Nissan-Mitsubishi D-Segment Sedan Project Suspended

Plans for the Renault-Nissan alliance to produce a D-segment sedan for Mitsubishi Motors Corp. to market in North America have been suspended, Automotive News reports.

The newspaper quotes Don Swearingen, executive vice president of Mitsubishi Motors North America, who says he gave Mitsubishi dealers in the U.S. the news on Sunday during the National Automobile Dealers Assn. meeting in San Francisco.

The reason for the impasse isn't clear. Nor is the severity of the problem. Swearingen tells AN "all options are still open."

Nissan and Mitsubishi announced in late 2013 they would collaborate to develop a Mitsubishi-branded D-segment sedan for the North American market. The car was to be based on the Renault Latitude made by Renault Samsung in South Korea. The partners planned to source the Mitsubishi model from Korea and introduce it in North America in about 2017.

Left unclear is the fate of a second project between Renault-Nissan and Mitsubishi to develop a smaller Mitsubishi-branded C-segment car for world markets.