Mitsubishi Delica Mini: copy and paste

Delica is a name that Mitsubishi applies to several models today, but which debuted in 1968 on a light commercial vehicle from which we got descendants in Europe as the L300 and later the larger L400/Space Gear. After the European farewell to the latter, the model name Delica in Japan has never really left. In 2006, the Delica D:5 debuted, a SUV-like MPV with sliding doors that has become quite outdated in 2018. But there were (and there are) more Delicas. For example, the Delica D:3 was in fact the Mitsubishi version of the Nissan Evalia/NV200 and it sells a compact MPV-like in Japan called Delica D:2. The Delica D:2 is a Mistubishi derivative of the Suzuki Solio. That’s far from a big boy, but he’s too big to be a Kei car. To celebrate the 55th anniversary of the Delica name, Mitsubishi will soon be gifting itself and the Japanese car market with the first ever kei-Delica.

The faceplate of the Delica Mini somewhat resembles that of the Delica:D5 before the facelift.

Mitsubishi is already releasing the first images of the newcomer called Delica Mini. Although, newcomer … In fact, the Delica Mini is not that new at all and that is perhaps what makes it intriguing. To pinpoint him, let’s take a quick look at another set of little ones from Mitsubishi. For example, in its home country of Japan, the brand sells the current generation eK and eK Space, the second being the higher and so-called sliding doors equipped. tallboy-version of the first. The eKs were developed together with Nissan and Nissan calls its models Dayz and Dayz Roox. Mitsubishi also sells an electric variant of the non-Space eK, the eK X EV, and Nissan also has a plug version of its Dayz equivalent, although it is called Sakura again. Why do we dwell on this other little Mitsubishi? Well, the Delica Mini is in fact just a Mitsubishi eK Space, but slightly different.

Mitsubishi eKXSpace. Same car, different front.

Mitsubishi already sells a more adventurous variant of the eK Space, which is loaded with crossover elements, called the eK Space X. Mitsubishi takes this as the basis for the Delica Mini. In that capacity, that little one gets a different front that somewhat resembles that of the Delica D:5 before the facelift, which is striking in itself. Mitsubishi hangs other bumper work around the model in the hopes of increasing the distinction between the eK Space X and Delica Mini. Somehow it is not so strange that Mitsubishi puts the same car with a different name and a different front on the price list. Various Japanese manufacturers supply a variant of a model with a different front that gets an addition such as ‘Custom’ after its name. In this case, Mitsubishi makes a stand-alone model of its Kei derivative.

In short, for us Europeans, the Japanese car market is a special one and with the new Delica Mini, Mitsubishi proves that plenty of special choices are made there. To take you even further into the Delica world than we already have, we ask for a little bit of involvement:

Which nose do you think the little Mitsubishi looks best on? That of the Mitsubishi eK Space X or the copy of the Delica Mini?