Renault Clio-Based 2024 Mitsubishi Colt Is Badge Engineering at Its Worst

1 year, 5 months ago - 11 June 2023, autocar

The Colt used to mean something before June 8, 2023. Or – better said – both Mitsubishi and Colt used to mean something not so long ago. The Japanese automaker's downfall started with the fuel economy scandal of 2016, which prompted Nissan to acquire a majority stake in Mitsubishi.

Carlos Ghosn may have saved Nissan from bankruptcy back in the day, and he also improved Renault's market share in Europe, but his aggressive cost-cutting measures hampered both automakers. Even though Ghosn is no longer employed by the uneasy alliance, Nissan and Renault continue to cut corners like there's no tomorrow. This practice obviously extends to Mitsubishi, who cuts even more corners than its alliance overlords.

Rather than giving the Renault Captur new body panels and a slightly redesigned interior to separate it from its Mitsubishi-branded twin, the ASX is nothing more than a Captur with Mitsubishi and ASX badges inside and out. The worst kind of badge engineering imaginable continues with the seventh-generation Colt, which is a Clio in all but name. As far as redesigns go, the ASX and Colt are best described as lazy.

Exclusive to Europe, the all-new Colt will go on sale in the Old Continent in October 2023 for the 2024 model year. From the standpoint of exterior design, the only notable changes between it and the Clio are the LED daytime running lights below the headlights and the Mitsubishi-esque front grille.

No fewer than five paint colors will be available at launch, beginning with the pictured Sunrise Red and Onyx Black. The remainder comprises Royal Blue, Volcanic Gray, and company car-like Arctic White. A grand total of four weirdly-named trim levels are in the offing: Inform, Invite, Intense, and Instyle.

15-inch steelies come standard, whereas better-equipped grades level up to either 16-inch alloys or 17-inch alloy wheels. Two infotainment systems are offered, beginning with the 7.0-inch SDA (Smartphone-link Display Audio) and topping with the 9.3-inch SDA. The digital instrument cluster also differs, boasting either 7.0 or 10 inches, depending on the trim level.

Europe is known for small-engined vehicles equipped with manuals. The all-new Colt perfectly fits this description with a standard 1.0-liter mill connected to a five-speed manual transmission. Gifted with multi-point injection rather than direct fuel injection, the three-cylinder lump cranks out 66 metric ponies. There is a turbocharged version available, packing 91 chevaux vapeur and one extra forward gear. The most interesting powertrain of the bunch is the naturally-aspirated hybrid with not one, but a duo of electric motors.

Front-wheel drive by choice, the 1.6-liter hybrid truly stands out in the crowd with the help of a multi-mode transmission. Four gears of the clutchless tranny are connected to the internal combustion engine, and the other two are for electric drive.

Highlight numbers include 143 ps (141 hp) in total, 36 kW (49 ps or 48 hp) for the traction motor, 1.2 kWh for the battery pack, and as little as 93 grams of carbon dioxide emissions per kilometer. By comparison, the 1.0-liter MPI and MPI-T are rated at 119 and 118 grams per kilometer, respectively.

With a front end that busy and badge engineering this lazy, it won't come as a surprise to see the seventh-generation Colt finish 2024 near the bottom of the segment sales-wise.