Roofless Mitsubishi Magna shows the convertible we missed out on
The pillarless doors of the Mitsubishi Magna have helped it to still look good without a roof.
Holden Commodores and Ford Falcons often get all the glory as the two defining cars of Australia, but the Mitsubishi Magna still has a cult (not a Colt, that’s a different car) following, leading to some Magnas doing magnificent things.
In the hands of South Australian YouTuber Dylan (better known as BarnzyD), this late-1990s TF Magna has done what very few have before, going topless courtesy of an angle grinder and a Toyota HiLux to pull its roof off.
What resulted is a preview of what we could have got if Mitsubishi had decided to turn the Magna into a convertible, with its pillarless door frames aiding it to look almost like a factory job from afar.
While the Magna did have many special versions, a convertible was never one of them, as its sedan and wagon body shapes wouldn’t have supported a folding roof.
However, one of the stars of the Magna lineup in Australia was the later Ralliart, dressed up to look like a Lancer Evolution of the period, with mechanical upgrades such as a more powerful V6 engine and better suspension.
The Magna was built in Australia at Mitsubishi’s Tonsley Park plant near Adelaide, with production running from 1985 to 2005, at which time it was replaced by the 380, a twin to the overseas Galant.
Recently, Mitsubishi Motors President and COO, Keisuke Kishiura, said the spirit of the Lancer Evo – as well as the Galant and Diamante (the Magna’s twin) – is inspiring its next-generation products.
Jordan Mulach
