Lonsdale was a marque of car sold in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 by Mitsubishi Motors

Mitsubishi Motors

is a multinational automaker headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. In 2009 it was the fifth-largest Japan-based automaker and the 17th-largest in the world measured by production...

 between 1982 and 1983. It took its name from the industrial suburb of Lonsdale

Lonsdale, South Australia

Lonsdale is an industrial suburb located south of Adelaide, South Australia, within the City of Onkaparinga.Lonsdale was farmed from shortly after European settlement until the 1950s, when the South Australian Housing Trust acquired much of the land for industrial use...

 in Adelaide

Adelaide

Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...

, South Australia

South Australia

South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...

 where Mitsubishi Australia had an engine production facility. The only car sold under this brand was the Lonsdale, a badge engineered Mitsubishi Sigma

Chrysler Sigma

The Chrysler Sigma is a version of the Mitsubishi Galant automobile that was built by Chrysler Australia in Adelaide from 1977. When Mitsubishi Motors Australia took over Chrysler Australia's manufacturing facilities in 1980, they renamed the vehicle the Mitsubishi Sigma...

. It was sold as the Lonsdale YD41 and the Lonsdale YD45.

Although the Sigma was merely an Australian version of the Mitsubishi Galant

Mitsubishi Galant

The first generation of the car, initially known as the Colt Galant, was released in December 1969. The design was dubbed "Dynawedge" by Mitsubishi, referring to the influence of aerodynamics on the silhouette. Three models were available, powered by the new 'Saturn' engine in 1.3 or 1.5 L ...

 which was already available in the UK, the company's plan was to circumvent the "gentlemen's agreement", a voluntary import quota which limited Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

ese-manufactured imports to 11 per cent of the market. However, the idea proved unsuccessful and most of the cars imported by Lonsdale remained unsold by the time the company ceased trading. Mitsubishi continued to sell the vehicle in the UK for 1984, although rebranded as the Mitsubishi Sigma

Mitsubishi Sigma

Mitsubishi Sigma may refer to one of several vehicles manufactured by Mitsubishi Motors between 1976 and 1996:*The Mitsubishi Galant Σ , a version of the Mitsubishi Galant sedan built between 1976 and 1987...

as it was already known in its local market.