Exchange Rates Killed Renault-Sourced Car for Mitsubishi

Last month Mitsubishi Motors Corp. told U.S. dealers an expected D-segment sedan being developed for them with the Renault-Nissan alliance was dead.

At the time, MMC didn't say exactly why the project had been dropped. But now an unnamed executive tells Automotive News Europe the problem was the soaring strength of the Korean won against the U.S. dollar and Japanese yen. The currency swing made the car, which was to be sourced from South Korea, too expensive to sell overseas.

MMC and Renault-Nissan announced the project in 2013. U.S. dealers had been counting on the car to invigorate Mitsubishi's aging North American vehicle lineup.

ANE notes the company has unused capacity at its U.S. factory in Illinois. But it says tooling costs would be prohibitive for the relatively modest production run.