Mitsubishi to develop India car
Funky-looking rear-engined 660cc i likely base for new car model
Mitsubishi Motors is researching the Indian market to develop a new car, grounds-up car for the sub-continent. The Japanese government has urged Mitsubishi to take a more active role in India, which has traditionally been a favourite hunting ground for Japanese automakers.
Mitsubishi, which has had a technical collaboration with HM for over a decade, is finally planning to invest in India but before that it needs to identify a suitable product for this market. A team of Mitsubishi designers visited India last month to understand the market but the dilemma is that Mitsubishi has no car in its existing product portfolio that would sell in large volumes in India.
The newly launched Mitsubishi i is the only car the Japanese company has that could best fit the Indian market. However, it is considered expensive for the European market, which means in India it would be priced right out of contention. The thinking within Mitsubishi new car is that by using the platform of the i, a cheaper car could be developed essentially by stripping out expensive features. It is likely that Mitsubishi will increase its cooperation with HM in the future and a joint-venture between the two partners cannot be ruled out.
The company has been having a tough time in the Indian market lately. Most of its models are selling well below its expectation, due to tough competition and lack of customer confidence in the brand. Clearly, the Japanese carmaker has realised that if it hopes to make it big in India, it will have to take the small car route.
Source : Autocar india news
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