Daniel Sims: designing Mitsubishis; When he started at Chrysler, he was assigned to work on Mitsubishi-based products. So eventually, he just joined Mitsubishi, where he now manages the design studio in California.

When Daniel Sims was graduated from the design program at the University of Cincinnati he did what all young designers who happen to spend a whole lot of their time drawing cars do: he tried to get a job as a designer at a car company. In his case, he was hired by Chrysler, where he was to work for seven years. Sims recalls, "When I started there, their involvement with Mitsubishi was increasing." For years Chrysler had been rebadging Mitsubishi products and giving them names like Colt (which was a Mitsubishi Mirage). "When I hired in they started to do a lot of collaborative design. So I worked on the Plymouth Laser, Eagle Talon, Dodge Stealth, and the Avenger and Sebring coupes."

That collaborative work turned out to be a good thing for Mitsubishi because Sims, who was interested in gaining more international experience, joined the company in 1991 and now serves as general manager, Design Studio, Mitsubishi R & D of America (Cypress, CA). Some people might recall that the Plymouth Laser was the sister car to the Mitsubishi Eclipse. Sims not only worked on that car, but, as he puts it, "directly or indirectly" had involvement with all four generations of one of the cars that has clearly made its mark on the American landscape. Other vehicles that he's been involved with in some way include the 3000GT (which was related to the Stealth during the early to mid-'90s], the Montero Sport and the Diamante. "We've also did some work in the studio on a car that wasn't even sold in the U.S., but in Japan and Europe," he says, speaking of a Mirage two-door hatch.

Project America. But then in 2000, Mitsubishi Motor Sales of America announced "Project America," which was dedicated to designing, engineering and manufacturing products that would be focused on the U.S. models. Sims and his colleagues started with the successor to the Montero Sport, the '04 Endeavor. Project America included creating a platform for vehicles that found success in the U.S.--designated "PA"--which was used not only for the Endeavor midsize SUV, but also for the Galant sedan and the Eclipse coupe and Spyder, all vehicles that the Cypress-based studio was involved with. Another program that Sims says the studio worked on--"Ours was the only group within Design involved with it because it was easier for us to communicate with DaimlerChrysler than it would be from Japan"--was the '06 Raider midsize pickup truck, which is based on the '05 Dodge Dakota platform. So in effect, Sims had gone from modifying Mitsubishi products for Chrysler to modifying a Chrysler vehicle for Mitsubishi.

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More than just a program to get products that would be more oriented for the American market, Project America, Sims says, helped push the "design-in" process at Mitsubishi. Sims notes that it really started with the third-generation Eclipse. Before that time, he explains, it was a matter of the design department doing its work, and sending it to the engineering department. It would invariably find things that needed to be modified or changed to meet its criteria, so it was back to the design department. Eventually, it would go to a supplier company where, perhaps, it was determined that although something was manufacturing feasible, for some reason it was probably better if it was modified in order to meet some other efficiencies. So it was back to the terminal, again. "It didn't seem to make a whole lot of sense, and it took time," Sims observes. So with the design-in process, "suppliers were brought in very, very early in the design process so they could work with us and engineering to set the manufacturing criteria early on."

Working Through Gates. He explains that they use a Quality Gate system at Mitsubishi, starting at F (concept selection) through to A (production units being built). Design staff is heavily involved in E ("when you might have two or three design builds that get narrowed to one") and D ("when we release surface data"). Engineering is heavily involved starting at C. He describes the flow as two intersecting waves, with a crest intersecting a trough (design's crest is at F and goes down; engineering crests at C). What they're doing now is to start supplier involvement at E.

Sims candidly admits that product development includes "a lot of arm wrestling." And he points out that there is what he calls "a little bit of creative shear," as designers are trying to push the envelope, thinking five or so years ahead, while there are other constituents who are concerned with the associated risk, because risk requires resources, and if the risk doesn't come out in a positive way, then that necessitates a redo, which means even more resources. Still, he suggests that by having involvement by more people earlier in the process there's a greater sense of ownership throughout, which benefits the product. In addition to which, by having suppliers and engineers working more closely at the earlier gates, designers begin to learn about manufacturing processes "so when they push the envelope, they do it in a way that's completely feasible." Or at least more feasible.

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Anyone for Tennis? Not Mitsubishi. In a market that is full of brands, how does Sims see Mitsubishi's identity, especially as that identity is something that is primarily communicated to the market through design? He suggests that they are working to establish Mitsubishi as the manufacturer of vehicles that are dynamic, fun-to-drive, yet well-built and robust. He says that they had an opportunity to tear down a Galant to its body-in-white to see how it was engineered and manufactured, and they concluded that "where someone else might use two bolts, we'd use three." He continues in this vein by suggesting, "The type of racing that a brand selects says a lot about it. For example, Ferrari and Mercedes are into Formula One, which is very high end but out of reach of the common man-type racing. But Mitsubishi is involved in rally racing, which is the most grueling you can do. It's hard on cars and it runs through all kinds of terrain." Mitsubishi is a perennial leader in the Paris-Dakar rally (which now starts in Lisbon); the car category of the race was taken by drivers of Mitsubishis from 2001 to 2006. "It's kind of like the Ironman. F1 is more like Wimbledon. That says a lot about Mitsubishi as a company. We engineer cars to do that. That robustness comes through in our products."

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But Sims contrasts the kind of ruggedness that they're trying to convey in their design with, say, the design of a Hummer, which he describes as looking like "it was milled out of a solid billet." He says a code-word that they use for Mitsubishi designs is hagane, a Japanese word describing the kind of forged steel that goes into Samurai swords. Layer after layer is pounded and folded. "It's extremely strong, but flexible, he says. That's what we want our designs to look like: taut. Not like they're carved out of a solid billet, but with a spring to their surface."

The Big Potential in B. Looking forward in the American market, he thinks that there will undoubtedly be growth in the B segment, but that because the market is, in his view, a zero-sum game, that growth will come at the expense of other segments, such as light trucks and full-size SUVs. He thinks that small SUVs will see growth--and the '07 Outlander plays into that category--and that midsize sedans will remain stable. But he says that the trick is to do the B segment car in the right way: "The challenge will be to do small, efficient cars that aren't penalty cars and aren't boring. Some of the vehicles send the message, 'I can't afford anything better.'" Which certainly isn't the sort thing with which to build brand loyalty and equity. He suggests that the cars "can be affordable, but make a statement, be a destination in and of themselves." But the challenge in doing so comes in development, especially as the cost targets are low, but the development costs aren't. "The reality is that it doesn't matter the size of the car, the development costs are almost the same. That's why American car companies love those big trucks so much--you're selling air."

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The way he sees a B segment car being pulled off is by doing "a little car with a long life." He cites the Renault Clio as a successful execution of a B segment car, as it has been around since 1990 with comparably small investments in modifications. "The business case for small cars is really tough," he says, adding, "Development costs have to be made up on volume or some other way."

By Gary S. Vasilash, Editor-In-Chief, [e-mail]

RELATED ARTICLE: The '07 Outlander: Engineering a Sporty SUV

The 2007 Mitsubishi Outlander, a compact SUV, is based on a new global platform. Which may not in itself be all that surprising. But what else will be based on said platform is: the next generation Evolution. Yes, the Evo. (As well as other Lancer models.) The Outlander, clearly, has a solid base. And lessons learned from the existing Evo are applied to the Outlander. For example, the Outlander has a steel-reinforced aluminum roof. The Evo has an aluminum roof, too (as well as hood and fenders). The effect for the Outlander is to help lower the center of gravity, which reduces body roll and improves steering response. (Speaking of the rack and pinion steering, the rack has a larger diameter than the previous model, and the steering feel is improved by using a bushing fitted with an internal cylinder to support the steering gear cross member. Attention was paid to minimizing steering wheel vibration through the use of dampers and support; overall, stiffness is up by 20%.) The aluminum roof is 11 lb. lighter than a comparable steel roof. That said, however, there is a highly rigid body structure that is predicated on the use of high-strength steel; overall, the '07 Outlander's bending and torsional rigidity are increased 18% and 39%, respectively, compared with the outgoing model.

The Outlander comes standard with an all-new, all-aluminum 220-hp, 3.0-liter V6 engine and a six-speed automatic transmission. The V6 features the company's variable valve timing and lift system--MIVEC (Mitsubishi Innovative Valve Timing and lift Electronic Control--which is designed to provide performance at low and mid-range speeds and at high rpms. It does this by using two distinct cam profiles. There is a smaller cam profile used for low-rev conditions and a high-lift cam that automatically kicks in at 4,750 rpm, based on a hydraulic system. In addition, there is a resin induction control valve within the aluminum intake manifold that is closed below 3,600 rpm, resulting in a longer route between the intake and inlet valves, and open above it, for a shorter track, for a boost in high-end horsepower. This new engine is 55 lb. lighter than the company's previous generation V6 and just 13.2 lb. heavier than the four cylinder engine in the '06 Outlander, which has an iron block.

The six-speed transmission has a sport mode function, which means that driver can manually shift if desired. What's interesting to note is that not only is there the now-common shifting of the console-mounted shift handle, but the '07 has steering wheel mounted paddle shifters--magnesium paddle shifters--on the top trim level package.

The front-wheel drive vehicle is available with a four-wheel drive system, a new system rather than the 50:50 full-time four-wheel drive that is available in the '06 model. There is a switch on the IP that lets the driver select front wheel drive, 4WD Auto or 4WD Lock. The auto mode always sends some power to the rear wheels, as much as 40% during full throttle and up to 15% during steady cruising. In the lock mode, 1.5 times more torque is sent to rear wheels than is the case in the auto mode, thereby (1) improving off-the-line traction, (2) providing higher high-speed stability, and (3) facilitating performance on rough and slippery surfaces. The Outlander also features an electronic stability control system, ASTC (Active Skid and Traction Control). The vehicle has a MacPherson strut front suspension and a trailing-arm, multilink rear suspension. The shock absorber piston diameter has been increased to 1.18 in. from 0.98 in., thereby improving both ride comfort and steering stability.

The vehicle is available with three rows of seats, but although it has a longer wheelbase than the previous generation vehicle (105.1 in. vs. 103.3 in.), chances are that rear area is best used for cargo (there is 39-ft[.sup.3] available with the second row seats up; 72.6 ft[.sup.3] behind the front seats if the others are folded).

There is rather significant attention to detail, ranging from the extensive use of sound-insulation materials, both mats and blown foam, to a fold-flap tailgate that not only facilitates loading the cargo area, but also serves as a place to sit during tailgating (it has a 440-lb. capacity).

According to Daniel Sims, the general manager of the Mitsubishi design studio in Cypress, CA, there were three overall objectives to the design of the Outlander: to make it appear sporty and dynamic; to speak to the fact that it is rugged yet sophisticated; and to have tight forms inside and out.