The Nikkei reports that Mitsubishi Motors Corp. will reduce the output capacity of its US plant in Illinois by 55% to 50,000 units, from its current annual capacity of 110,000 units.
To improve its bottom line, Mitsubishi Motors North America Inc., which operates the plant, has carried out a series of layoffs since fiscal 2004. With the number of workers having fallen to 1,300 from 2,000, it has become difficult for the plant to handle an annual output of more than 50,000 units.
The plant is currently manufacturing three models for the North American market—he Eclipse sports car, the Endeavor sport utility vehicle and the Galant midsize sedan. Mitsubishi Motors will discontinue these three models and instead make another—the Outlander Sport. It plans to produce 50,000 units of the SUV a year, with half of them likely to be exported to Latin America, Russia and Europe.