Mitsubishi 2008 Annual Report Download - page 33

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31
annual report 2008 mitsubishi motors corporation
Motor Sports
Strong Performance in the Dakar Series 2008
(Central Europe Rally)
The Mitsubishi Motors team participated in the Central Europe
Rally, which was held in place of the Dakar Rally 2008. The
Dakar Rally was cancelled on short notice due to concerns about
course safety.
Stéphane Peterhansel of France (Mitsubishi
Pajero Evolution
)
fought to a second place overall finish in the rally, which started on
April 20 and covered approximately 2,600 kilometers over a span of
seven days. Fellow countryman Luc Alphand of France (Mitsubishi
Pajero Evolution
) claimed an overall fourth-place finish. This per-
formance leaves a strong impression of the collective capabilities of
the Mitsubishi Motors team.
For more than 40 years, MMC has continuously embraced the challenges of various motor sports events, including
the Dakar Rally, with the aims of pushing its vehicles to the limit in pursuit of superior drivability and safety and
฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀฀-
losophy. MMC feeds back the technology and expertise derived from these activities, along with numerous victories,
into its product development and manufacturing operations in support of the development of new-generation technolo-
gies in the performance as well as environmental fields.
MMC has recently established a new corporate slogan called “Drive@earth” in order to reinforce its commitment
to providing the “utmost driving pleasure” to customers in various regions around the world, while maintaining a focus
on environmental concerns. Going forward, the Mitsubishi Motors team will play an increasingly important role than
before as an integral part of the process of developing innovative cars.
New Competition Car Racing Lancer for the 2009
Dakar Rally
MMC has developed a new competition car, the
Racing Lancer
,
whose mission is to clinch victory in the 2009 Dakar Rally, as the
race opens a new chapter in its history. For MMC, the Dakar Rally
provides a unique proving ground for its powertrains and 4WD
transmission systems. Because MMC has decided to focus its
cross-country rallying activities on developing diesel engines, the
company has chosen to compete in the Dakar Rally using the
Lancer
model (known in Japan as the
Galant Fortis
). The techno-
logical expertise accumulated through the firm’s cross-country rally
program will be applied to developing diesel engines, including
MMC’s new- generation clean diesel engine for production models.
Meanwhile, various 4WD systems technologies developed in a simi-
lar manner will also be carried over to production models after their
configuration has been optimized to the end use of each model.
Racing Lancer
The Racing Lancer is a Super Production Cross-Country Rally car that has been
developed in compliance with the FIA’s Group T1 regulations. The model
features a newly designed multi-tubular steel frame which has been
optimized using advanced CAE analysis and is powered by a 3.0-liter V6
turbocharged diesel engine. The carbon-fiber bodywork of the model is based
on the Lancer Sportback, which is due to be successively released in various
European countries from the summer of 2008.