Persistent rumors exist that Mitsubishi Motors, partly owned by Nissan, will not join the new holding Nissan-Honda. Mitsubishi seems to be planning to relaunch an EV in North America. Meanwhile, the Honda-Nissan deal faces serious problems in China.
Although Nissan is still Mitsubishi Motors’ biggest shareholder, it seems the company is not ready to join the new holding between Nissan and Honda, which was decided at the end of last year. Several sources have declared this to Reuters. However, all cooperation forms already existing between the companies will continue.
Mitsubishi and Nissan’s cooperation is focused on electric cars. Many experts assumed that Mitsubishi Motors would also join the announced alliance or holding company of Nissan and Honda. However, a Japanese media report now suggests the opposite: instead, Mitsubishi wants to remain an independent, listed manufacturer that only cooperates with Honda and Nissan in some areas.
When Honda and Nissan announced the start of merger talks last year, Mitsubishi said it would decide by the end of January whether it wanted to participate in this project.
However, the top management is now said to have decided against it, as Mitsubishi wants to expand its business primarily in the Southeast Asian market, while Honda and Nissan focus mainly on North America. According to the report in Japan News, the manufacturer hopes that the current structure will allow it to make more flexible decisions.
Mitsubishi EV for North America
Meanwhile, Mitsubishi wants to launch its first electric model in the US in the second half of 2026. This will be an electric crossover SUV coupé that resembles the successor to the Nissan Leaf.
At a brand conference, Mitsubishi announced to its US dealers that it intends to deliver its first electric vehicle since the iMiEV in the US in 2026. It is also said to have confirmed that the new, unnamed model will be manufactured in Japan and then imported to the US.
Mitsubishi did not provide any further details about the new electric car. However, Automotive News quotes an insider saying that the model will likely be a small crossover coupé-style vehicle, similar to the planned successor to the Nissan Leaf.
The Nissan model is expected to be finished by the end of 2025, and its design is likely to be based on the Nissan Chill-Out concept. The underlying technology is well known.
The Leaf successor and the Mitsubishi are based on the CMF EV platform, which the Nissan Ariya already uses. Therefore, batteries of up to 87 kWh and front or all-wheel drive are possible depending on the vehicle size and wheelbase.

China business
Meanwhile, if there’s one thing executives at Honda Motor and Nissan Motor need to fix first when they merge, it’s their China business. The Japanese duo’s sales have fallen in the world’s largest car market for years.
Joining forces would allow them to cut costs, not least on the new electric vehicles they need to vie with dominant rivals like BYD. But it’s a go-slow tie-up, and their joint venture partners are wildcards.
Company presentations show that in the 12 months to the end of March last year, the two sold 2 million vehicles in the country. That’s second only to their US operations. But it’s a third less than they managed five years earlier. And because Chinese demand is growing, their combined market share fell faster, halving to around 8%.
A more efficient Chinese operation could help Honda and Nissan try to catch up on EVs. Since they have a similar customer base, they could focus on a smaller, more efficient range of products with a larger output per model after merging.
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