Mitsubishi Dealers Nervous, Yell at CEO

It seems a tripartite of price issues, demand problems, and a hamstrung product catalog have spurred a number of Mitsubishi dealers to bend the ear of its North American CEO.

According to a deeply detailed report from Automotive News, a report that included a raft of interviews with dealers who preferred to speak off the record for reasons that should be abundantly clear, many Mitsubishi dealers are bleeding red ink – some to the tune of $80,000 per month. “If something doesn’t shift fast,” said the dealer in an interview with AN, “We will have to make some major decisions.” 

That person then went on to explain the store hasn’t been making money for about 18 months. Numbers shared with AN for its story outlined a reality in which the average dealership net profit (as a percentage of sales) slipped to a few one-hundredths under 1 percent last annum, down from 2.2 percent in the 2023 calendar year.

There’s plenty of blame being spread around as to the origin of these alleged dire straits. Third-party data suggests a 90+ day turn on inventory, one-third greater than industry average and suggesting numerous rigs sitting on Mitsu lots as of very recently were still 2024 models. Average sticker prices are apparently up by about 20 percent over the last five years, likely driven at least in part by the binning of low-cost machines such as the Mirage which bore an entry-level price point of just $16,695 and has since vanished from production lines.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, some dealers have put their focus on the used vehicle department, looking for quick turnover and likely a higher gross per unit. Of course, anyone with half a clue knows this is a short-term fix at the expense of moving new metal. It is also a self-fulfilling prophecy of sorts; allocation of product from the brand mother ship doesn’t happen by magic.

For their part, suits in this country are making the right noises. “There’s work still to be done,” North America CEO Mark Chaffin told Automotive News. “We are taking input from the dealer advisory board and determining which of those levers we can pull to help the dealers in the new year.”

Mitsubishi’s strongest seller is the Outlander, finding 45,253 takers last year which was a gain of just under 3,000 units compared to the annum prior. 

[Image: Mitsubishi]

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