Mitsubishi Colt resurrected

The Mitsubishi Colt will soon be galloping back into European showrooms after being axed a decade ago, thanks to a bit of badge engineering.

The small five-door hatchback is essentially a Turkish-built Renault Clio wearing Mitsubishi badges and carrying a few minor styling changes, namely a massaged grille and LED daytime running lights.

Step inside the French-flavoured 2024 Mitsubishi Colt and there are even fewer modifications, with triple-diamond badges the most obvious.

The Colt is set to go on sale in Europe from October, with customers able to choose between several model grades equipped with 7.0- or 9.3-inch central touch-screens and, at the higher end, a digital driver’s display, Bose sound system and wireless smartphone charging pad.

Powerplants include a tiny 49kW/95Nm 1.0-litre three-cylinder naturally-aspirated petrol, a turbocharged version (67kW/160Nm) and, at the top of the range, a 1.6-litre petrol-electric hybrid (105kW/148Nm).

If that sounds enticing, we regret to inform you that Mitsubishi Australia says it has “no plans” to reintroduce the Colt to Australia, telling carsales today that its focus is squarely on SUVs and light commercial vehicles.

Renault is also preparing to introduce a redesigned Clio later this year, so it’s unclear whether the Colt will continue as a budget alternative based on the current model.

The new European Mitsubishi ASX based on the Renault Captur has also been ruled out for Australia, however the popularity of the small SUV here has prompted the Australian arm of the Japanese brand to look at alternatives closer to home.

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