Mitsubishi

The car: 2012 Mitsubishi i SE The power: 66 horsepower and 145 pound-feet of torque coming from a 49 kW AC synchronous electric motor that's powered by a 16 kWh lithium-ion battery. It routs power to the rear wheels via a single-speed transmission. The photos: 2012 Mitsubishi i The speed: 0-60 mph in a long weekend (13.4 seconds) The bragging rights: Cheapest and most efficient electric vehicle currently on the market. Expect a 62-mile range from a fully charged battery, which comes with an eight-year, 100,000-mile warranty.

In a flurry of letters late last year, Southern California Edison and the manufacturer that designed the steam generators at the now-dark San Onofre nuclear power plant appeared to be at odds over a long-term plan to repair the troubled facility. In the exchange, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries proposed a repair plan that it said could have the plant back online at full power in about a year and also suggested a far more aggressive and expensive repair job that would take more than five years to complete.

With Suzuki recently pulling out of the U.S. auto market, many are looking at Mitsubishi as the next brand possibly circling the drain. The company sold less than 4,000 vehicles in October, and to date, 2012 sales are down more than 28% from 2011. But this isn't stopping Mitsubishi from bringing a pair of models to this week's Los Angeles Auto Show. The first will be a North American debut of the company's all-new 2014 Outlander. Powertrain details for this seven-passenger, compact SUV won't be released until later this week, but Mitsubishi says it will feature a new engine that will help make it one of the most fuel-efficient models in its class.

A flurry of letters that went back and forth between Southern California Edison and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries late last year reveal the serious hurdles that stand in the way of the San Onofre nuclear power plant's long-term future. The plant had been offline at that point for nearly a year because of unusual wear on tubes that carry radioactive water in the plant's newly replaced steam generators, which were designed and manufactured by Mitsubishi. Edison asked federal regulators in October for permission to restart one of the plant's two units and run it at 70% power for a few months to see if that would alleviate the conditions that led to the wear.

The relative rarity of Mitsubishi cars these days confirms the company's status as an underdog automaker. Mitsubishi ranks sixth out of the seven Japanese manufacturers in U.S. sales, just ahead of Suzuki. But through the first five months of 2011, sales have increased an astounding 61% versus the same period last year, making it the fastest-growing mass-market automaker in the U.S. Much of the growth is due to its newest model, the 2011 Outlander Sport. The Outlander family now accounts for almost one-third of the company's sales.

The car, called a Precis, is being made in South Korea by Hyundai Motor Co. for Mitsubishi, which has a 15% interest in Hyundai. The Precis, virtually identical to Hyundai's Excel, is expected to arrive in dealer showrooms in early March. Mitsubishi has agreed not to undercut the Excel's price, which carries a base price of $4,995.

Honda has leapfrogged its competitors in mileage range and EPA ratings for the upcoming Honda Fit electric vehicle. The all-electric version of the popular Fit subcompact will be able to travel 82 miles on a single charge, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. That's better than the Ford Focus electric (76 miles), the Nissan Leaf (73 miles) and the Mitsubishi i-MiEV (62 miles).   “The 82 miles is great. Every little bit helps when you are talking about range in an electric vehicle,”  said John O'Dell, who follows alternative fuel vehicles for auto information company Edmunds.com What's more, the Fit has among the smallest batteries of the electric vehicles on the market.

DaimlerChrysler's announcement Monday that it will buy a 34% stake in Mitsubishi Motors Corp. gives the German-American company a fighting chance to meet its goal of controlling 25% of the fast-growing Asian market as well as demands in Europe and the U.S. for cars that are more fuel-efficient and less polluting. For the auto giant that was created in 1998 by fusing Daimler and Chrysler Corp.

Industrial giant Mitsubishi Corp. of Tokyo agreed to pay a $134-million fine after its conviction for aiding an illegal international cartel--the fourth-largest fine secured in a federal antitrust case. The payment, approved Thursday by U.S. District Judge Marvin Katz in Philadelphia, came nearly three months after a jury convicted Mitsubishi of aiding seven companies in fixing prices of graphite electrodes, a material used in iron and steel production. "The prosecution of Mitsubishi and this $134-million fine should send a strong deterrent message to those who participate in or knowingly aid international cartels that increase prices for American businesses and consumers," said John M. Nannes, acting assistant attorney general in charge of the Justice Department's antitrust division.

California Highway Patrol officials are seeking witnesses to a crash in the southbound lanes of Interstate 5 near Pyramid Lake that killed a Playa del Rey man. John David Appel, 28, was killed at 11 p.m. Monday when the driver of the 1995 Mitsubishi in which he was a passenger lost control after a red minivan traveling 75 to 80 mph drifted into the car's path, causing it to flip several times, officials said. The minivan left before witnesses could get a description or license plate number.

It could be the cutest little automotive cage match in recent memory. In one corner, you have the all-new Mitsubishi Mirage hatchback, introduced Thursday at the 2013 New York International Auto Show. In the other, the 1.0-liter Ford Fiesta, announced at the L.A. Auto Show in November. Each sub-compact has promised to be the most fuel-efficient non-hybrid car sold in the U.S. Only one can win. But which will it be? Only Mitsubishi has released gas mileage estimates. The Japanese automaker said its Mirage will get an estimated 37 mpg in the city, 44 mpg on the highway, and 40 mpg combined.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has asked Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to hand over a redacted version of a report on equipment issues at the now-shuttered San Onofre nuclear plant. The commission, which has already reviewed the full report, said it intends to make the redacted version public. Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and U.S. Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) obtained a leaked copy of the report and alleged in a letter to the head of the NRC last week that it indicated the utility and manufacturer were aware of "serious problems" with their design of the nuclear plant's replacement steam generator and failed to fix the flaw before the equipment was installed.

Mitsubishi Motors North America is recalling certain model year 2012 i-MiEV electric vehicles that were manufactured from Dec. 2, 2011, through Sept. 7, 2012, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration . The brake system vacuum pump on those vehicles may fail, rendering the vacuum pump inoperable. If the vacuum pump system fails, the recall notice says, it will reduce available brake power, which would result in lengthened stopping distances and could increase the risk of a vehicle crash.

Mitsubishi used the final major press conference of Thursday's Los Angeles Auto Show to unveil an all-new version of its seven-passenger crossover SUV, the Outlander. Yoichi Yokozawa, president and CEO of Mitsubishi North America, also used the event to stress the company's investment in U.S. manufacturing, saying increased exports of vehicles made in the U.S. would help Mitsubishi's bottom line. "This not only helps reduce our yen-dollar exchange rate challenges, [but] we are also exporting a significant number of these new models to Russia, to the Middle East, and to Central and South America," Yokozawa said.

With Suzuki recently pulling out of the U.S. auto market, many are looking at Mitsubishi as the next brand possibly circling the drain. The company sold less than 4,000 vehicles in October, and to date, 2012 sales are down more than 28% from 2011. But this isn't stopping Mitsubishi from bringing a pair of models to this week's Los Angeles Auto Show. The first will be a North American debut of the company's all-new 2014 Outlander. Powertrain details for this seven-passenger, compact SUV won't be released until later this week, but Mitsubishi says it will feature a new engine that will help make it one of the most fuel-efficient models in its class.

After watching car sales slowly evaporate at his Suzuki Motor Corp. dealership, K.C. Heidler decided about five years ago to start offering Kia vehicles on his sprawling lot in Santa Ana. So it came as little surprise this week when Suzuki announced that it would abandon the U.S. car market but continue to sell its motorcycles and ATVs. "There was a weakening of Suzuki product and a lack of product," Heidler said, noting that he plans to take down the bright red "S" from the front of his Suzuki Depot dealership.

A 23-year-old Tarzana woman died Monday afternoon from injuries she sustained in a head-on collision Sunday morning on Victoria Avenue south of the Santa Clara River bridge. Lisa Ann Castellucci was the passenger in a northbound Saturn that veered over a median and crashed into a Mitsubishi that was headed south on Victoria about 2:15 a.m. The driver of the Saturn, 22-year-old Travis Murphy of Point Mugu, was arrested on suspicion of drunk driving, according to the California Highway Patrol.

The contract signed by the Dutch aircraft manufacturer was for 40 of its new F-100 airliners, with options on an additional 60. Fokker, which called the deal the biggest single order for a European-built airliner, will lease the 107-seat aircraft to operators under a new joint-venture company formed with Guinness Peat Aviation of Ireland and Mitsubishi of Japan.

Honda has leapfrogged its competitors in mileage range and EPA ratings for the upcoming Honda Fit electric vehicle. The all-electric version of the popular Fit subcompact will be able to travel 82 miles on a single charge, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. That's better than the Ford Focus electric (76 miles), the Nissan Leaf (73 miles) and the Mitsubishi i-MiEV (62 miles).   “The 82 miles is great. Every little bit helps when you are talking about range in an electric vehicle,”  said John O'Dell, who follows alternative fuel vehicles for auto information company Edmunds.com What's more, the Fit has among the smallest batteries of the electric vehicles on the market.

The car: 2012 Mitsubishi i SE The power: 66 horsepower and 145 pound-feet of torque coming from a 49 kW AC synchronous electric motor that's powered by a 16 kWh lithium-ion battery. It routs power to the rear wheels via a single-speed transmission. The photos: 2012 Mitsubishi i The speed: 0-60 mph in a long weekend (13.4 seconds) The bragging rights: Cheapest and most efficient electric vehicle currently on the market. Expect a 62-mile range from a fully charged battery, which comes with an eight-year, 100,000-mile warranty.