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Mitsubishi Motors Reports Year-End Sales

6 January 1998

Mitsubishi Motors Year-End YTD Sales Near 190,000 Units; Company Predicts Continued Growth of Sport Utility Sales

    CYPRESS, Calif., Jan. 6 -- Mitsubishi Motor Sales of America,
Inc. (MMSA) reported sales of 13,015 units for the month of December, closing
its 1997 calendar year sales 1.1 percent ahead of last year.  Much like the
current U.S. marketplace, MMSA's sales remained strong in the sport utility
segment, posting a year-to-date gain of 213 percent.
    According to Kevin Ormes, group vice president, retail operations, the
company's mid-size Montero Sport was a real winner for MMSA during 1997.
"Last year at this time we had just introduced the Montero Sport," said Ormes.
"Since then, our SUV segment has catapulted forward, exceeding our
expectations.  Montero Sport sales in December alone neared 3,300 units,
closing the year at 31,659 units."
    Ormes expects Montero Sport sales to continue to increase for 1998,
growing an additional 30 percent, which will represent the largest growth
segment for the company.
    A new management team has created business strategies at MMSA to restore
profitability through enhanced customer and dealer satisfaction.  Ormes
expects these changes to set a course for the company that will result in
steady growth for the next several years.  MMSA's new Executive Vice President
and Chief Operating Officer, Pierre Gagnon, spoke about this new business
approach at MMSA's press conference yesterday at the North American
International Auto Show in Detroit.
    Gagnon reiterated that the sporty car segment will remain a strong focus
for the company.  In fact, at yesterday's press conference, Mitsubishi Motors
provided a glimpse into the future of its sporty car segment with the world
premier of its SST, "sophisticated, sports touring" concept vehicle -- a
"geo-mechanical" design that was created by Mitsubishi Motors' Southern
California design studio as an advanced grand touring sports car concept for
the next century.
    As for Mitsubishi Motors' sedan segment, Gagnon announced that the world
premiere for the 1999 Galant mid-size sedan will be held on Saturday,
February 7 at the Chicago International Auto Show, which he expects to help
re-energize interest in one of the company's highest volume products.
    Mitsubishi Motor Sales of America, Inc. was established in 1982 by
Mitsubishi Motors Corporation, Tokyo, and markets a full line of vehicles,
including coupes, convertibles, sedans and sport utility vehicles.

                                   Dec. '97        Dec. '96      % Change
                                  Month/YTD       Month/YTD     Month/YTD

    Passenger Car Sales*      9,380/150,382  12,431/171,182 -24.5%/-12.2%
    Sport Utility Vehicles**  3,635/ 38,574     873/ 12,315   +316%/+213%
    Trucks***                     0/    207      81/  3,629  -100%/-94.3%
    Total Vehicle Sales      13,015/189,163  13,385/187,126   -2.8%/+1.1%

    Note: U.S.-Built Vehicle
     Sales                    6,869/101,159   7,882/124,636 -12.9%/-18.8%
    (Includes Eclipse/Eclipse Spyder/Galant)

    *     Above totals include sales of U.S.-built Mitsubishi Motors vehicles
    **    Includes Montero and Montero Sport
    ***   Truck sales include inventory stock only; MMSA stopped selling the
          Mighty Max pickup truck early in 1996

    Please note sales chart format has changed slightly: SUV's are now broken
out separately, therefore dramatically altering year-to-date volume and
percentages which reflect this change.

SOURCE  Mitsubishi Motor Sales of America, Inc.