Mitsubishi dealers count on next-gen Outlander

After a particularly rough 2020 for Mitsubishi dealers, hope is just around the corner.

An early December teaser image of the redesigned Outlander midsize crossover — along with several spy photos showing off its stylish look — is generating big expectations after a nearly decadelong wait.

Mitsubishi retailers have been looking to the Outlander as something of a brand savior for years. The current crop of products is not just aging on the outside, but falling behind on interior amenities and technology as their price advantage fades compared with Asian rivals.

But this is not just about looks.

The updated Outlander flagship, expected in the first quarter of next year, is seen by some dealers as a no-excuse vehicle that can both garner higher transaction prices than the current model and serve as a blueprint for a Mitsubishi revival in North America — if the automaker gets behind it.

"This is going to be the most dynamic change they have had in a decade, and they'll have the dealer body pretty pumped up," said Ryan Gremore, president of O'Brien Auto Team in central Illinois. Gremore, who sits on the Mitsubishi National Advisory Board, has seen the new Outlander in person.

At the same time, Gremore said, Mitsubishi headquarters in Japan needs to promote the Outlander through robust marketing before brand awareness further fades in the minds of American shoppers.

"Mitsubishi's got to spend some money marketing this car, take some risks. If you lose, you lose, but you've got to take a shot at it," Gremore told Automotive News. He said the dealer advisory board has set up a marketing council to push for new ways to drive dealership traffic.

The redesigned Outlander shares a platform with the freshly restyled Nissan Rogue as part of the brands' global alliance with Renault. And the Rogue, already on sale as a 2021 model, has been very well received.

Platform-sharing is a strategic move for Mitsubishi since it can tap into Nissan's and Renault's deeper pockets for the engineering of future products.

While all automakers have struggled with a sales downturn this year, Mitsubishi has suffered more than most. U.S. sales for the first nine months were down 24 percent, compared with an 18 percent drop for the industry as a whole. Mazda, another small brand, was down just 2.3 percent.

Despite its current slump, Mitsubishi has been a steady gainer in recent years. Since the economic crash of 2009, the brand has experienced only one other year of negative U.S. sales results, a 27 percent drop in 2012.

Now the company has plans to move forward.

In addition to the Outlander, it is heavily freshening the Eclipse Cross compact crossover with new exterior styling and giving a mild freshen to the Mirage subcompact hatchback and sedan. Those products will also arrive in showrooms in the first quarter as part of an effort to rekindle sales growth.

"Will Japan put the money in the market to give Mitsubishi a shot in the arm?" Gremore asked. "If Mitsubishi decides to show up with some product, with some good marketing and start driving some desire and get back into this game to a level that's respectable, you'll have dealers that will be all over it. They'll react instantaneously."

Gremore said he is sympathetic to the economic position the brand is in as a small player.

"It's tough. And it's easy to play armchair quarterback," he said. "They can't compete with Toyota or Honda in the marketing realm because they don't have the budget. But we've got to do a better job telling our story."

Mitsubishi hasn't revealed details for the Outlander such as equipment or pricing, nor has it shown the interior. But spy photos of what is believed to be the production vehicle have circulated widely on the Internet.

Ayman Moussa, owner of three Mitsubishi stores in the San Francisco Bay Area, has been closely reading articles about the coming Outlander, which will go on sale as a 2022 model. He's also been scanning the comments of online readers.

"A lot of people are saying it looks like a Hyundai Palisade or a Nissan Rogue and that the sharp edges are really nice," said Moussa, who sits on the Mitsubishi dealer council. "People are saying that finally, Mitsubishi did something nice again. This will attract a new type of customer for us."

The design of the Outlander, based on the Engelbert Tourer concept from 2019, is critical to competing with growing brands such as Hyundai and Kia that made styling a priority, said Moussa. His dealership group, Carnamic, also sells those Korean brands, along with Nissan and Infiniti.

"Most customers use emotions rather than common sense, or they would buy more Mitsubishis because they are so reliable," said Moussa. "But people go by how the car looks."

Moussa is also eager to get the freshened Eclipse Cross, which has struggled in the U.S. despite, with its 2018 launch, being Mitsubishi's newest vehicle. Through the first three quarters of 2020, the Eclipse Cross had 8,775 sales and was the brand's poorest-performing nameplate.

The biggest problem has been its polarizing styling, with a crossbar that bisects the rear glass window. Auto writers have likened it to the ungainly Pontiac Aztek from the early 2000s. The Eclipse Cross also uses a touchpad for the infotainment display that many buyers find inferior to a touch screen.

The restyled crossover, which goes on sale as a 2022 model, eliminates the rear crossbar and presents a restyled front and rear. It also now has a touch screen display.

Moussa said customers have commented that the freshened Eclipse Cross looks like it could be an Acura or Lexus product.

Mitsubishi Motors North America spokesman Jeremy Barnes said the first-quarter product blitz will bolster dealers in the new year.

"They'll have one of the newest and most updated showroom lineups," he said. The Outlander plug-in hybrid, which is carrying over the current design for now, has a bigger engine and battery for the 2021 model year.

The product updates bode well for the brand coming out of the coronavirus crisis, Barnes said. At the same time, Mitsubishi is freshening its organization, with a new U.S. headquarters in Franklin, Tenn., near its deep-pocketed partner Nissan North America, and a new North American CEO, with Yoichi Yokozawa named in March.

Hopefully, he added, the Mitsubishi investments will cool yearslong speculation that the automaker could leave the U.S. entirely.

None of these product investments, he said, "are the sort of thing a company planning an exit does, and I'd hope that perhaps this allows everyone to finally put the 'Mitsubishi is leaving' story aside," Barnes said in an email to Automotive News.

Moussa said he's confident that Mitsubishi has a long-term commitment to the U.S. and is supportive of the brand's current marketing campaign.

"I think they are here to stay, and with them launching the [next-gen] Outlander as a U.S. vehicle, that's a big indication that they are staying."

Gremore said he plans to stock up on the redesigned Outlander and that it will be launching at a good time, in late March, during peak spring selling season.

"It's been a long wait for this new Outlander," he said. "It's coming. We're rounding third, and it's going to be here in the next quarter. And from there, we'll see what happens."