Mitsubishi Motors Corp. will renovate its Oe factory in Nagoya to launch a new production line in 2002 for a small next-generation vehicle jointly developed with DaimlerChrysler AG, company officials said Tuesday.

MMC plans to spend 20 billion yen to 30 billion yen on the renovation to put the latest technologies into the plant, which will produce around 100,000 of the new vehicles annually, the officials said.

Targeted for production at the plant is a compact "Z" car that will have an engine displacement of between 1,100cc and 1,500cc, company officials said.