2004 Mitsubishi Lancer Sportback Ralliart - Forbes
The real action was in making the $20,000 to $30,000 range–in every single category of car and truck–as fiercely competitive as the $30,000 to $40,000 range has been for the past half decade. But below $20,000, where lots of folks shop for third cars and their first new automobile, the market was hardly scintillating, either in terms of sales or compelling new iron. About all you could say that was impressive was that some third-tier makers such as Kia and Hyundai , as well as Mazda , stepped up with some more intriguing product than had existed in 2002. That, and the fact that smartly decided that its ’04,... For example, about a year ago, Mitsubishi , 37% of which is owned by , was offering 0% financing and no payments for six months, and no money down. This scheme, called Zero, Zero, Zero, made Mitsubishi’s sales boom, and the company suddenly had a flood of twentysomething consumers, since easy money naturally attracts customers with little credit history. Almost instantly, Mitsubishi had the youngest buyer base in the industry, easily trumping , the previous leader in getting kids into cars. Source: www.forbes.com
