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Mitsubishi revamps U.S. strategy

Mitsubishi plans a different U.S. model lineup and a new production strategy for its assembly plant in Normal, Ill., as it shifts emphasis away from regionally focused vehicles to global small cars, hybrids and electrics. Shinichi Kurihara, CEO of Mitsubishi Motors North America, says the company will launch four new models in the United States within three years, as four slow-selling U.S.-built vehicles are phased out of production by 2014.

Mazda 2 (2015) first to get new 1.5 Skyactiv diesel

By Michael Karkafiris Motor Industry 11 June 2014 15:32 Mazda’s new 2 will be the first model to premiere the company’s latest downsized Skyactiv diesel engine, it has confirmed. The Japanese car maker today revealed the technical specifications of its new 1.5-litre oil-burner, which promises to be highly efficient and low-polluting. The new member of the eco-friendly Skyactiv engine family produces 103bhp at 4000rpm and 184lb ft of torque between 1500-2500rpm, says Mazda.

The fall and rise of the budget car

Twenty years ago, the classic bargain brands like Lada seemed to be going the same way as the Soviet empire that spawned them. Woefully dated and badly made, only a weirdo would have bought a new Lada rather than a second-hand model from Ford, Vauxhall or VW. However, one of the big trends in the car industry today is the re-emergence of bargain cars.