Nissan to Produce Pickup Trucks for Mitsubishi in North America

Mitsubishi will join the growing competition in the U.S. midsize pickup truck market with a model to be produced by Nissan in North America, company executives revealed while presenting a medium- and long-term business plan in Tokyo.

Although no further details were provided regarding this initiative, it is worth noting that the company led by Ivan Espinosa recently announced plans to produce several models, based on a new platform developed by Nissan, at the Canton, Mississippi, plant.

Among the models mentioned are the relaunch of the XTerra, as well as a version of the Frontier pickup, with which the new Mitsubishi model will likely share components; these are scheduled to hit the market in 2028.

The pickup is just one of several initiatives Mitsubishi will implement to revitalize its operations in the United States.

The company also plans to strengthen its brand identity by expanding its lineup of off-road models, enter new segments—again through a collaboration with Nissan—and bolster its dealer network in the U.S. with new showrooms in urban areas.

The pickup truck plan offers Mitsubishi—the only Japanese automaker without production in the United States—some protection against U.S. tariffs, which reduced its operating profits by a third during the last fiscal year.

Mitsubishi Motors, Japan’s smallest automaker, aims to increase its annual global sales to 930,000 vehicles by the early 2030s, up from the 797,000 sold in the fiscal year that ended March 31.