Mitsubishi Lancer to cease production due to fall in demands as SUVs and crossovers have become major priority for the Japanese brand
Japanese automaker Mitsubishi is killing the Lancer sedan in August this year. It has been one of the most popular cars from the brand since its introduction in 1973. But the sales figure of the current generation Lancer is not satisfactory which prompted the decision of axing this icon that has huge fanbase in India as well.
The present generation model was launched in 2007 and despite significant updates it has failed to fetch impressive sales result. Now Mitsubishi will focus on the crossover segment to grab more customers and the Lancer is expected to be replaced by a compact crossover in near future. Therefore, no direct successor of the rally popular sedan is going to roll out anytime soon.
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Speaking about the lancer’s history, it was brought by the Japanese brand to fill up the gap between Minica Kei and the Gallant sedan. Since the very beginning it was sold as a sporty compact sedan. Like the rest of world, in India too it has been popular among the rally enthusiasts thanks to its impressive driving dynamics.
Mitsubishi launched the sedan in our country in 1998 and it rivalled against another popular mid-size sedan, Honda City. Despite being discontinued globally, it was sold here for quite long time. Later the Cedia was sold from 2006 to 2012 in Indian market.
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The car dominated several leading rally championships around the world in late 90’s including WRC and in early 2000’s as well. Its four-cylinder turbo engine and All-Wheel-Drive mechanism helped it to become a weapon of choice in motorsports arena. The modifications were really easy for this car and it was found kicking out impressive 500 bhp of peak power with ease often.