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Mitsubishi is a Japanese company founded by Iwasaki Yataro in 1870. Mitsubishi Motors, its car manufacturing division, was founded some years later around the time of the First World War. Its first car was produced in 1970 and was known as the Mitsubishi Model A. The car is regarded as Japan’s first commercially manufactured automobile. The Model A was fully hand-made, making it far pricier than factory-produced cars available abroad. As a result, only 22 models of the car were ever built with production ending in 1921, four years after it began.

During the 1930s, following the merger of multiple Mitsubishi divisions, the company came to be known as Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. Given that this was a time of industrialization and looming war, the company focused its effort on building planes, ships and train cars. However, in 1937, the company built Japan’s first four-wheel-drive military car, the PX33. As World War 2 commenced in 1939, Mitsubishi would be forced to halt production of vehicles. After the end of the war, Mitsubishi was split into three regional companies located in West, Central and East Japan.

Japan’s improving economic conditions in the 1960s would see a rise in demand for cars by consumers. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Mitsubishi would produce the Mitsubishi 500, a mass-produced car meant to meet the demand. Mitsubishi’s plan turned out to be fruitful and the company introduced other cars as well, such as the Minica. In 1964, the three regional companies Mitsubishi had split into would merge back into one, with the company now being known by its former name, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

Today, Mitsubishi is a top automobile manufacturer. It is the 19th biggest automobile producer in the world and the 6th biggest in Japan. It is owned 34% by Nissan and is also part of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance. Notable cars Mitsubishi has produced in recent years include the Mitsubishi Pajero, Pajero Mini, Lancer Evo and Galant.