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Mitsubishi in Montreal
A few Januarys ago at the Montreal auto show, Mitsubishi had a huge display, cars and SUVs, singing and dancing. They were going to set up shop in this country and they wanted everyone to know about it. Six weeks later at the Toronto show: not a trace, they decided to pull the plug. They didn't tell me the exact reason for this, you think that with my unerring instincts for knowing what the market is not going to do: they'd keep me in the loop. But I did hear one story, that the bank in Japan, a Mitsubishi shareholder told them "we're not going to finance this, it's not going to happen". They figure Mazda and Nissan, two very strong car companies in this country weren't doing well, Mitsubishi was having labor difficulties at the plant in the States: they thought the timing isn't right.
Well that was then, this is now, Mitsubishi is back with a vengeance. The first people they had to convince to join this party were the car dealers. Dealers are always whining about how tough the business is and how they can't make moneyÔø‡yada yada yada. Those $1500 Armani suits, they come from where exactly? Never mind. The dealers are signed up; these guys have to invest a lot of money. The market is probably no easier than it was, I mean Mazda and Nissan are doing well now. Mitsubishi now has a full line but they'll have to succeed with their small car. The Lancer going up against Civic, Corolla, Protagé, Sentra, Cavalier, and Focus: it's not going to be easy. Mitsubishi also has to establish a brand name; a lot of Canadians for some reason pronounces it "Mitsub-U-shi". And most Canadians if they hear the name think it's a VCR.
But they do have an ace in the hole, and that's kids. Ever kid that plays an X-box or Game Boy video game knows exactly what a Lancer Evolution 7 is because they play with them every day. The Paris-Dakar Rally Raid, Mitsubishi Pajero: it's going to be here in Canada. Mitsubishi does well with young people in the States, and everybody wants to get those young people. Mitsubishi may just have a chance.
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