Revamp for workhorse of Mitsubishi stable

My family is never happy when I arrive home on a Monday evening with a two-door car, so you can imagine the looks I got last week when I arrived home with a two-seater that was not even a sporty looking racer, but a Mitsubishi Pajero Commercial 4x4.

The Pajero has been a familiar sight on Irish roads and farms for over 25 years, and, over that time, Mitsubishi has sold over 10,000 units here. This new version looks good thanks to a revamp, starting with those very attractive headlamps. No doubt about it, the Pajero is the trusted workhorse for farmers and small builders, if there are any of the latter category left in the country at this stage.

Gavin Flood, marketing manager of Mitsubishi told me that commercial versions make up 92% of Pajero sales in Ireland. That’s unsurprising, as the cargo space is massive. It would be ideal for moving house, and indeed Gavin joked that it could almost accommodate a small car. The huge cargo area is accessed by a door that opens out at the rear.

It’s unlikely that you will be using the Pajero for a Sunday afternoon drive, unless it’s to head halfway up a mountain to check on the health of your livestock. On the other hand, if you need to pull a trailer or anything heavy, the Pajero is the very thing. The 3.2 litre diesel engine provides 200 brake horse power, which should be powerful enough for any task. And if you don’t want the neighbours to know what you are up to—which can be difficult in Ireland—the back windows are blacked out.

I regularly clean out my shed and didn’t have any junk left to fill up the cargo area of the 4x4 last week, but I discovered that out on the open road, the Pajero is reasonably comfortable. It offers an easy transition between four-wheel to two-wheel drive. The extremely high driving position and allows a clear view of what is happening in traffic ahead of you. It’s almost like your own version of AA Roadwatch.

The Pajero is a high motor, and you would not want to be troubled with arthritis for the climb into the cabin. Therefore, you will appreciate the assistance offered by the grips on the door.

Notwithstanding the advantages of the high driving position, you still need to keep your wits about you when you’re out on the road. The Pajero is such a massive 4x4 that you could easily do damage while reversing. Also, the vehicle’s Dunlop Grandtrex tyres are massive and I wouldn’t like to have to mend a puncture on a dark night.

The only slightly annoying thing for me about the interior of Pajero is the controls for the radio. As a big fan of in-car radios, I would describe the controls as a bit fiddly. I would have preferred a regular knob for the volume and tuning the radio, rather than a ‘plus and minus’ selector.

Prices for the Pajero start at €32,262, excluding VAT but inclusive of VRT of €200, for the commercial version. If you are among the 8% buying a Pajero as a passenger vehicle, expect to pay around €63,000 for the pleasure.