Mitsubishi Pajero Sport 2016 review

Even immediately, after the appearance of the latest generation of the model, the car struck with its serious, far from artificial, outlines of a real SUV. At the same time, there is no excessive aggression in it, which designers sometimes try to squeeze out of almost every detail - the car has an absolutely calm, balanced design, and the rounded front lines only add to its friendliness.

2016 Mitsubishi Pajero Sport

Outwardly, Mitsubishi Pajero Sport makes a very "important" impression! This despite the fact that Pajero Sport tried to cultivate as much as possible: chrome footrests, rear-view mirrors, door handles, fog lights and a laconic branded radiator grill. At the rear, the same chrome trim strip on the boot lid and aggressive design of the lights add to the luxury. But this is all just some kind of "bracelets", "rings" and the same kind of jewelry on the hand of a rude village guy.

With all its appearance, Pajero Sport shows that it was preening only in order to please a potential buyer, but its essence is different: confident overcoming of difficult obstacles on its way. This, in particular, is hinted at by special protective "jeep" inserts in the front and rear bumpers. Some disadvantages, perhaps, should be called the attachment of the spare wheel under the trunk, and not, say, on the tailgate, as it was previously in real SUVs.

Although in fairness it should be noted that on the previous generation there was no spare wheel on the door either, it is all the more likely that the fastening nut is located on the trunk floor and will not turn sour at the right time. Whoever is attracted to authenticity, then the Pajero Wagon model is at his service: there, behind the rear window, in a pretty case, made stylistically at the same time as the body, hangs a “racially Orthodox” spare tire.

As befits a real SUV, the bumpers have a wide, unpainted plastic part. Unprotected sidewalls are offset by sturdy footrests.

Harsh comfort

Landing in the Pajero Sport is for an amateur, you need to be in good enough shape to comfortably climb into a tall car. There is a danger of hitting your head on the low roof and covering your trouser leg on the threshold. True, on the second day of driving, I was able to crawl into the car quite neatly, using, as it turned out in the end, a comfortable and wide footrest. And these inconveniences are not surprising, because it is the convenience of a car that lies in the ability to overcome open spaces that are inaccessible to an ordinary passenger car, and these are just small accompanying disadvantages.

All the controls necessary while driving are located in their places and at arm's length, so there is always convenient access to all switches.

The space above the head is not too large - both on the first and second row. However, I did not prop up the ceiling with my head, my friend was unlucky with his height of under 1,90 meters.

At the same time, this is the only drawback of the hatch, because I am sure that in the summer it is nice to let some sunlight into the cabin. Even in winter, simply by opening the curtain of the passenger compartment, it seems to become lighter and visually larger. This is especially true for the tested modification, where the interior is trimmed with black leather, and the light panels are located just below the waistline. Considering the latter, you have to carefully get in and out of the car so as not to stain the beige plastic.

There is enough space for the legs, you do not have to bend them under yourself. The seats are not very soft and you can't call them comfortable, but you can't put them “minus” either. The landing is such that it does not allow you to relax too much, as if the car makes you always be on the alert to react to surprises during the trip.

The driver's and passenger's are equipped with electric drives that have a wide range of adjustments, however, with the doors closed, it is a little inconvenient to get there by hand, especially if you are wearing winter clothes. The palm, however, crawls through.

The gearshift paddles are clearly visible while driving. The box between the seats with an armrest is wide, although I would place it a little higher.

Center panel ergonomics

On the front panel, everything is in front of your eyes, and you don't have to stretch your hand anywhere. An undoubted advantage is the presence of a "climate" in all versions of the car, as well as a multifunctional steering wheel decorated with leather (the hand-off levers and gearbox are also sheathed), which also has paddle shifters for the automatic switch in manual mode.

Later I found out that they are not necessary, because even in automatic mode, the engine runs quite comfortably. By the way, on the same steering wheel there are also buttons for controlling the audio system and cruise control. The dashboard is laconic and has a sporty style, especially at night, when the outside lights are turned on, it gets a red background. It could even be confused with the Lancer, if not for the high seating position.

It is convenient to inform about the type of drive that is used: on the field of the third "well" with indicators of the fuel level and engine temperature there is a diagram of the machine. Depending on the mode, the rear or both axles light up, respectively, and in the case of hard blocking, the differential lock pictograms are highlighted.

In the center of the dashboard rises a hill of the onboard system, which shows the average fuel consumption, a graph of recent expenditures, a compass and a clock of course. For thrifty drivers, this will be convenient, since the consumption figures are large and it is easy to control how carefully you drive.

Above the screen of the multimedia system, an on-board computer block rises, which combines a wide range of traffic information.

Audio system in Pajero Sport

The audio system supports both modes of playing music from CD, and from USB (its input is located at the top in the glove compartment) and AUX (inputs are located at the bottom of the compartment inside the center armrest). Unfortunately, the control screen of the touch-screen system is not modern enough: it is resistive and you distract a little more from the road, trying to press one or another button, which could have been avoided using a capacitive screen. Also, our second test pilot claims that the sound in the speakers is not good enough, however, I did not notice any imperfections in the sound, and this is a nit-picking of a person who actually has a home recording studio.

Above the heads of the driver and front passenger is a lighting unit, a windscreen and a speaker for an on-board voice feedback system.

Interior equipment Mitsubishi Pajero Sport

A big plus in the interior is the presence of heated front seats, which has two modes: moderate and strong. Not only the pillow warms up, but also the back, and at the second level, “heating” also happens very quickly, although I initially turned on only the first one during the trip and that was enough, because otherwise you have to climb far beyond the gearshift lever and find the buttons of which not visible: they are hidden deep in a niche under the center console and manipulates them intuitively. Below them is a kind of "business card" - a small compartment where you can really dump thin little things, like the same business cards or small things.

In addition, there are two cupholders, although they are right under the elbow and can be a little inconvenient to use. In front of them is another box for even smaller objects. Another plus is that one convenient niche is made under the "climate" unit, above the seat heating buttons.

“Business card holder” and seat heating control unit.

The climate control knobs are comfortable and easy to operate, and the interior warms up quickly, therefore, there is a solid five for the microclimate in the passenger compartment.

The glove compartment is convenient. There is a switch for deactivating the passenger airbag and a USB stick connection cord.

Given the height of the passengers and the large glass area, the view from the driver's seat is very good. It is somewhat more difficult to control the front clearance, but all this is at the same Mitsubishi Pajero Sport height. If a pedestrian crosses the road right in front of the car, then he is very hidden under the hood, and the child may not be seen at all. But this is also a matter of habit - in just a few days, without much difficulty, I controlled the dimensions of the car around the entire perimeter and squeezed in rather narrow places between parked expensive foreign cars, not at all afraid to scratch or hurt them, the more the situation is greatly facilitated by huge rear-view mirrors, in which you see both the birds in the sky and the wheels of cars driving nearby.

The spacious box between the seats also houses an additional socket and an AUX input.

Even three passengers can be accommodated in the back row with relative comfort, largely due to the absence of a high central tunnel. Interestingly, by adjusting the front passenger seat, you can both narrow the legroom of the rear passenger as much as possible, and give him the opportunity to cross his legs. The latter also has a comfortable armrest with two retractable cup holders. The only pity is that the rear part is not equipped with airflow deflectors, although, as I said, despite the large size, the interior quickly warms up.

The back row is spacious and the armrest contains two cup holders.

The luggage compartment deserves a separate conversation and flattering words. For example, getting out from time to time on Sunday trips to the store, in a family sedan, part of the purchases was kept in the hands of all passengers. Everything fit in the Mitsubishi Pajero Sport, they also closed it with a curtain on top. If you still have to fold the back row, you won’t have to make significant efforts: at the corners of the backrests there are comfortable handles that are easy to use, both from the passenger compartment and from the outside. You just pull forward a little and the almost weightless back falls forward. Decompose just as easily - with one hand.

The giant trunk holds everything even for a very large family. In principle, you can even keep rubber here for the next season.

Finally, one should praise the layout of materials in the cabin, where plastic that imitates aluminum is organically combined with carbon fiber. It turns out stylish and really quite sporty.

Subjective impressions of the management process

Admittedly, it is difficult to expect extreme silence from a car. The 2,5-liter turbocharged engine does not let you forget for a single moment that there really is a diesel engine under the hood. Although at idle, the extra sounds from the motor do not bother.

It must be borne in mind right away that this car is trying in every possible way to show: it is not suitable for aggressive and harsh driving. True, if the gas pedal is pressed to the floor, the car rushes forward, and the friend noticed that he was really pressed into the seat during acceleration. But the reactions are actually quite smooth, the turbo lag is clearly felt, which lasts 2-3 seconds.

Nevertheless, one thing is clear - the driver will not lag behind in the traffic flow, although he will not arrive first until the next traffic light. The machine is not conducive to active movement, while significant delays in gear shifting were not observed. Having been driving a car for quite some time, I suddenly realized that I did not feel the moment of shifting at all. And this is without any high-tech double clutches (I had the experience of driving a Volkswagen DSG and I can say with confidence that the difference is not noticeable, the Pajero is even better).

By the way, perhaps I did not manage to understand the purpose of the manual mode in the automatic transmission, because the car goes well in automatic mode, and at the moment when you need to push the lever or press the petal while driving, you do not feel anything. Fuel consumption is somewhat embarrassing against the background of recent prices (even for diesel fuel), but with careful driving, it is quite possible to achieve 2.5 liters on the Pajero Sport 9,8L. / 100 km. in the city, that is, the factory figures are quite true.

If necessary, the car allows you to turn off the stabilization system and get cleaner reactions of the car.

Against this background, the brake pedal made a good impression. Considering everything, it can be argued that this is a real man's car - it is very tight. The reaction to pressing it is unequivocal and indisputable: the brakes almost immediately grab the car in their strong vise.

Steering

The steering wheel continues to prove the general mood of the car - you enter a 90-degree turn by intercepting the steering wheel with your hands several times. On a straight road, taxiing, you also do not understand well enough at what degree the car will turn. On the other hand, off-road, this can be a positive thing, as it will allow you to more clearly guide a heavy machine on steep slopes and significant irregularities.

You get the most pleasure when driving on uneven asphalt, be it pits or hills. Wide wheels with a high profile allow you not to strain too much maneuvering between potholes, the wheels literally fly over them, it seems that the car is crushing all the hills under itself.

Mitsubishi Pajero Sport on bumps and off-road

The same goes for the eyebrows. The car almost completely "swallows" the moment when it jumps on them, this can be understood only with a slight wiggle of the body. But at the same time, it should also be remembered that, having encountered a significant unevenness at speed, the car will rather harshly transmit the blow to the passengers. You won't get excessive intelligence from him. This is just a strict and aggressive man who tried on a business suit.

Not without going off-road. He was very revealing and made it clear that four-wheel drive is here for really difficult situations, when the car seemed to be completely bogged down. When we drove onto the snow and prudently turned on four-wheel drive, Pajero Sport coped with it so easily that we decided to risk it and turn off the front axle, leaving only the rear. And ... nothing has changed. The SUV drove forward just as confidently, not showing at all that it was still "disabled" on one of the axles.

Conclusions

Regarding the Mitsubishi Pajero Sport 2016, one thing is certain: if you are a calm, sedate and balanced driver, then you will get great pleasure from the complaisant equanimity with which this car will overcome the expanses of roads - both equal and off-road. A person who loves active driving will not be disappointed either, because 178 hp. With. turbodiesel is enough for active acceleration within the speed limits, besides, you should remember about the high body of the car.

Test drive Mitsubishi Pajero Sport 2016 video