The front-end design of the 2016 Mitsubishi Outlander will be mimicked on a range of the brandâs other models over the next 12 months.
CarAdvice has learned the new âdynamic shieldâ style language that debuted on the Outlander medium SUV at the 2015 New York auto show will find its way to the Mirage, ASX and Lancer over the coming year.
The news of the facelift to the Mirage isnât groundbreaking, but itâs the first weâve heard of a styling change for the Lancer, and it also suggests the much-anticipated replacement for the ASX may actually be a heavy facelift instead of an all-new car (as the XR-PHEV II concept (pictured below) and all the information around that car would have you believe).
Mitsubishi Motors North America executive vice president, Don Swearingen, confirmed the plans to expand the new family face across the model range.
âThis new brand identity that you see on this car will carry over. In the US, after this vehicle weâre going to first go with the Outlander Sport (ASX),â he said.
âSo, later this year â" production begins in October, itâll be in the stores in November/December â" and you will see a similar front design change,â Swearingen confirmed.
âThen for us in the States, in the February/March timeframe, it will come to the Mirage. So you will see it. We donât offer the [Mirage] sedan model here, but we will be offering that starting next year. And youâll see the new styling elements carry over to those models.â
As for Lancer â" the small sedan and hatch which has been on sale since 2007 â" the model will soldier on for some time yet. As we reported last month, Mitsubishiâs global chief has confirmed that development of a new model has been indefinitely shelved.
âWe have a Lancer, which is of course different to the Mirage,â Swearingen said. âWe still plan to have the Lancer here in the US â" we are going to make modifications and changes to it.
âWeâre making some front-end changes this year on that â" not as drastic as this, but we are making modifications,â he said.
Swearingen confirmed that there are still plans to offer a replacement for the Lancer, but admitted that previous talks with Renault and Nissan over a joint-venture small model have ceased.
âI know weâre working on it. As many people have discussed, we were in a partnership discussion with another OEM. Those talks broke down,â Swearingen said.
âWeâre still looking for a strategic partner to work with on that.
âBut itâs a big part of our sales in the US, and weâre committed to keeping the car here. We understand itâs long in the tooth, but clearly itâs a great seller for us, and continues to be,â he said.
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