Mitsubishi to launch Hyundai Creta & Toyota Fortuner rivals in India

Mitsubishi, which has been present in India for a long time has not really established itself in the market. Even though the Japanese automobile giant launched legendary cars like the Lancer EVO and offered cars like the Pajero and Outlander in the Indian market, the products never became as popular. Mitsubishi currently does not offer any cars in India, however, back in April, they announced to start taking the bookings for the Outlander BS6 officially. The car is yet to launch in India. Everyone who has been thinking that Mitsubishi may exit the Indian market, here is some good news for you. Mitsubishi now has a new partner in India and will soon launch new cars to establish itself in the market.

The report by Express Drives says that Mitsubishi India has a new investor based in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand. Even though the name of the new investor is not out yet, the report claims that the new investors are suppliers to biggest automobile manufacturers in India. Mitsubishi India is working with its current partner in India – Hindustan Motor Corporation Limited to check assets and liabilities and the process is expected to complete by the end of this month.

Mitsubishi India will formally announce the new partnership after getting final approvals from the headquarters in Japan. The exact investment details are not known but there could be an infusion of up to Rs 500 crore. With the investment, Mitsubishi is also expected to set-up and assembly line in Jamshedpur in the coming time. However, initially, only Completely Built Units (CBU) will be sold by them in the market.

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The new investment will allow the Japanese manufacturer to launch new products in the market. Since SUVs are quite popular in the Indian market, Mitsubishi will start by launching an SUV to take on the likes of Toyota Fortuner and Ford Endeavour. The now-discontinued Pajero and Montero SUVs were present in the same space in the past but never became popular due to various reasons like marketing and after-sales service network.

Mitsubishi will launch a much-affordable SUV to take on the cars like Hyundai Creta and Kia Seltos. To take on the Creta and Seltos, Mitsubishi will bring in the Eclipse or Eclipse Cross, which are already on sale in the international markets.

Another option is the Xpander Cross, which is sold in South East Asian markets. While the Eclipse Cross is currently powered by a 2.2-litre diesel engine in Japan, Mitsubishi may use the 1.3-litre turbo petrol engine that powers the Renault Duster and the Nissan Kicks. The 1.3 liter turbo petrol engine is likely to make it to the Xpander Cross as well, if Mitsubishi decides to bring this vehicle in, instead of the Eclipse Cross. Since Nissan-Renault-Mitusbishi partnership did not take off in India, it may come to an end.

Since the Indian government has allowed selling CBU cars without the need of homologation for up to 2,000 units per year, Mitsubishi may test the products before bringing them to the assembly line in India. The new phase will also see the launch of both petrol and diesel products to capture a wider audience.

Currently, there are only 11 dealerships across India but with the new cars, the manufacturer is expected to increase the number of dealerships across India. Before the assembly line production starts in India, the number of dealerships will be increased substantially.

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