Mitsubishi Motors enters 2021 Rebelle Rally, celebrates company’s Dakar Rally History with Special Tribute Livery

On August 24, 2021, Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) announced it will enter a 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander in this year’s Rebelle Rally, unveiling a rendering of the vehicle that will contest the grueling all-women’s off-road navigational competition this October.

Jutta Kleinschmidt making history 21 years ago

The Outlander’s special paint scheme pays tribute to a history-making Dakar Rally win twenty years ago, when Jutta Kleinschmidt drove a Mitsubishi Pajero to victory in 2001, becoming the only woman ever to win the world-famous Dakar.

Mitsubishi Motors North America 40th Anniversary

In addition to honoring the 20th anniversary of Kleinschmidt’s momentous win, MMNA will celebrate the brand’s 40th anniversary in the United States, partnering with military veterans charity Record the Journey to contest the Rebelle for a third consecutive year.

“Mitsubishi Motors has much to celebrate this year, including the 40th anniversary of MMNA, the 20th anniversary of our success at Dakar with Jutta Kleinschmidt, and the successful launch of our all-new flagship vehicle, the 2022 Outlander,” said MMNA Chief Operating Officer Mark Chaffin. “Returning to the Rebelle with an Outlander inspired by that Dakar-winning Pajero is a fitting tribute to our history, a powerful statement about our ongoing commitment to women’s achievement, and the exciting future ahead for our brand.”

Mitsubishi Motors is the most successful manufacturer in Dakar Rally history with 12 wins, including seven consecutive starting with Kleinschmidt’s victory in 2001. The Super All-wheel Control (S-AWC) all-wheel drive system, as well as other innovations on the all-new 2022 Outlander, can trace their concept and development directly back to the legendary racing Pajero (known as Montero in the U.S.).

Mitsubishi Motors North America during recent years in the Rebel Rally

MMNA’s participation in the Rebelle Rally started in 2019, when the brand partnered with Record the Journey (RTJ), a nonprofit dedicated to helping military veterans successfully transition to civilian life. As part of MMNA’s “Small Batch – Big Impact” social-good program, RTJ received the loan of an Eclipse Cross to compete in the Rebelle, finishing second in the CUV class with the event’s first adaptive athlete – U.S. Air Force veteran Karah Behrend – at the wheel.

In 2020, MMNA and RTJ again broke ground at the Rebelle, finishing third in a Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV, the first plug-in hybrid electric vehicle ever to complete the multi-day off-road navigation-focused event. The 2021 Rebelle Rally is scheduled for Oct. 7-16 and will cover more than 2,000 km across Nevada and Southern California.  

The “Small Batch – Big Impact” program is a continuation of MMNA’s corporate social responsibility initiative, through which the company and its dealer partners create a series of vehicle loans to small nonprofits to help support local communities.

About Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc.

Through a network of approximately 330 dealer partners across the United States, Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc., (MMNA) is responsible for the sales, marketing and customer service of Mitsubishi Motors vehicles in the U.S. MMNA was the top-ranked Japanese brand in the J.D. Power 2020 Initial Quality study, ranking sixth overall and experiencing the greatest year-over-year improvement of any brand. In its Environmental Targets 2030, MMNA’s parent company Mitsubishi Motors Corporation has set a goal of a 40 percent reduction in the CO2 emissions of its new cars by 2030 through leveraging EVs — with PHEVs as the centerpiece — to help create a sustainable society.

With headquarters in Franklin, Tennessee, and corporate operations in California, Georgia, Michigan, New Jersey, Texas, Florida and Virginia, MMNA directly and indirectly employs more than 8,000 people across the United States.