The Mitsubishi Colt (A20) was one of their first series of passenger cars produced by Shin Mitsubishi Heavy-Industries, Ltd, one of the companies which would become Mitsubishi Motors. Built from 1963 until 1970, they were available in four bodystyles (2-dr/4-dr sedan, 2-dr van, and 4-dr wagon) and on two different wheelbases, with gradually increasing engine displacements 1000, 1100, 1200, and 1500.
After a May 1968 facelift, they were marketed as the "New Colt". Along with the smaller, fastback Colts they formed the mainstay of Mitsubishi's passenger car lineup in the 1960s. With the late 1969 introduction of the new, larger Colt Galant, the outmoded Colt-series soon faded away, replaced by the Mitsubishi Lancer. The dimensions were kept small so as to provide Japanese buyers the ability to purchase a car that complied with Japanese Government dimension regulations and to keep the annual road tax obligation affordable.
Colt 1000 (A20 series)
Available as a four-door sedan, with a traditional Panhard layout, the A20 Colt 1000 was powered by a 977 cc engine producing 51 PS (38 kW) at 6,000 rpm. The Colt 1000 was introduced in July 1963. Top speed was 125 km/h (78 mph).[4] Traditional throughout, the Colt 1000 also had a column shifter for its (fully synchronized) four-speed manual transmission. In December 1965, a 3-speed semi-automatic transmission was also added, unfortunately named SCAT (Single Coupling Automatic Transmission).[5] Top speed remained the same. Standard and DeLuxe models were available, for the Van as well as for the sedan.
There was also a two-door wagon, known as the "Van", as is typical in Japan where wagons are traditionally only for commercial purposes, which featured a horizontally divided tailgate and a maximum 400 kg (882 lb) payload (200 kg with 4 passengers). The rear seat had steel backing and when folded down formed a flat loading floor, as per legal requirements for Japanese commercial vehicles. Strapping points were visible in the rearmost side windows. Its top speed is slightly lower, at 122 km/h (76 mph).
In motorsport, Colt 1000-based touring cars took a clean sweep of the podium in their class at the 1964 Japanese Grand Prix, following the successes of the preceding Mitsubishi 500 and Colt 600s.
The 1966 model year Colt 1000s, the last year before being replaced by the 1100, received an upgraded 55 PS (40 kW) engine which later saw service in the smaller, fastback Colt 1000F.
Source: Wikipedia
Reply With Quote