Change is coming to Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corporation.

At the press conference after the roll out of the new Philippine-made Mitsubishi Mirage G4, we asked the leadership of Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) as well as Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corporation (MMPC) regarding the continued manufacture of their other locally manufactured models: the L300 and the Adventure. The question posed by AutoIndustriya.com was bought to light given the mandate to supply fuels that meet Euro-IV emissions standards in the Philippines; the L300 and Adventure are both Euro-II models. 

Mr. Shigeru Ogura, MMPC’s Executive Vice President said that the company is working towards developing a solution for the Mitsubishi L300. According to Ogura, Mitsubishi is engineering a motor that can meet the stricter Euro-IV standards and be fitted to the L300 and allow it to continue production while minimizing the increased cost for their clients. 

The L300 was originally launched in 1987 has been in continuous production as a single generation for 30 years. The model was popular back then as a standard family van, but it’s longevity of production can be attributed to its success as an FB or closed van model for small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Today, the L300 remains as a viable van for many businesses and serves a multitude of purposes such as ambulances or commercial transport.

Ogura, however, stated that the Adventure will cease production at the end of 2017. Mitsubishi has not indicated whether they will develop an engine that can prolong the production life of the Adventure.

Like the L300, the Adventure has a long and successful history in the Philippines, having been in continuous production since the late 1990’s. Currently, the Adventure is more commonly found as a popular model for premium public transport such as shuttles and with UV Express.

To fill the role of the Adventure in the interim, Mitsubishi is looking at a model based on the XM Crossover; a concept they displayed at the last Philippine International Motor Show.