Mitsubishi plans to reveal new product plans in the spring

LAS VEGAS --  This year will be a "platform for the next phase of Mitsubishi's transformation," the brand's North America chief Mark Chaffin told the brand's dealers at the make meeting Sunday.

Mitsubishi said it would reveal a hotly anticipated five- to seven-year product plan this spring, but no details were disclosed.

"Product is the key to furthering the acceleration of our brand transformation," Chaffin told Automotive News after the meeting. "The success of Outlander has proven what this brand can do, and it has been the catalyst to completely change everything we do as a company and changing how our dealers run their business."

Some Mitsubishi dealers expressed frustration about the lack of product visibility.

"What the dealers have been most anxious to get news about is a nice product plan," said a retailer who asked not to be identified. "We have some holes in our lineup."

On the dealer wish list is a crossover-style replacement of the Mirage and a larger three-row crossover.

"We have customers that defect because we don't offer [the larger crossover]," the dealer said.

Chaffin asked for patience and assured the retailers a robust portfolio is on the way.

"It's not something we can just decide on overnight," Chaffin said. "We just need a little bit more time."

Meanwhile, Mitsubishi is working to boost throughput and dealer profitability with its existing handful of nameplates.

The Japanese automaker will increase advertising by 15 percent this year to promote the brand. Mitsubishi is also investing in technology, including digital retail and consumer marketing platforms, and artificial intelligence technology.

"We're making these investments to drive sales opportunities to our dealers," Chaffin said. "In January, we saw [market share] growth, especially with Outlander. We saw a big increase in high FICO score customers coming to our brand."

Chaffin said that additional advertising and new dealer tools should lift Mitsubishi's total sales in 2024 by 5 percent. The automaker sold 87,340 vehicles in the U.S. last year.

"We're coming out of 2023 feeling really good about where we've been and where we're going to go," he said.

Lifting dealer profitability in a high interest-rate economy will be a "high priority" for Mitsubishi this year. "We have to continue to evolve with the market conditions to ensure the profitability of our franchise holders," Chaffin said.

Mitsubishi is collaborating with its dealer board to determine what "levers" can be pulled to drive dealerships' bottom line.

Mitsubishi National Advisory Board Chairman Richard Herod III said the automaker is working on "tactical programs" to help dealers with profitability. He declined to reveal details.

Herod said dealers felt heard at Sunday's meeting.

"Every dealer walked into today's meeting curious and cautious about the future," said Herod, managing partner at White Bear Mitsubishi in White Bear Lake, Minn. "The tone of the meeting was hopeful and positive. Dealers left largely upbeat about what we're going to hear next."