Baby Mitsubishi softroader heads 4WD assault

Mitsubishi's new baby soft-roader, the ASX, was finally unveiled in Geneva overnight, after it was withdrawn from the Tokyo motor show at the eleventh hour late last year.

The Japanese maker instead waited to launch the car in Europe, as that is where it is expected to make the most headway into the booming sub-compact SUV class.

One of a growing number of baby softroaders such as the Nissan Dualis, Suzuki SX4 and the Mini Crossover vehicle, the ASX is due on sale in Australia in the second half of the year with a starting price expected below $30,000, although this is not yet confirmed.

The appeal of such vehicles is their rugged looks, tall driving position, and relatively good economy for a soft-roader. They're also easier to park than big 4WDs. While the ASX is based on the underpinnings of the Lancer sedan, overall it is shorter, so it will fit into tight parking spots (Lancer 4585mm, ASX 4295mm).

The ASX is slightly wider than the Lancer sedan (1760mm versus 1770mm), has a slightly longer wheelbase (the distance between the front and rear wheels, 2635mm versus 2670mm) than the Lancer sedan, and it is taller (1515mm versus 1615mm), making it roomier than Mitsubishi's small sedan.

In Europe the ASX will be powered by Mitsubishi's 1.6-litre four-cylinder petrol engine driving through a five-speed manual transmission, but Mitsubishi Australia is yet to confirm if it will take this engine or get the 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine that powers the Lancer.

Perhaps it will get both. The company has at least confirmed the ASX will be available in 2WD and 4WD.

A 1.8-litre direct injection turbo diesel with six-speed manual transmission will be offered in the ASX in Europe but is yet to be confirmed for Australia. Mitsubishi Australia has expressed interest in the diesel version but a right-hand-drive model is yet to be developed with this engine.

The ASX will be positioned to sit above the Lancer and below the Outlander in Mitsubishi's line-up.

Mitsubishi Australia spokeswoman Lenore Fletcher says: "We see this vehicle as a natural progression from the Lancer through to the Outlander."

The ASX is just one of a number of new 4WDs that Mitsubishi has planned over the next three to five years.

In an exclusive interview with the Carsales Network at the Geneva motor show, Gayu Uesugi, a member of the Mitsubishi board in charge of product strategy and development, said the company was planning to expand its 4WD range to fill some gaps the maker has identified in its line-up.

The first is likely to be a medium-sized softroader to compete with the Toyota Kluger, Ford Territory and Holden Captiva. Shown at the Tokyo motor show last year, the PX Miev concept car was initially thought to be a styling exercise for the next Outlander. But, at the time, Mitsubishi executives in Japan said it was in fact a styling exercise for the next generation Pajero.

However, it has since emerged that both those theories were wrong.

According to Uesugi-san, the wagon-like PX Miev is in fact an all-new model due to fit between the Challenger and the Pajero.

"We think there is a change in market for this car," Uesugi said. "We will not walk away from Pajero, but we also would like to explore this opportunity.

"The concept car was the same size as an Outlander, but it was a styling exercise for a large [soft-roader wagon]."

Uesugi-san also said that the next generation Triton utility, still about four years away, would likely split into two types of vehicle: a rugged workhorse, and a version better suited to family use.

"The market is changing for [utilities] around the world," he said. "We think we need to continue to do a heavy duty version, but also we need to do a more sophisticated model for people who don't use it as much for work."

The likely scenario is that the workhorse models would continue with leaf spring rear suspension to handle heavy loads. And Uesugi-san also hinted that the towing capacity of the new model would be increased.

The more luxurious crew cab models would likely come with coil rear suspension for better ride and handling, and perhaps sacrifice some load carrying capacity.

"Nothing is confirmed, but we are looking at this," Uesugi-san said.

Mitsubishi already has one of the biggest ranges of 4WDs after Toyota. Indeed, 4WDs account for more than half of all Mitsubishi's local sales -- and four of the eight models in its line-up are 4WDs (Outlander, Challenger, Triton and Pajero).

The Outlander is currently the fifth biggest seller in the crowded compact softroader market (close behind the Subaru Forester, Toyota RAV4, Mazda CX-7, and Hyundai Tucson) where there are 22 rivals. So far this year sales are up by 7 per cent.

Meanwhile the medium-sized Pajero has bounced back after weak sales in 2009. So far this year the Pajero sales are up by a massive 61 per cent. In the medium size 4WD class the Pajero ranks fifth (out of 20 contenders) behind the Holden Captiva, Toyota Prado, Toyota Kluger and Ford Territory.

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