History

The Mitsubishi 500 was the first passenger car produced after the Second World War by Shin Mitsubishi Heavy-Industries, Ltd

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries

, or MHI, is a Japanese company. It is one of the core companies of Mitsubishi Group.-History:In 1870 Yataro Iwasaki, the founder of Mitsubishi took a lease of Government-owned Nagasaki Shipyard. He named it Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works, and started the shipbuilding business on a full scale...

, one of the companies which would become Mitsubishi Motors

Mitsubishi Motors

is a multinational automaker headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. In 2009 it was the fifth-largest Japan-based automaker and the 17th-largest in the world measured by production...

. First shown at the 1959 Tokyo Motor Show

Tokyo Motor Show

The is a biennial auto show held in October-November at the Makuhari Messe, Chiba City, Japan for cars, motorcycles and commercial vehicles. Hosted by the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association , it is a recognized international show by the Organisation Internationale des Constructeurs...

, it became available in 1960 at a cost of ¥

Japanese yen

The is the official currency of Japan. It is the third most traded currency in the foreign exchange market after the United States dollar and the euro. It is also widely used as a reserve currency after the U.S. dollar, the euro and the pound sterling...

390,000. It was powered by a rear mounted, air-cooled

Air-cooled engine

Air-cooled engines rely on the circulation of air directly over hot parts of the engine to cool them.-Introduction:Most modern internal combustion engines are cooled by a closed circuit carrying liquid coolant through channels in the engine block and cylinder head, where the coolant absorbs heat,...

 493 cc two-cylinder

Straight-two

A straight-two engine, is a two-cylinder piston engine that has its cylinders arranged side by side....

 engine with a single downdraught carburettor producing 21 PS at 5,000 rpm, driving the rear wheels through a three-speed manual transmission

Manual transmission

A manual transmission, also known as a manual gearbox or standard transmission is a type of transmission used in motor vehicle applications...

. The body was a monococque, in order to be light and strong enough to reach the goal of seating four and reaching 100 km/h with such a small engine. Chassis code was A10, later A11.

500 Super DeLuxe

Buoyed by its sales success, it was given an enlarged 25 PS 594 cc engine (NE35A) in August 1961 for improved acceleration and durability. This model was known as the Mitsubishi 500 Super DeLuxe. The succeeding Colt 600

Mitsubishi Colt 600

The Mitsubishi Colt 600 is a five-seat, two-door passenger sedan produced by Shin Mitsubishi Heavy-Industries, Ltd - one of the companies which would become Mitsubishi Motors. It was rear-engined and rear wheel drive, powered by an air-cooled 594 cc twin-cylinder OHV engine producing , and...

 used a great deal of the 500 Super DeLuxe's underpinnings, including the engine and layout. The Mitsubishi 500 was never a Kei car

Kei car

Kei cars, K-cars, or , are a Japanese category of small vehicles, including passenger cars, vans, and pickup trucks. They are designed to comply with Japanese government tax and insurance regulations, and in most rural areas are exempted from the requirement to certify that adequate parking is...

: Kei regulations at the time of introduction mandated an engine no larger than 360 cc, which remained until the limit was raised to 550 cc January 1, 1976.

Motorsport heritage

Although they are now more renowned for their contemporary successes in off-road racing

Off-road racing

Off-road racing is a format of racing where various classes of specially modified vehicles compete in races through off-road environments.-North America:...

 with the Pajero-based Rally Raid vehicle

Mitsubishi Pajero

The Mitsubishi Pajero is a sport utility vehicle manufactured by Mitsubishi Motors. It was named after Leopardus pajeros, the Pampas Cat which is native to the Patagonia plateau region of southern Argentina. However, since pajero is an offensive term for "wanker" in Spanish, alternative names have...

 and Lancer Evo-based WRC car

Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution

The Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, colloquially known as the Lancer Evo or Evo, is a high-performance sedan manufactured by Mitsubishi Motors. There have been ten official versions to date, and the designation of each model is most commonly a roman numeral...

, Mitsubishi's first "homologation

Homologation

Homologation is a technical term, derived from the Greek homologeo for "to agree", which is generally used in English to signify the granting of approval by an official authority...

 special" was a Super DeLuxe-based touring car

Touring car racing

Touring car racing is a general term for a number of distinct auto racing competitions in heavily-modified street cars. It is notably popular in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Germany, Japan, Scandinavia and Britain.-Characteristics of a touring car:...

 which the company prepared for the 1962 Macau Grand Prix

Macau Grand Prix

The Macau Grand Prix is a motor-racing event held annually in Macau, one of China's Special Administrative Regions. It is known for being the only street circuit racing event in which both car and motorcycle races are held...

. In an auspicious debut Kazuo Togawa took class honours, as the diminutive sedan swept the top four places in the "Under 750 cc" category.