There are still a few months to go for the biennial Paris Motor Show but that hasn't stopped Mitsubishi from putting the word out there that it's planning to bring in something exciting and the company has already previewed what looks like an upmarket SUV. It's called the Ground Tourer and, according to the car maker, will feature the company's latest take on the 'Dynamic Shield' design philosophy. Now, we've already seen the XR PHEV II and eX concepts that the company revealed last year, which carry the same design philosophy and this one appears to be a follow up to them.
The Ground Tourer is the first concept car to come from the Japanese car manufacturer after Nissan bought the controlling stake in the company in May this year. The concept will also serve as a preview especially when it comes to design cues for the next-generation Outlander SUV. According to the folks at Mitsubishi, the Ground Tourer concept will feature the latest Japanese design trends and a luxuriously crafted interior.
The teaser image doesn't reveal much but we can see the almost flat roofline that is finished in red with the contrasting grey colour of the body- something similar to what we've seen on the Nissan Kicks concept, albeit the roof was orange. There are no conventional door handles and it appears that the side mirrors have been replaced with cameras. The slender head and tail lamps make the SUV concept look slender and might we add futuristic.
There's no word about what powers the Ground Tourer, but we do know it's a plug-in hybrid electric (PHEV) vehicle which means that it combines a combustion engine with an electric motor and a battery pack. According to Mitsubishi, "The Ground Tourer will offer effortless travel both on and off the beaten track whatever the driving conditions," and by this we know that it will come with a four-wheel drive setup.
Concept cars from Mitsubishi come backed with a strong history which is that most of them rarely ever make it to production. But of course, as we said earlier, it's too early to come to conclusions as Mitsubishi will keep on teasing the concept till its debut on October 1. We will keep you posted with all the latest details.
