Bill Penney Mitsubishi

Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) today announced that production of the Outlander Sport Crossover Utility vehicle will begin in mid-2012 at the Mitsubishi Motors North America (MMNA) plant in Normal, Illinois.

An announcement ceremony at the plant this morning was attended by dignitaries including MMNA President Shinichi Kurihara, Illinois Governor Patrick Quinn, and UAW International President Bob King. Prior to the media announcement, a separate event for all MMNA employees was held on the factory floor…

Mitsubishi's U.S. assembly plant in Normal, Illinois is shifting its emphasis away from regionally focused vehicles. In the future, vehicles rolling off the plant's assembly line will be smaller global cars, hybrids, and electrics.

Schinichi Kurihara, CEO of Mitsubishi Motors North America, indicates that the the company will launch four new models in the U.S. within three years. This introduction will happen simultaneously to the phasing out of four slower-selling vehicles…