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The Debonair was Mitsubishi's competitor to the Nissan Cedric, Prince Gloria, Isuzu Bellel, and Toyota Crown

and during the first-generation's production, the appearance remained generally unchanged from 1964 until 1986, sharing a tradition with the Toyota Century,

that being iconically recognized as a senior executive sedan exclusive to the Japanese domestic market.

The Debonair was largely the result of former General Motors designer Hans S. Bretzner,

while the result was largely influenced by the 1961 Lincoln Continental designed by Elwood Engel,

as evidenced by the slab-sided body panels, squared wheel wells, extended protrusions at the front of the vehicle, wraparound turnsignals in the front,

and tapered fins at the rear, with a rear tail light cluster, exhibiting a "Continental-esque" appearance.

It used a double wishbone front suspension with leaf springs and a differential for the rear axle for the entire generation.

Powered initially by the KE64 1991 cc straight-six engine with twin carburettors and dual exhausts, the original A30 series developed 105 PS (77 kW; 104 hp) at 5000 rpm, and had a maximum speed of 155 km/h (96 mph).

The front grille had an "MMC" badge, denoting the newly formed Mitsubishi Motors Corporation.

From September 1970 the 6G34 Saturn 6 (1994 cc) engine was installed, and exclusive to the Debonair as the "Executive" trim package,

increasing the engine's power output to 130 PS (96 kW; 128 hp) which gave the car a top speed of 180 km/h (112 mph).

The badge on the front grille was changed to signify the Saturn engine was installed, and a "MCA-Jet" badge was also included.

This model received the A31 model code.

In October 1973 the Debonair underwent a facelift: the front turn signals were made smaller and moved upwards on the fenders,

the front ventilation windows were deleted, and the L-shaped taillights were replaced by rectangular units. The model code was not changed.

The 1976 model saw the removal of a manual transmission, leaving the only choice of a three-speed automatic, sourced from Borg-Warner.

When the 4G54 "Astron" 2.6 L four-cylinder engine was introduced June 1976, the trim package was renamed "Executive SE" and the model code became A32.

The Debonair received additional technical advancements such as anti-lock braking system in 1979.

The badge on the front grille was again changed to signify the engines displacement of "2600" and the "Astron 80" update. These were replaced by "MMC" badges in November 1982.

In April 1978, responding to tightened emissions standards, Mitsubishi introduced a de-smogged model and the chassis code was changed to A33.

Amazingly, the outdated first generation Debonair continued in production until the summer of 1986.

By the end, its availability was largely academical: in its last full year of production (1985) a mere 205 units were sold in Japan.

In July 1986, Mitsubishi dramatically changed the appearance of its top-level flagship sedan Debonair,

as its previous version was seen as extremely rare and not a sales leader or image maker of Mitsubishi vehicles.

The all-new Debonair adopted a front-wheel drive format, a cost-effective way to increase interior space without investing money on engineering in an executive sedan.

It also came with Mitsubishi's first V6 engines, the 6G71 2.0 L and the 6G72 3.0 L under the "Cyclone" moniker, which were shared with the Galant model line later.

So as to comply with Japanese government regulations concerning exterior dimensions and engine displacement,

vehicles installed with the 2.0 L engine were installed in a shorter and narrower car - accomplished simply by fitting smaller bumpers.

Fitted with the 150 PS (110 kW) 3-litre V6, the Debonair would reach 195 km/h (121 mph), if it wasn't for the mandatory 180 km/h (111.8 mph) limiter used in Japanese cars.

The new Debonair was a reasonable success; sales in its first full year (1987) were 6230 cars in Japan, compared to a mere 205 of its predecessor in 1985.

A 150 PS (110 kW) supercharged version of the smaller engine was added to the line-up in February 1987, using the world's first needle roller rocker arm assembly.

This generation was badge engineered and was introduced to the Asian luxury car market as the Hyundai Grandeur, giving Hyundai a luxury sedan to shuttle foreign dignitaries during the 1988 Seoul Olympics.

As Mitsubishi and Chrysler had a business relationship where automotive technology was being shared and used in both Chrysler and Mitsubishi products,

this generation Debonair does have some superficial similarities with the Chrysler New Yorker of the same time period. The Debonair's platform, however, shares nothing with the Chrysler "E", "Y", or "K" platforms

The suspension was upgraded to MacPherson struts for the front suspension, and the rear suspension used a three-link torsion axle.

The only transmission available was a four-speed automatic unit.

Unusually for Japan, there was also a full stretch limousine version available briefly, beginning in 1987.

These were largely handbuilt by Mitsubishi's Aichi dealership chain and were stretched between the doors by 600 mm (24 in) for a total overall length of 5,465 mm (215 in).

In the fall of 1989 a twin-cam version of the three-litre V6 with four valves per cylinder was introduced, by which time the supercharged two-litre was dropped as the regular two-litre engine received a power upgrade.

Power for this version jumped from 155 PS (114 kW) to 200 PS (147 kW).

Top speed for the 24 valve V6 is 215 km/h (134 mph) according to period sources.

For model year 1990, the Debonair was joined by a new, more modern looking and sporting executive sedan, called the Mitsubishi Diamante (also known as the Sigma)

in an attempt to keep Mitsubishi competitive with new executive sedans, such as the Honda Legend and other Japanese luxury sedans as the Debonair continued to be perceived as dated in appearance.

German tuner AMG was brought in to enhance this version of the Debonair, which primarily consisted of exterior body treatments.

he AMG version came in two configurations; the standard length and later the Debonair V 150 AMG, with 150 mm added to the wheelbase.

The "150" limousine (only with the three-litre engine) was first shown in October 1990.

In the Japanese crime drama TV show Gorilla, a Debonair AMG is used.

British luxury apparel manufacturer Aquascutum was also commissioned to design an exclusive interior appearance package for the Debonair,

soon after the company had been purchased by Japanese textile conglomerate company Renown Incorporated; the supercharger was installed optionally with this particular trim package.

By October 1992, production of the second generation model had ended as the third generation Debonair was being introduced.

The third model debuted in 1992, longer and wider than its predecessors.

The wider range of available engines was now topped by a 260 PS (191 kW; 256 hp) 6G74 3.5 L DOHC V6, and as Mitsubishi's domestic flagship incorporated much of the company's technology.

It was introduced after the more mainstream 1990 Mitsubishi Diamante.

Equipment:

four-wheel steering;

four-wheel anti-lock braking system;

electronically controlled suspension;

GPS guided automotive navigation system;

rear-focused camera;

self-closing doors;

worldwide first production car to offer a Lidar-based distance detection system (Japanese market only);

INVECS 5-speed automatic transmission with traction control.

The suspension was upgraded to MacPherson struts for the front suspension, and the rear suspension used a multilink approach.

Much of the technology installed in this generation Debonair was shared with the Mitsubishi GTO.

It was discontinued in 1999, and directly replaced by the Prudia.

However, Mitsubishi also developed its first V8 engine for the new Dignity limousine around this time, and it was this latter model which took position as the domestic flagship of the company.