During the world premiere of the new Mitsubishi Pajero, you might have caught a glimpse of the diamond brand’s plans for a revitalised lineup. President and COO Keisuke Kishiura said the company will offer two more models sitting below the Triton-based regular Pajero, which replaces both the Pajero Sport and the full-fat Pajero that was discontinued in 2021.
Those models are a “compact SUV and a small SUV”, with silhouettes being shown on screen. The former appears to take the form of a kei car, marking the nameplate’s return to the city car segment since the Pajero Mini.
This would enable Mitsubishi to field a rival to the Suzuki Jimny (as an aside, the one that we get, sporting fender flares, larger bumpers and a 1.5 litre naturally-aspirated four-cylinder engine in place of a 658 cc turbo triple, is badged the Jimny Sierra in Japan). However, it’s unlikely that the Pajero-badged model will be built on a similarly rugged ladder-frame chassis, instead likely sharing its unibody underpinnings with the existing eK.
Of perhaps more importance is the “small SUV” that is expected to hold much more global appeal – a less massive, less expensive version of the new Pajero. This could take one of two forms, with the first being a shrunken-down ladder-frame model in the vein of the global Jimny and the new Toyota Land Cruiser FJ.
This would retain a prodigious amount of off-road capability, meaning that the Pajero moniker loses none of its credibility. A body-on-frame model could also be twinned with the forthcoming Nissan Xterra, meaning that it may be offered in the US as the Montero. However, such a car would limit its appeal to outdoorsy types, and with fuel prices being as volatile as they are these days, efficiency is a massive consideration for mainstream buyers.
As such, we could see the smaller Pajero move back to a unibody construction, perhaps utilising the Outlander and Nissan X-Trail‘s Common Modular Family (CMF) platform. This would put the car in the bustling C-segment, which includes not just traditional Japanese rivals like the Honda CR-V but also the horde of Chinese competition that Mitsubishi has ceded plenty of market share to over the past few years.
Again, Mitsubishi has had previous experience, offering the Pajero iO from 1998 to 2007. This Pininfarina-designed unibody soft-roader had full-sized Pajero looks but used the Lancer’s petrol engines. It was even offered in Malaysia at one point, replacing its larger sibling.
A new version would thus enable Mitsubishi to capitalise on the resurgence of the ruggedly-styled SUV. Chinese examples like the electric iCaur V23 and especially the very popular Jetour T2 ape the designs of legacy 4x4s while offering consumers the comfort and efficiency of a unibody vehicle. With the Pajero’s brand equity still strong, the company could steal sales from those cars and transform its fortunes.
Over to you now. Which form would you like the small Pajero to take – a tough, go-anywhere compact 4×4 or a passenger car-based model with all the looks but with a greater focus on on-road driving? Let us know in the comments below.
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Can this pajero float in water like China suv?
Would be nice if the compact version is a rear wheel drive based 4×4 like the Pajero iO instead of just a front wheel drive economy car that’s made to look tough.
Ev version?
This is beautiful design inside out. Even though China EV/PHEV got better offering in terms of fun for this kind of vehicle, sometimes diesel engine would provide better range and confident for this kind of vehicle. 3.0 diesel turbo would be nice for this car. On and off road.
Let’s wait for their pricing first before we can give a comment.
Hopefully full NA. If I’m an offroad guy, I won’t bet anything on EV capability for offroad.