Mitsubishi is currently in particularly difficult waters. Outside of Asia, the brand has been forgotten by almost everyone due to a particularly weak model range, and within Asia it suffered massive image damage due to an emissions scandal exposed by joint venture partner Nissan. The fallout from that scandal was so great that Mitsubishi was bought out by the Renault-Nissan Alliance in 2016.
However, little has improved since then. After all, on the Dutch market we only find the antique and extremely cheaply built Space Star and the equally outdated and unimaginative Eclipse Cross PHEV. The only prospect is a new ASX, which is nothing more than a re-stickered Renault Captur.
Failed revival
At Mitsubishi, they could use a slight image boost to say the least. Earlier, the brand tried something with the pompous reopening of legendary rally division Ralliart, but all the hype evaporated when it turned out that it involved ordinary sticker packages and floor mats for SUVs and pickups.
The promise of a new racing program with almost standard hybrid SUVs also did not appeal to anyone. The campaign even caused unrest among shareholders and investors, who wondered aloud where the times of the Evo had gone.
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Other bow
After the Ralliart blunder and shareholder pleas, Mitsubishi has decided to take a slightly different tack. Two days ago, the brand dumped a series of videos on the official Youtube channel Mitsubishi Motors TV. Fortunately, the videos were not used to sell accessory packs this time, but to celebrate 40 years of rally history.
Rallyglorie
The series of 27 videos shows footage of the World Rally Championship and the Dakar Rally between 1967 and 2007. During that time, Mitsubishi won four consecutive WRC titles with Tommi Mäkinen and the Lancer Evo III, IV and V. Different versions of the Pajero Evolution performed even better at the Dakar Rally: the cars managed to win the monster rally no less than twelve times. This makes the brand still by far the most successful participant in the car class.
Negative nostalgia
While the Pajero was still busy in the Dakar, Mitsubishi threw out the WRC project in 2005. Since the transition from Group A to World Rally Car regulations, the brand has simply not been able to keep up with the competition.
Despite this, the Lancer Evo remained in production and the car was still widely used in the lower Group N and R4 categories. In 2010 the curtain also fell for the new Racing Lancer Dakar machine and the entire Ralliart division, partly due to the aftermath of the economic crisis.
With the video series, Mitsubishi tries to remind consumers how great the brand once was, but that has a downside. After all, the nostalgic images only remind us how much luster the Japanese have lost. It is to be hoped that the shareholders will continue to whine for a real Ralliart revival and a new Evo. However, given the current circumstances, that will remain wishful thinking.