Mitsubishi top executives tour suburban dealerships

The CEO and other top executives of Mitsubishi Motors North America Inc. toured some suburban Mitsubishi dealerships on Thursday, a day before a meeting with Midwest dealers at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare.

Shinichi Kurihara, president and CEO of Cypress, Calif.-based Mitsubishi Motors North America, and some vice presidents, stopped at Bob Rohrman's Libertyville Mitsubishi and Grand Mitsubishi in Bensenville, among others.

Kurihara talked with managers about the Eclipse, Eclipse Spyder, Galant and Endeavor, which are made in Illinois, as well as upcoming models.

"He talked about providing more incentives," said Gene Davis, manager at the Libertyville dealership. Combining incentives, such as rebates and low-interest financing, could help boost sales further, he said.

Keith Schumann, co-owner of the Grand dealership said he was looking forward to discussing the future of the company as well as its upcoming models.

In early September, GM executives from Detroit had a similar meeting with their Chicago and suburban dealers to discuss changes in the industry and to develop more ways to boost sales.