Future models delayed to lower costs.
The newly-formed Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance has started showing its first effects on the Japanese automaker's future plans. According to a report from Automotive News, the next-gen Mitsubishi ASX and next-gen Mitsubishi Outlander will arrive later than planned.
Previously, the next-gen Mitsubishi Outlander was scheduled to hit the markets in FY 2018-19. The next-gen Mitsubishi ASX was going to follow the year after. However, suppliers have now said that Mitsubishi has delayed these future vehicles as its engineers are looking for ways to share components with Nissan vehicles.
Mitsubishi and Nissan both are reviewing the next-gen Mitsubishi Outlander and next-gen Mitsubishi ASX to find ways to share parts and architecture with the Nissan Rogue (Nissan X-Trail) and Nissan Rogue Sport (Nissan Qashqai), a supplier executive has said. This means that the next-gen Mitsubishi Outlander Sport and next-gen Mitsubishi ASX could ride on the Renault-Nissan Alliance's CMF-C/d platform. Another supplier executive who is involved with the programs has revealed that the next-gen Outlander is expected to arrive in late 2019 or early 2020, while the Outlander Sport (ASX) will arrive after 2020.
Another supplier executive who is involved with the programs has revealed that the next-gen Outlander is expected to arrive in late 2019 or early 2020, while the Outlander Sport (ASX) will arrive after 2020.
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The supplier executives also told that the goal is to commonize underpinnings and components not visible to the consumers and concurrently maintain an outer identity distinct to each brand, indicating that the next-gen Mitsubishi Outlander Sport and next-gen Mitsubishi ASX will adopt a completely different design than their Nissan rivals despite sharing the platform and components. In other words, don't expect the cross-badging approach Nissan has used previously with some Renault models.
It seems like the Mitsubishi Eclipse Sport that was unveiled at the 2017 Geneva Motor Show is the last in-house developed global Mitsubishi model.
[Source: Automotive News]
