Citroen said today it would end new car sales in Australia.

Nine dealers nationwide would now solely provide service and vehicle maintenance support, local website carsales.com.au reported.

The local importer, UK based vehicle distribution giant Inchcape, which also brings in Subaru and Peugeot, would effectively replace the French brand with Chinese Foton models, the report said.

Foton was expected to relaunch in Australia by late 2024 with a range of pickup trucks, vans and trucks with both combustion and electrified powertrains. Citroen’s local range was mainly small cars and SUVs such as the C3, C4, C5 Aircross SUV and C5X.

The French automaker sold just 13 vehicles in Australia in July 2024 for a year to date tally of 87 units, a 39% year on year fall.

“The decision for Citroen Australia to cease new vehicle sales was not made lightly;
it was made after careful consideration of the current and future product available
for our country, in the context of the local market and the preferences and
requirements of Australian new vehicle buyers,” Citroen Australia general manager David Owen told carsales.com.au.