What's up with the recall???
Anyone seen anything on this yet???
[Mitsubishi likely to feel pain of recall
By Earle Eldridge, USA TODAY
Mitsubishi's recall of 1.4 million vehicles will likely taint that automaker more than Chrysler, even though Chrysler, Dodge and Eagle vehicles are part of the recall, analysts say.
Even at that, Mitsubishi's U.S. operations showed surprising resilience to a recall scandal last year in Japan and may again come out unscathed. North American operations reported record sales and profit last year.
Mitsubishi said Thursday that it is recalling 1994-98 Mitsubishi Galant, 1995-99 Eclipse and 1996-99 Eclipse Spyder; 1995-2000 Chrysler Sebring; 1995-2000 Dodge Avenger; and 1995-98 Eagle Talon. Mitsubishi builds all the cars.
The problem: Vehicles may have a faulty steering component, a ball joint, that wears out prematurely. The joint could separate, causing the driver to lose steering control.
Replacement parts may not be available for a couple of months, Mitsubishi and Chrysler officials say. Close to 1 million of the recalled vehicles are in the USA, the rest in Japan and Europe.
Mitsubishi was rocked last year by a disclosure in Japan that recalls and customer complaints were covered up for more than 20 years.
Gael O'Brien, a Mitsubishi North America spokeswoman, says the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reviewed past Mitsubishi recalls in the USA and concluded that the automaker handled them properly.
"We are very proactive about safety," O'Brien says.
Some industry watchers say Mitsubishi may take a sales hit.]
