Mitsubishi has confirmed it will offer just one manual version of its updated 2026 model year Triton – down from three – making it one of only two mid-size utes on sale in Australia with three pedals, alongside the Toyota HiLux.
The top-selling Ford Ranger dropped the option of a manual transmission entirely when the current generation was introduced in 2022, ending a run of cog-swappers dating back to Lew Bandt’s famous Model 40 Coupe Utility, which pioneered Australia’s ute genre in 1934.
While Ford’s global boss Jim Farley told childcareman.xyz last month the manual version of its iconic Mustang sports car would have to be extracted from the automaker’s “cold, dead hands”, manual dual-cab 4×4 utes have proven to be not-so-sacred.
The Isuzu D-Max – the third-best selling ute in Australia last year behind the Ranger and HiLux – also dropped manual options in 2025.
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Fourth on Australia’s crowded ute sales ladder was the Mitsubishi Triton, which has since reduced its manual offering.
For its MY26 update due in local showrooms next month, however, Mitsubishi has retained a single three-pedal model variant: the Triton GLX 4×4 dual-cab/chassis, priced at $47,490 before on-road costs.
A Mitsubishi Australia spokesman told childcareman.xyz ‘The move to reduce the number of manual models is following the market, particularly in fleets where many are now demanding automatics only.
The GLX Dual Cab Chassis 44 in manual transmission, designed for the smaller fleet/private buyer types of vehicles, has been under some demand (about 11 per cent) from there. ” , ‘I’m sure it is worth reading.
Combined sales of the entire line in 2025, that 11 per cent means about 2079 Tritons with manual gearboxes.
The HiLux (which re-launched in December 2025), the newer generation, still has two manual variants the $33,990 (plus on-road costs) Workmate 42 and the SR 4’4 are still available.
Toyota said the manual is a “strong seller” after it was revealed by the company that nearly half of all HiLuxes sold go to fleets, as well as being’very much in demand’.
“Manual variants currently account for approximately 10 per cent of HiLux sales,” Toyota Australia said.
based on the 2025 figures – 51,297 units in 42 and 4’4 HiLux variants – that is more than 5129 manual Hi Lux buyers enough for the Toyota to continue offering it.
“There are no immediate plans to change the availability of manual variants in the HiLux range,” said Toyota.
“We regularly review the lineup to ensure it continues to reflect customer demand, market conditions and regulatory requirements.”
It is HiLux SR5 which leaves only the small (non-cab/chassis) manual styleside (pickup) ute–along with its counterpart in Australia’s cab and Chassid variants, when it comes to Manual Cab/Chassises versions that are Hi Lux, Triton or nothing.
Even stepping up a size, manual options are limited to the LandCruiser 70 Series in two variants, which Toyota says accounts for around 40 per cent of total sales – roughly 4000 vehicles based on full-year 2025 figures.
Full-size US pickups – including the Toyota Tundra, Ford F-150, Chevrolet Silverado and Ram 1500 – are sold locally in automatic guise only.
The HiLux and Triton in a stand-off are the last one standing in Australia’s popular mid-size ute segment, with no new manual pickups on the horizon as plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and electric uters have become increasingly prevalent.
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