In February 2010, Japan's Mitsubishi Motors launched its flagship RVR in the range, and sold it to other markets around the world, including China, under different names such as ASX or Outlander Sport. However, although SUV cars are still popular in the market, Mitsubishi RVR's local sales in Japan are still not prominent enough, and the original manufacturer has to reluctantly announce that it will stop sales.
According to a report from the Nihon Keizai Shimbun, just as the current third-generation Mitsubishi RVR has been on the occasion of 14 years since its launch, the original manufacturer has decided to terminate production operations in Japan and China and gradually end sales, which will be before April 2024. The main reason is that more and more automakers are launching crossover SUVs at this range, which makes the Mitsubishi RVR no longer cost-effective, so the local production and sales of the Mitsubishi RVR have been cancelled, but the overseas market is still not affected for now.
The Mitsubishi RVR can be regarded as the number one work of the transformation of the car series, the first generation of the RVR came out in 1991, is positioned as a small MPV car for the family, until the second generation of the RVR also retains the same practical positioning. So far, the third-generation Mitsubishi RVR has transformed into an urban crossover SUV in line with the market trend, and has undergone more than four facelifts of different sizes, and even further strengthened its sales capabilities in February last year for assistance systems and safety equipment.
Although the Mitsubishi RVR has undergone many facelifts and the equipment is not old, it is believed that the main reason is that the original manufacturer has no plan to launch a facelift, and continues to use 18L naturally aspirated engine with INVECS-III CVT gearbox. This makes the Mitsubishi RVR completely uncompetitive in the era when composite power and light oil electric power are prevalent. In the future, after the Mitsubishi RVR discontinues production and sales, the original manufacturer will shift the focus of the compact SUV to the Eclipse Cross.