Autoblog

There's an old saying, you only want what you can't have. It holds particularly true in the context of Australia's Mitsubishi 380. The vehicle's Adelaide manufacturing facility was recently shuttered, partially due to lack of interest in the six-cylinder sedan. However, the vehicle's cancellation announcement ended up increasing demand for the final batch of 380s to roll off the assembly line. For that reason, Mitsubishi decided to auction off the final car to its suddenly sentimental Aussie dealers. The last domestically produced 380 ended up fetching $100,000 Australian dollars ($93,364) after all was said and done, which is more than three times its MSRP. John Hughes Mitsubishi, a Perth, Australia dealership, coughed up the cash for the winning bid. Mitsubishi also gave it the honor of choosing a charity to benefit from the proceeds of the sale. Knowing that the 380 in Australia is basically a Down Under-ified version of the Galant on sale in North America, is there any circumstance under which you could imagine paying that much for a Galant?

[Source: Ward's Auto]

Click above for a high-res gallery of the Mitsubishi Concept ZT.

It's a foregone conclusion that the Concept ZT unveiled in Tokyo is the styling direction Mitsubishi will take when it unveils a reworked Galant in the next couple of years. So common sense says that the next iteration of the Mitsubishi 380 sold in Australia, which began life in 2005 as a rebadged Galant with a few design tweaks, is going to reappear sharing most of the cues debuted on the ZT.

The fact that Mitsubishi will end production of the 380 at its Adalaide, Australia plant towards the end of March so it can pursue a "full import strategy" is further proof that the next 380 is going to share even more in common with the next generation Galant. While it's not certain that the 380 moniker will be nixed in favor of a Galant badge, it's likely to be packing a choice of new motors that puts fuel-efficiency over performance, including one of Mitsubishi's new diesel mills.

[Source: Drive.com.au]

Australia's automotive manufacturing industry has taken a blow as Mitsubishi announced it will be closing its Adelaide plant, the facility that builds the 380 sedan. The news means approximately 1,000 workers will soon be out of a job. In fact soon means very soon, as March 31st marks the plant's final day. It will certainly be a quick and painful process; so much that counseling will be offered to outgoing employees. The Australian government even previously offered the Japanese automaker assistance in order to keep their local operations alive. However, the extra funds couldn't account for the 380's dismal sales. It is well known that Australians like their V8s and the 3.8L V6 engine powering the sedan was not enough to overcome the competition.

[Source: Live News]

Mitsubishi is facing an uphill battle in Australia and is facing the shutdown of its local production for good. Falling demand for large cars, a lack of a suitable export program and an uninspiring lineup have left Mitsubishi on the brink of extinction Down Under. The situation is so bad that auditors have described the situation as containing "significant uncertainty" after finding a net current asset deficiency of AUD$168 million in the financials for the small Aussie outcrop.

Mitsubishi only manufactures one model in Australia, the 380 sedan, which is basically a rebadged version of the American Galant. Most businesses with liabilities exceeding their assets would have to call it a day, sell whatever remaining assets are available, and pay off its creditors. However, Mitsubishi's Australian chief executive Robert McEniry has a confident outlook on the situation and has indicated that Mitsubishi will continue producing cars locally.

[Source: News.com.au]

Australians buy just under one million cars a year, a tally that includes nearly every brand under the sun including several labels that even a market the size of the U.S. doesn't have. This means that local manufacturers have to compete with dozens of imports in a market that's roughly half the size of Toyota's annual production in North America alone.

Of the four major car manufacturers in Australia, GM Holden, Ford, Toyota and Mitsubishi, no one is doing it tougher than the maker of the cars with the Three Diamond badge. Mitsubishi currently builds the 380 sedan in Australia, a locally tuned version of the Galant sedan that's due to be replaced in 2011, but sales have been far below expectations due to tough competition. Unless sales improve the Aussie division will have to shutter its operations Down Under permanently.

To ensure production remains, management has to convince officials in Japan that a 380 replacement is a viable project. The problem is that current production levels won't support the local development of a new car and the movement away from large sedans in the Aussie market is only adding fuel to the fire. The most likely bet is an Australian version of a new global Mitsubishi large car.

[Source: Cars Guide]