Mitsubishi is reviving the Pajero, a famed off-road adventure platform that it retired in 2019, returning to a body-on-frame chassis after roughly two decades of monocoque construction on the nameplate, the automaker said in an August 4 announcement. While it's unclear if the Pajero will be available in the US, it's North American twin, the Montero, is reportely coming back to North America in 2030.
The new Pajero frame is shared with the Triton, Mitsubishi's global mid-size pickup not sold in the US, and pairs with a suspension system the company said is "engineered to deliver high road-holding performance" while cutting body movement and vibration on rough or uneven roads. The SUV also carries Mitsubishi's Super All-Wheel Control system, described in the same release as an integrated system that manages handling, off-road traction, and stability across varied terrain. On related Triton trims, S-AWC spans four drivetrain modes, from rear-wheel drive up through a locked center differential and low range, with seven selectable terrain settings that include gravel, mud, sand, and rock.
Mitsubishi introduced S-AWC, under that name, on the 2007 Lancer Evolution X and has since carried it into the Outlander and Eclipse Cross, so folding it into the Pajero ties the revival to that broader all-wheel-drive pedigree as much as to its off-road reputation.
Mitsubishi confirmed the Pajero name and an autumn 2026 world premiere back in May. Several outlets, including Carscoops, now report a Sept. 2 date for that reveal, sourced to the company's teaser campaign; Mitsubishi's own materials say only "autumn."
A monocoque SUV can still be capable off pavement, but a separate ladder frame keeps the body isolated from chassis flex under heavy articulation, and a genuine low-range transfer case multiplies torque at the wheels in a way an electronically managed all-wheel-drive system can't replicate. That's the difference buyers cross-shopping the Toyota Land Cruiser 300 Series or Nissan Patrol are actually weighing, and it's ground the Pajero gave up the moment it went monocoque.
The second-generation Pajero one the production-based class at the 1994 Dakar Rally. Photo courtesy: Mitsubishi
The original Pajero launched in 1982 on a traditional body-on-frame chassis and built its reputation on it in the Dakar Rally, where Mitsubishi's factory team won the event 12 times across 25 years of entries, including seven wins in a row from 2001 to 2007, according to Mitsubishi Canada's own account of the program. Jutta Kleinschmidt won in a Pajero Evolution in 2001, the only woman ever to win Dakar outright; Hiroshi Masuoka followed with back-to-back wins in 2002 and 2003; Stephan Peterhansel took three of the next four, split by Luc Alphand's win in 2006. Mitsubishi pulled its factory team after the 2007 race as the global financial crisis hit, ending the run. Across four road-going generations sold in over 170 countries, the nameplate totaled more than 3.25 million sales, Mitsubishi said in its May announcement of the Pajero's return.
The third generation, in 1999, moved the Pajero to a unibody platform with an integrated reinforcing frame, trading some of the old chassis's off-road-specific rigidity for on-road refinement and crash structure, CarsGuide reported in its account of the platform's history. The fourth generation, sold until Mitsubishi discontinued the Pajero in 2021, kept that same architecture.
Reversing that decision puts the new Pajero back on the original formula, and sets it apart from the Pajero Sport (sold in some markets as the Montero Sport), a smaller SUV already on sale and due for its own renewal; the two share a Triton-based approach to platform engineering but aren't the same model. The new Pajero's dashboard carries a callback to the nameplate's history: a digital "Multi Meter" display showing altitude, compass heading, ambient temperature, and the vehicle's pitch, roll, and left-right torque split in real time, a feature Mitsubishi said pays homage to an instrument from earlier Pajero generations.
The new Pajero is expected to carry over the Triton's 2.4-liter twin-turbo four-cylinder diesel, good for roughly 150kW and 470Nm in that application, though Mitsubishi hasn't published a Pajero-specific spec sheet, and a hybrid variant mentioned in earlier reports is still unverified.
Mitsubishi has set the Pajero's world premiere for this autumn, with outlets reporting a Sept. 2 date. A North American return, badged Montero as in past generations, isn't expected before 2030.
How we reported this
This article draws on the following sources, accessed August 2026:
- Mitsubishi Motors, official newsroom, May 29, 2026: Pajero name and autumn 2026 premiere confirmed. Press release confirming the nameplate's return and the model's sales/racing history.
- Mitsubishi Motors, official newsroom, June 29, 2026: Multi Meter display and off-road performance announcement. Press release detailing the digital instrument cluster.
- Mitsubishi Motors, official newsroom, August 4, 2026: Ladder frame, suspension, and S-AWC announcement. Press release confirming the chassis and drivetrain technology.
- Mitsubishi Motors Canada: Mitsubishi's Pajero Dominance in the Dakar Rally. Official brand account of the factory Dakar program's 12 wins and driver history.
- Mitsubishi Motors: S-AWC history feature. Official account of the S-AWC system's origin on the Lancer Evolution X and its spread through the lineup.
- Carscoops: Mitsubishi's New Pajero Brings The Triton Pickup's Tricks To The Land Cruiser Fight. Reporting on the Sept. 2 reveal date and S-AWC drive-mode specifics.
- CarsGuide: Crucial Mitsubishi Pajero off-road detail finally revealed. Reporting on the Pajero's platform history and likely powertrain carryover from the Triton.
- Motor1: Mitsubishi Goes Under The New Pajero To Show Its Truck Roots. Corroborating report on the North American Montero timeline.
- Motor Authority: 2026 Mitsubishi Pajero Sport body-on-frame SUV spied. Source for the Pajero Sport/Montero Sport disambiguation.