Mitsubishi Montero / Pajero 4×4 Review
Type: 4 door wagon, 2 door wagon
Years: 1981-present
Toughness: 7.4/10
Availability: 7.2/10
Capability: 8.0/10
Price: 8.1/10
Released in the Japanese market back in 1982 (one year after the Isuzu Bighorn) the Mitsubishi Pajero / Montero / Shogun 4×4 quickly established a reputation as a tough, capable, and fun to drive four wheel drive vehicle.
Mitsubishi’s goal with the Pajero / Montero / Shogun 4×4 was to create a more all-around recreational four wheel drive, as opposed to a hard-core trail-only 4×4, and given the vehicle’s many options, accessories, trim levels, and model variations, they seem to have accomplished this.
The Mitsubishi Pajero / Montero / Shogun debuted in the Paris Dakar Rally in 1983, and by 1985 had taken first place in its class. This trend (winning) continued and today the Mitsubishi Pajero / Montero / Shogun is the most successful 4×4 vehicle in Dakar history–although the 4×4 raced in the Dakar Rally has little more than name in common with the production model.
Equipped with a variety of four cylinder petrol and diesel engines, as well as V6 petrol engines in later models, the Mitsubishi Pajero distinguished itself from its Japanese competition by offering features more commonly found on top-end British 4x4s of the same era.
In addition to four wheel disk brakes, limited slip differentials, and factory skid plates, many Pajero 4x4s came fitted with push-button adjustable suspension, plush interiors, and a centre-lock differential. Unlike the part-time 4×4 systems on most other 4x4s of the era, this enabled the Pajero’s four wheel drive system to be used both on road and off.
If there’s one thing Mitsubishi is known for, it’s fitting electronic gadgetry to their vehicles–4x4s included. And in the mid-90′s, the Pajero 4×4 was perhaps the best example of this.
Multi-zone digital climate control, electric compass, altimeter, and incline gauges, suspension seats, the previously mentioned electronic suspension adjustment, and a plethora of electronic controls on the dash might not seem necessary on a 4×4, but in many ways Mitsubishi Pajero 4×4 helped pioneer the luxury SUV market.
Of course, the Pajero was (and is still) a “real” 4×4 under all that wiring, circuitry, and plastic. The chassis is tough, the suspension able to handle off-road abuse in stride, and the 4×4 system proven in extremely tough environments around the world.
With appropriate off-road tires and the factory-fitted limited slip rear differential, the Pajero’s four wheel drive system moves the vehicle almost anywhere it wants to go–with aplomb, style, comfort.
Like every 4×4, the Mitsubishi Pajero / Montero / Shogun 4×4 has weak points. The vehicle is heavy for its size, fuel economy can be poor, certain engines were problematic, and ground clearance is inadequate in stock form.
Parts and repairs can be expensive, and all that electronic gadgetry–while interesting and useful–can be very troublesome in older, well-used vehicles. When things go wrong, they really go wrong.
Fortunately, they don’t go wrong all that often, and since its inception back in 1982, the Mitsubishi Pajero / Montero / Shogun 4×4 has developed (and earned) a loyal following of 4×4 enthusiasts around the world.
Well equipped, well designed, and certainly capable of handling whatever the average 4×4 owner might throw its way, the Mitsubishi Pajero / Montero / Shogun 4×4 has proven itself a real-world 4×4. Just mind the gadgets.
