Mitsubishi Poised to End Carmaking in U.S.

Mitsubishi Motors Corp. plans to end vehicle production in the U.S. and sell its factory in Illinois, according to The Nikkei. The newspaper cites no sources and offers no timetable for the pullout.

MMC told Automotive News in late 2012 it had "no intention whatsoever" of closing the American facility. But the factory's output, which surpassed 200,000 units in 2002, slid to only 69,200 units last year.

The plant opened in 1988 as a joint venture between MMC and Chrysler Corp. It currently makes the Outlander SUV, which is sold in Japan as the RVR.

Last year MMC sold 77,600 vehicles in the U.S., representing 0.5% of the American market. The Illinois plant's output represents less than 10% of MMC's annual global production, The Nikkei says.