Mitsubishi offers Holden owners $1000 to buy its new cars

Mitsubishi Australia is offering $1000 gift cards to Holden owners who trade-in their old car for a new Mitsubishi – in an attempt to reverse a 30 per cent sales slide so far this year.

The promotion does not give buyers an on-the-spot price reduction on a new Mitsubishi – instead, customers who trade-in their old Holden must apply for the $1000 gift card via an online form after purchasing the new vehicle.

The scheme will run for almost a year – until 31 March 2024 – for private buyers and ABN holders who own a registered Holden and purchase a new ASX, Eclipse Cross, Outlander, Pajero Sport or Triton at a participating Mitsubishi Australia dealership.

Buyers who refer another Holden owner to the scheme may also be eligible for an extra $250 gift card – though this double-dip bonus is only available once per customer.

The incentive is designed to boost Mitsubishi sales by targeting owners of one of the most popular car brands on Australian roads.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, almost 1.5 million Holdens (1.491 million) were remained registered on Australian roads in 2021 – making it the second-most popular car brand in the country behind Japanese giant Toyota (3.038 million registrations), while Mitsubishi ranked in sixth with approximately 850,000 registrations.

Since the most recent Census data, the number of registered Holdens on Australian roads has likely fallen since 2021 – after local production ended in October 2017 and General Motors axed the brand entirely on 31 December 2020.

Holden’s cars were the most popular on Australian roads from the early 1950s until the end of 2005, when it was overtaken by Toyota, which has never been headed since. 

Holden registration numbers have been in decline since 2008, with the largest reported five-year decrease of 21.7 per cent occurring between 2016 and 2021.

At the time of its closure, Holden had more than 200 dealers in Australia – with some of the same showrooms now selling Mitsubishi cars, among other brands.

Between the start of January and the end of April 2023, Mitsubishi reported 21,079 new cars as sold in Australia – placing it sixth in the year’s sales race, but almost 9000 (or 29 per cent) down on its figures in the same period 12 months ago.

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