Mitsubishi’s New Off-Roader Is Gearing Up to Take On Toyota’s Land Cruiser Head-On

Rumors about Mitsubishi reviving the Pajero are gaining momentum, according to Japan’s BestCar magazine. The outlet reports that the new next-gen four-by-four is on track for a renaissance after a five-year hiatus.

Over the past year, word on the street began hinting at the return of Mitsubishi’s iconic off-roader. With time, initial speculation seemed to hold some truth, especially after the Japanese automaker introduced its latest Triton pickup.

Should everything continue on as anticipated, it’ll be the first new Pajero in over two decades.

Just like the good ‘ol days

Mitsubishi

Original rumors suggested the new Pajero would essentially borrow its backbone from the Nissan Patrol (or Armada in America). That’s because Nissan and Mitsubishi have been in strategic partnership since 2016.

This partnership enabled the two to share platforms and other technologies. For instance, the latest Nissan Rogue shares its backbone and powertrains with the current Mitsubishi Outlander.

Mitsubishi

And more recently, Nissan also revealed the Rogue Plug-In Hybrid, which is unabashedly a rebadged Outlander PHEV.

But in the latest development, Mitsubishi will actually be utilizing the new Triton pickup’s platform. The Triton is still technically Nissan-based, sharing its roots with the latest Nissan Navarra pickup, or the global version of the North American Frontier.

Mitsubishi

That also means the new Pajero will hark back to its original roots as a direct competitor to the Toyota Land Cruiser. Previous speculation, along with the debut of the Elevance Concept, suggested the next-gen Pajero could take aim at the 4Runner.

Mitsubishi

However, since the regular Pajero’s worldly introduction in 1981, it’s always served as Mitsubishi’s answer to the full-size Land Cruiser. There also have been smaller versions of the Pajero called the Pajero Sport, which America received as the Montero Sport when they were still selling Stateside.

Completing the legendary Japanese 4×4 trifecta

Mitsubishi

With Toyota being the first to give its iconic Land Cruiser a major overhaul, followed by Nissan redesigning its Patrol/Armada, it was only a matter of time until Mitsubishi followed suit. These three automakers have always been the Japanese pinnacles in the rugged body-on-frame SUV world.

Mitsubishi

While the Land Cruiser has always been the go-to model and truck everyone expects to see moving under its own power in the furthest corners of the world, it’s equally as common to see Nissan’s and Mitsubishi’s competitors in the same setting.

Mitsubishi

All three have made names for themselves as purveyors of some of the most reliable, durable and rugged off-roaders in all the land.

With Mitsubishi bringing back its iconic off-roader, we can only hope they have America in mind to once again give us the Montero.

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