Mitsubishi Motors aims to sell 75,000 to 80,000 vehicles annually in Europe, a gain of 20 to 30 percent over last year, with the help of two new Renault-sourced models that arrive in 2025, regional CEO Frank Krol told the specialized magazine Automotive News Europe. It’s also thinking of (re)introducing some of its own Japanese models, especially the hybrid ones.
It would be a sharp turnaround for Mitsubishi, which in 2020 announced its intention to exit Europe due to losses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. A year later, it reversed course after reaching a product-sharing agreement with alliance partner Renault.
“The Colt and ASX were step one,” Krol said to Automotive News. “The Eclipse Cross EV is a second step that’s much more Mitsubishi.”
Also hybrids
Mitsubishi aims to introduce more of its own models to Europe, Krol said, without providing further details. The brand canceled plans to develop two in-house battery-electric vehicles to concentrate on the development of plug-in hybrids and hybrids. “For these types of vehicles, we have a competitive edge,” Mitsubishi Motors CEO Takao Kato said recently on the company’s earnings call.
For markets such as Europe, where BEVs are needed, “Mitsubishi decided to leverage OEM products from our partners,” Kato said, suggesting plans to tap Renault or its other alliance partner, Nissan, for more models.
Renault has begun building the Micra small BEV for Nissan, while Krol said there would be a “third phase” of the relationship with Renault, without being specific on models. Mitsubishi is likely to introduce its version of the next-generation Clio, which is expected to be revealed this year. There’s also a possibility that it will have its version of the upcoming Renault Twingo EV, just like Nissan.
The company also began sales of the delayed Outlander PHEV midsize SUV in the spring, adding a range of electrified models that it believes will help it compete against rising Chinese brands.
“Some of them [the Chinese] are quite strong and they will need to eat from OEMs somewhere, so we are looking at all kinds of aspects, not only the product line, but also how we sell cars and getting closer to customers,” Krol explained. For example, Mitsubishi is switching from its old model of wholesaling cars to importers to selling directly to dealers.
Turbulent sales results
Mitsubishi’s sales in Europe rose 44% to 60,879 vehicles in 2024, according to market researcher Dataforce, led by the Colt and ASX Renault clones. However, deliveries through May are down 29% to 21,398 vehicles due to the phaseout of the budget Space Star and Eclipse Cross, which did not meet new EU safety regulations. The little Space Star was the automaker’s bestseller last year, accounting for 39% of its volume in Europe.
Like all Japanese companies, Mitsubishi would support a European version of the Japanese Kei small car category, Krol said. Outgoing Renault CEO Luca de Meo and Stellantis Chairman John Elkann stated this spring that the European Union should adjust its regulations to permit such cars.
“That would be a good tool to ramp up this industry in terms of electrification,” Krol said. Mitsubishi is a strong player in the Kei class in Japan, “but bringing these vehicles over to Europe sounds easier than it is,” Krol pointed out. Kei cars make up 35 to 40% of all sales in Japan.
In 2019, Mitsubishi sold vehicles in 32 European markets. Today it operates in 20 countries, with a return to two former markets, the UK and Belgium, under consideration. There are limited plans to reenter smaller Eastern European countries, where it primarily sold the L200 pickup. Building a new L200 for Europe would require electrification, a move Krol said isn’t commercially viable.
