Mitsubishi: People don’t want sub-$30K SUVs

The arrival of the second-generation Mitsubishi ASX has pushed the brand’s price of entry well north of $30,000, but company executives reckon customers won’t be bothered since they were typically spending more than that anyway. That said, kei cars could fill the void left by the budget-friendly first-gen ASX.

Mitsubishi, which up until recently had laid claim to the title of ‘most affordable small SUV’ in Australia with its 15-year-old ASX, has pole-vaulted up the price ladder with the arrival of the ASX’s all-new replacement, pushing the brand well out of reach of budget-constrained new-car shoppers.

ASX sales therefore aren’t expected to be as strong as before, however according to the brand’s local bosses, the sales that are expected to be lost were ones that gave the slimmest profit margins and weren’t worth the squeeze.

“We’re not going to alienate [ASX buyers] by any stretch of the imagination,” Mitsubishi Motors Australia (MMAL) product strategy general manager Bruce Hampel said.

“[With the now-superseded ASX] we had a very diverse lineup with seven variants from a very low cost, simple, manual transmission, and that was for a subset of the market – fleets, predominantly – that was very low volume to us.

“Unfortunately – or fortunately – that gave us a price-leading position, which now we’re measured against.

“But that wasn’t really a volume-seller for us, it wasn’t a vehicle that private customers were buying; they were buying LS’s as the more standard mainstream volume, and [with the new-generation ASX], the equivalent LS is only about a $7000 cost increase.”

Fleets are no longer the fixation for the ASX, but with the new model projected to earn a four-star ANCAP rating, it would be unlikely any commercial fleets would be lining up for it anyway.

Private buyers, according to Mitsubishi Australia, are less concerned by ANCAP scores these days.

This isn’t necessarily the end of affordable cars for MMAL, however.

The company holds one significant ace up its sleeve: access to a portfolio of micro-sized, low-cost vehicles that belong to Japan’s unique ‘kei’ class.

“We’re constantly monitoring the market,” Hampel said.

“The markets are continually growing and shifting at a rapid pace, and people are now looking at downsizing into more efficient vehicles to aid them in their chores of just getting around the city and doing the day-to-day shopping runs, kid drop-offs and things of that nature, and potentially, those types of vehicles are something that may be of interest in the future.

“Nothing concrete, nothing to announce at this stage, but it’s an area… where there’s white space opportunities in the Australian market that we’re always keeping our eye on for the right time.

“We’re lucky with our alliance partners, with Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi itself, that we have a wide portfolio of products that we can consider, and we’re working closely with Mitsubishi Motors Corporation on those.”

In Japan, Mitsubishi sells six distinct kei class models, which are mandated by law to measure no more than 3400mm long, 1480mm wide, and produce a maximum power output of 47kW.

Key among them are the just-launched van-style Delica Mini and eK Space, along with the eK X (or eK Cross) hatchback, which is also available as an EV.

There are also the more utilitarian Town Box and Minicab commercial vans and trucks, however those are rebadged Suzuki kei vehicles.

With tiny dimensions and low power outputs, these options are really only suited for urban use.

However, with Australia having one of the most urbanised populations on the planet – and Mitsubishi Australia keen to plugging the sizable gap beneath its new ASX – these kei cars may give the brand Diamond a unique selling point at the bottom end of the new car market.

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