Pajero Sport driven!

[Wave]

OK, seen as I started this, I felt it best to continue...

Today I took the Mitsubishi Pajero Sport for a drive, like the Isuzu there are only 2 derivatives either 2x4 or 4x4 both powered by the same 2.4 DiD engine developing 133kw & 430 torques, power being fed to the wheels via an eight speed auto box.

Exterior:
This car excites me when I look at it, the front has sexy lines giving it a sporty look which continue round the sides to the rearm I like how the rear side window has an up-sweep to it, the rear tail lights, well, you either like them or you don't, when the Sport was launched I did not like the tail light clusters, but they have grown on me and now I do like them, the rear bumper is very short and if you fit a tow bar its a tad ugly as you can view the entire bar that runs left to right. The side steps seem higher off the ground than the Isuzu, but if you want to go off road you will have to remove them and fit sliders as they are just cosmetic jobs with no proper strength. Again this car comes standard with 18" mags also with road bias tyres, I'm not a huge fan of the "diamond cut" design of the wheels, but it probably needs 17" jobs to make it more capable off road. Overall the Pajero has very nice lines although its roof line is lower then the Isuzu.

Interior:
Like the MU-X the interior is a very nice place to be, the leather seats are more plush, hug you nicely and more comfortable, which will be a plus for those long trips. The dash layout is simple and very easy to navigate, also with a reverse camera standard, the leather shod steering wheel is just as nice to hold as the MU-X and features brushed silver paddle shifters, if you are driving and force a gear change the auto box immediately shifts to manual mode giving you full control without having to adjust the gear lever, whereas the MU-X has manual mode on the shift lever. The display, again, has digital fuel and temp read outs, as before, I prefer an old school needle. As with the MU-X the jump seats fold into the floor, and owing to this the floor is also raised about 10mm or so, not quiet as high as the Isuzu, but very similar, the middle row of seats has 2 USB ports so both kiddies can charge a device at the same time. 3rd row leg room seemed tighter than the Isuzu but only marginally. I found the release for the middle row seats (to gain 3rd row access) was much easier to operate than the Isuzu as I managed to do it myself first time whereas the salesman had to assist on the Isuzu as we got it stuck halfway. The 4wd selector has an extra setting over the Isuzu but selecting 4wd is exactly the same with a push down to get low range. The MU-X has an old school handbrake whereas the Sport has one of those electrical jobs, makes me nervous 10 years down the line when it possibly fails.

Drive:
The 8 speed auto box is a gem, its smooth and more responsive than the Isuzu, the drive is quiet and very enjoyable, although I found the smaller engine to be noisy when asked to perform at higher rpm's but quiet under normal driving conditions. The down change is far quicker than the Isuzu and the programming seems to be ready to get you going quickly in the correct gear, not once did it down shift twice, the engine is perfect in traffic and although noisy at high RPM it performs very well, I did feel that the Isuzu has more power but looking at the specs the Sport wins in both KW and NM's, so I'm guessing the Isuzu techies got the drive train to get the power to the wheels more efficiently. I found the ride more choppy than the Isuzu but not too much more, the salesman blamed tyre pressures, but we all know how reliable his info is, the fuel tank is bigger than the 65 litre Isuzu job at 72 litres so range will be better. The rear diff lock is standard so no extra outlay here, the warranty is also longest on the Sport being 3 yr 100 000kms -vs- the 2yr unlimited warranty (now checking the website the Isuzu salesman is wrong and it has a 5yr 120 000km - info like this can impact a sale, so the MU-X has the better warranty), both have a 5yr 90 000km service plans but the Sport has 10 000km intervals -vs- 15 000km on the MU-X. Personally I prefer the shorter service intervals, as clean oil always protects better.

Overall? Would I buy it? Over the Isuzu? Yes I would, pricing is also more favorable at about R10k cheaper and the diff lock is standard.
I will see if a mate will let me drive his Fortuner 2.8 GD-6 2x4 next week sometime and I will give feedback on that too

[Mad Manny]

The Pajero Lite has one major flaw - Mitsubishi South Africa...

[KurtG]

The Pajero Lite has one major flaw - Mitsubishi South Africa...

100%

[Mike Nel]

Wave.

I like your reviews.

So after the Fortuner you will have to test drive the Everest and report back

[Wave]

Will do [emoji6]

Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk

[KurtG]

Thanks Wave, always good to hear about first hand experience. great review

[Wave]

Some dealer feedback, the salesman gave me a few days before contacting me to see if i had received the quotation, for some reason I hadn't, he promptly re-emailed it to me. the final price for a new white Sport is R587 695 with delivery fee and tow bar included, that's a pretty decent price if you ask me.