In-Depth SWOT Analysis of Mitsubishi Motors – A Japanese Multinational Automotive Manufacturer

Quick Stats on Mitsubishi Motors

Founder	Iwasaki Yatarō
Year Founded	1970
Origin	Japan
No. of Employees	29,555+
Company Type	Public
Market Cap	$4.3 Billion (2021)
Annual Revenue	JPY 2.514 Tillion (2018)
Net Income/ Profit	JPY 119.850 Billion (2018)

 

Products of Mitsubishi Motors

Mitsubishi Motors offers the following products:

• Passenger Cars
• Economy Cars
• Commercial Vehicles

Competitors of Mitsubishi Motors

Mitsubishi Motors competes with a lot of automotive manufacturers. The top 5 competitors of Mitsubishi Motors are

• Hyundai Motors
• Tata Motors
• Toyota 
• Honda
• Chevrolet

Without further delay, let us dive into the in-depth SWOT analysis of Mitsubishi Motors.

SWOT Analysis of Mitsubishi Motors

SWOT Analysis of Mitsubishi Motors can show how a well-established company uses its opportunities to ensure its growth. It can show how the company takes advantage of its strengths to use the opportunities while working on its weaknesses. SWOT Analysis of Mitsubishi Motors will also reveal its expansion plans.

To better understand the SWOT analysis of Mitsubishi Motors, refer to the infographic below:

Now first let’s begin with the strengths of the company from the SWOT analysis of Mitsubishi Motors.

Strengths of Mitsubishi Motors

A business’s strengths are the things that it excels at in its range of operations that can give it an edge over its competitors. The following are the strengths of Mitsubishi Motors:

• History of Innovations: For decades, Mitsubishi has innovated an impressive number of cars which lead the automotive industry forward. Even still they continue to produce new innovative cars which suit the current trends and demands of the market.
• Dependability: Mitsubishi is known for its reliability, dependability, and warranty. The cars have a very high rate of performance which also comes with warranties of up to 10 years. All car brands rank Mitsubishi 6th out of 32 in terms of reliability, with a rating of 4.0 out of 5.0. The average rating is taken from 345 unique models. 
• Value: Affordable customer-friendly prices with rich features and capability is this company’s strongest assets. The company manufactures well-equipped vehicles with the latest technology at extremely competitive prices.  
• Alliances: Mitsubishi Motors have several alliances with some of the world’s biggest car manufacturers including Hyundai, Volvo, Suzuki, Volkswagen etc. and many more. Such alliances give Mitsubishi a stronghold in the market.
• Customer-based: Mitsubishi Motors has always been highly focused on customers. Customer feedback and regular communication have always been a priority of the company, and the company’s consciousness is different because of that.

Weaknesses of Mitsubishi Motors

Weaknesses are used to refer to areas where the business or the brand needs improvement. Some of the key weaknesses of Mitsubishi Motors are

• Ethics: Mitsubishi admitted that they had been giving wrong information on fuel consumption from 2002 onwards, using inaccurate test methods. Later, the company said it used fuel-economy testing methods that did not comply with Japanese regulations for 25 years, much longer than previously known.
• Lack of After-sales Service: The lack of after-sales service in most countries has led to criticism of the company’s after-sales service. Additionally, most regions are not able to obtain spare parts, both of which are disadvantages for the company.
• Negligible Share of the Small Cars: Based on FY2015 data, SUVs and pickup trucks accounted for more than 50% of Mitsubishi Motors’ sales. Although Lancer and Mirage enjoy a decent market share in some markets, other sedans and minicars are finding it more difficult to capture market share.
• Trouble in History: Mitsubishi Motors has withdrawn and ended its production in Australia, Western Europe, North America and the UK market which has significantly affected the sales structure of Mitsubishi Motors for the past several years.
• Weak Governance System: An independent panel hired to investigate the fuel mileage scandal concluded that a weak governance system was to blame. According to the report, the company lacked effective communication, excessive pressure on engineers, and unified manufacturing processes.

Opportunities for Mitsubishi Motors

Opportunities refer to those avenues in the environment that surrounds the business on which it can capitalize to increase its returns. Some of the opportunities for Mitsubishi Motors include

• Demand for Hybrid Cars: Due to a lot of awareness of global warming and environmental protection concerns there’s a high demand for hybrid cars and green cars. Mitsubishi has been introducing reduced emission and environmentally friendly cars since 2010, which puts it ahead of its competitors.
• Emerging Markets: In emerging and changing markets like China and India, automobile sales of the company are expected to grow. Within the next decade, the number of cars sold in these emerging markets is expected to rise by 10 to 20%, which is a huge demand.
• Tie-up with Automotive Manufacturers: A good strategic alliance with other automotive manufacturers like Nissan can create a huge demand and increase sales.
• New Environmental Policies: With the new environmental policies, Mitsubishi can stay ahead of its competitors with the help of hybrid and electric cars.
• Technological Developments: Technology succeeds with numerous advantages among many departments. Operations can be automated to diminish costs. Technology enables better data to be obtained from customers and improves trading accomplishments.

Threats to Mitsubishi Motors

Threats are those factors in the environment that can be detrimental to the growth of the business. Some of the threats for Mitsubishi Motors include

• Increasing Costs: Ever-increasing fuel prices can lead to a decline in the sale of cars. High competition and an increase in depleting resources inflation can hinder the growth of the company.
• Competition: Mitsubishi Motors faces the pressure of competition from many other companies in this industry like Chevrolet, Nissan, Toyota, Hyundai, GM etc. Intense competition from global automobile brands can reduce Mitsubishi’s business.
• Political Climate: As the company operates globally it is exposed to several currency fluctuations and exchange rates resulting in political and economic turmoil in the US, Europe and Russia.
• New Distributors: The increased number of local distributors and their strength pose a great threat in some markets of the world as the competition is paying higher margins to the local distributors and government schemes are also being implemented to protect their interests.
• Technological Developments by Competitors: New technological developments by a few competitors within the industry pose a threat to Mitsubishi Motors. Buyers attracted to this new technology can be lost to competitors, reducing Mitsubishi Motors’ overall market share.

This ends our in-depth SWOT analysis of Mitsubishi Motors. Let us conclude our learning below.