about to be ruined. Electric motors and batteries are stupid-heavy, and they have poor range to top it off.

I think tightening CAFE standards will seriously hurt grassroots motorsports, and everyone who still wants to go fast will be campaigning old cars. My hope is that so many things go electric that we get a huge surplus of gasoline and prices will come way down for those of us Evo guys who refuse to embrace the new technology until it doesn't suck. Cause its gonna suck for a long time until they get these batteries more efficient and less bulky.

BURNALL_4

iTrader: (16)

Instead a killing the eclipse they should have just dropped the Evo drivetrain in it and brought back the GSX and GST.....The sales would have gone through the roof.

cedric

iTrader: (1)

To bad the gsx/gs-t weren't selling better than the gs/rs.

BURNALL_4

iTrader: (16)

i hear ya, but with the following they have now, and the known ability of the evo im sure they'd sell a ton.

jazket

iTrader: (1)

Yeap I actually agree with your theory... less oil demand means gas prices will plummet in which case its all good for people who still want gas cars... I mean, I'm all for new technology but if they bring an unappealing and slow non-sporty Evo 11, then you'll see me trying to grab a 2011 low mileage Evo X myself

hey, if all goes well and EVs dominate the world in a few years... then that means we can see gas prices back to $1 a gallon lol