The future of the Alliance?

[nj swb]

Could this be bad news for Mitsubishi's future under the Renault - Nissan - Mitsubishi alliance?

https://www.caradvice.com.au/760551/fiat-chrysler-proposes-52-7-billion-transformative-merger-with-renault/

[dhula]

With Mitsubishi having been linked with Chrysler in the past, maybe it's a coming home of sorts and could be a good thing.


Mitsubishi copied Jeep way back when and FCA includes Jeep so you never know what could happen.

[old Jack]

Chrysler, Jeep and Fiat, iconic brands not known for the reliability.
If Mitsubishi must get swallowed up by other manufacturers so the brand survives then I hope it is either Toyota, Honda, Mazda, Hyundai or Kia.

OJ.

[nj swb]

Chrysler, Jeep and Fiat, iconic brands not known for the reliability.

I agree. The prospect of any of those brands having influence at Mitsubishi doesn't produce happy thoughts, although Mitsubishi could help all three by injecting some Japanese quality into their DNA.

(As a child growing up in the '70s, the phrase "Japanese quality" had very different connotations - my, how things have changed!)

If Mitsubishi must get swallowed up by other manufacturers so the brand survives then I hope it is either Toyota, Honda, Mazda, Hyundai or Kia.

Mitsubishi have publicly stated that they see their future in SUVs, and elsewhere I've read they are considered a global leader in Hybrid vehicle technology.

Toyota already has a full line-up of successful SUVs, and is probably the global leader in Hybrid vehicles - if they bought Mitsubishi, it would be to shut down a competitor. At the moment, I don't think Toyota are sufficiently threatened by Mitsubishi to need to shut it down.

I don't think Honda or Mazda have sufficient interest in the SUV space to want Mitsubishi's brands and/or technology, and I shudder to think what Ford's influence with Mazda could inflict on Mitsubishi.

Hyundai have a historical relationship with Mitsubishi, and have previously used Mitsubishi designs in their own SUVs - so that's a potential alliance / merger that could work well for Mitsubishi.

To me, the Nissan - Mitsubishi alliance makes a lot of sense, as they both have a long term heritage in genuine off-road 4wds, and both could use a boost at the moment. Patrol / Pajero / Pathfinder / Pajero Sport / Outlander - some form of scalable hybrid platform with an electric motor at each wheel could cover all of these, and more.

Arguably, Jeep also has a strong heritage in the 4wd / SUV space, but somehow I can't see the Americans accepting too much input from the Japanese. I see no evidence that American auto manufacturers have learned anything from watching the rise of the Japanese auto industry over the course of a few decades, so why would they start now?

[Merts]

Mitsubishi copied Jeep way back when and FCA includes Jeep so you never know what could happen.

???
As far as I'm aware Mitsubishi have never built anything even vaguely similar to a jeep.

[Merts]

Chrysler, Jeep and Fiat, iconic brands not known for the reliability.

Not known for stellar customer service either.

[nj swb]

???
As far as I'm aware Mitsubishi have never built anything even vaguely similar to a jeep.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeep_CJ#Mitsubishi_Jeep

According to that article, they were made in the US by Jeep, and shipped in parts for assembly in Japan. It appears that later models used engines made in Japan.

[Seigried]

There are some of these in australia. I came close to buying the 96 turbo diesel from the sunshine coast in qld. I beleive they are grey imports here brought in under one of the superceded import schemes
Here is some more info:

http://www.j-spec.com.au/featured/1988-Mitsubishi-Jeep-J53-15018.html

Sent from my SM-G900I using Tapatalk

[NJV6]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeep_CJ#Mitsubishi_Jeep

According to that article, they were made in the US by Jeep, and shipped in parts for assembly in Japan. It appears that later models used engines made in Japan.

Quite a few of these in NZ.