Cutting a new path

The new mitsubishi pajero breezes through some of the toughest off-road terrain ever seen, treating bumps and ridges with total indifference. It also combines elegance with safety and comfort.

You couldn't ask for an SUV that provides a higher level of comfort, safety features and luxury than the new Mitsubishi Pajero. Straight from the factory, the new owners will immediately feel it is part of the family: easy to drive, comfortable in all regards and very capable off-road.

First launched in 1982, and celebrated the world over as the undisputed car to beat at the gruelling Paris-Dakar rally, the fourth generation Pajero has continuously learned and improved, now emerging as the best Pajero built to date.

In a nutshell, I felt the 2007 Mitsubishi Pajero has reached a state of automotive acme, where the balance between competing needs is perfectly matched. In fact, not many vehicles are able to reach the compromise of a suspension optimised for both on- and off-road – they are either too hard on the bumps giving a neck-jarring ride or too soft on the curves with all passengers ending up squashed against one side of the car.

The Pajero reigns supreme in this regard. Perhaps it is the fruit of its experience on the rally scene (winning 12 times in the Paris-Dakar, the last 7 consecutively!) that helped the Minato-ku, Tokyo head office decide it was time to unleash an upgraded next-step vehicle. Or perhaps it met well with their objective of producing a ‘Global-standard All-round SUV' that is sold in 170 countries and converges experience and input from all corners of the globe to merge into a true all-rounder that will please all.

Whatever the motivation was, the new Pajero has already achieved much acclaim as a vehicle that combines the driving ease of a passenger car with credible 4WD ability. In fact, the new Pajero has already been awarded the prestigious 4x4 Australia magazine's ‘4x4 of the Year Award' for 2007!

And, believe me, those Aussies sure know what's important in an SUV! Hundreds of miles of corrugated tracks result in pieces falling off most cars. And some of the few that do stand up to such torturous conditions tend to be so harshly-built that the pieces fall off the driver! Interestingly enough, at the forefront of the new Pajero's launch is the claim that "the new Pajero has been transformed, based on everything learned from its winning, rally performances – not only about rising to the challenges of the world's toughest rally courses, but how to make off-road feel more like on-road".

I was able to take the new Pajero for an extensive test drive in the UAE, and I threw everything I could find at it! When the salesperson handed over the keys while mentioning the Paris-Dakar glory, I couldn't help but smile – now, I felt, I simply must give it everything I've got!

The exterior design is pleasing and it puts forward a solid, get-out-of-my-way look, but without appearing too rough or brutish. I especially liked the remodelled front, which I felt brought out an elegance worthy of exclusive night club valet parking.

Inside, again, the elegance of a sedan artfully co-exists with the higher stance and commanding seating position of an SUV. It is a very comfortable car, no doubt. From the driver to the rear-most passenger, the atmosphere is relaxing and the seating comfortable. Space is also excellent.

But let's go off-road – comfortable cars are nowadays a dime-a-dozen, let's take the Pajero where it was bred!

On rough tracks, the kind that make you worry about your dentures, the Pajero soaked up every bump, every ridge, every rock with nonchalance. Bring it on, it seemed to say. Driving slowly over that harsh terrain was a sublime experience. You could take your 90-year-old grandma on a washboard track leading to any camel farm in the country and she would be knitting in the back chatting away with her grandchildren.

But I was a tad exaggerating ... Paris-Dakar conditions are all fine to use as a marketing tool, but the production Pajero is not designed for competition off-roading. Nor does Mitsubishi claim so – they say lessons learned from their rally racing operations were employed to build a 7-seating family SUV – so fair is fair.

Great performance

On the sands the Pajero again performed superbly. The new Pajero uses an electronically-controlled Super Select 4WD-II driveline and the driver can select from four drive modes to match surface conditions and driving preferences: the 2WD mode and three 4WD modes (4H, 4HLc and 4LLc). So versatility is certainly built-in, and traction control, with both central and rear differential locks, was excellent and the sure power and torque of the engine was smooth and effectively delivered to the four wheels, and the sand dunes were conquered with ease. No sweat, no hesitation, no danger of having to get out and dig – just point and press.

As luck would have it, at the time of my test drive, recent rains had left a beautiful mud pit in the wadi behind my house, and I just couldn't resist! Mud is possibly the worst of off-road terrain, and even top-performing off-road machines can lose enough traction that they become sitting ducks.

I felt the Pajero's locking rear differential would give me the traction I needed to keep the wheels turning enough to clear the muddy patch, and so I decided to risk it. The last I wanted was to have to report on getting the brand-new Pajero stuck! But I decided it was worth a try, and a little washing afterwards wouldn't hurt anyways, so in I went.

Like magic, and again I stress – in complete comfort with the AC blasting and the 860-watt Rockford Acoustic Design Premium Sound System with a good 12 speakers pounding out my favourite off-road tunes – the Pajero took me across with very little fuss! Top marks, Mitsubishi!

On the highway we cruised to Fujairah in style. Smooth, unhurried, with panache. What a great car for the family! The sun roof is enormous, the side mirrors give a perfect wide view of the road beside and behind us, the cruise control purred us to destination and the 2-hour drive was over before we knew it. Extremely good cruising machine!

In traffic, acceleration is adequate, and the new Pajero gave us a very comforting feeling of safety. If any of the cars around us had decided to bump us, I doubt we would have even felt it. Mitsubishi in fact takes its safety seriously, and besides the RISE (Reinforced Impact Safety Evolution) one-piece rigid shell construction, the Pajero has dual-stage SRS airbags for driver and front passenger, side-impact and curtain airbags and other new passive safety measures which earn the new Pajero the equivalent of a 6-star JNCAP (Japanese New Car Assessment Programme) rating in in-house testing.

All in all, the new Pajero is set to bring even more fame to Mitsubishi, as well as pride of ownership and value to the lucky family which buys one.