Test drive Mitsubishi Pajero (Montero, Shogun) LWB 2000 - 2003 SUV

The taste of dreams

Even from the current variety of classes and subclasses, some particularly picky buyers sometimes cannot choose a car that would fully comply with their needs. But this is especially strongly concerned about our motorists, because in addition to purely functional capabilities, a good car, in our understanding, should also be damn reliable, hardy and non -suffering. But at the same time, in terms of its running qualities, he should not differ much from the usual sedan, because Russians, and Belarusians, as you know, are very fond of fast riding.
 
For some time, various kinds of SUVs became a panacea from all troubles on our land, especially those that are more powerful. True, not everyone could afford them, but even quite wealthy people sometimes deliberately abandoned an all -wheel drive armored car, because not everyone would like their heavy gear. For this occasion, motorists did not fail to divide into two camps-someone does not like jeeps, someone, on the contrary, suffers cars only because all off-road cars seem to him too truck, rude and uncouth, although even they often have to regret it, that they are not driving a powerful SUV. But now these debaters will have to practice for a while, because all their arguments lose their strength to the latest leader of the off -road genre - Mitsubishi Pajero of the latter to date, the third generation. A formidable in appearance Samurai incredibly combines a variety of qualities: fast on the highway, indestructible on off -road, but remains very convenient in everyday use. But how he succeeds and how, you will learn from this material.
 
Attentive readers will probably be surprised to see this Mitsubishi Pajero under the heading test AG. We already talked about this model in one of the August numbers, but only we went to the top version with GDI gasoline engine, and now we represent the DI-D modification, which is equipped with a 175-horsepower turbodiesel with a direct injection system. It is only a pity that our first acquaintance took place in several constrained conditions: the car was provided by one of the gray dealers, and therefore the duration of the trip and the conditions for familiarizing themselves with it were slightly different from the usual tests, which we subject the tested cars. In general, it is not surprising that by car with pumped tires (so that the profile does not rub) and we could not fully evaluate all the advantages of the new model. But now, having evaluated both versions and traveling on most Japanese, European and even American models, I can tell you exactly that Mitsubishi Pajero is the best, even The Best. True, it does not reach the BMW X5 level, but given that Bimmer is just a big parking member, in its class Mitsubishi Pajero can be considered an unconditional leader, at least for now. So far, because the emergence of the successor to Toyota Land Cruiser Prado is no longer along the mountains, and the rest of the firms, too,, as they say, do not hustle on the halt. However, there is nothing special to fear the creators of Mitsubishi Pajero, because it is unlikely that anyone else risks creating such a high-tech and avant-garde in design an off-road car, and even more so to launch it into production. After all, if outwardly the new Pajero looks in full accordance with the image of a real, cool SUV, then in its design it is more like a futuristic concept car than a serial car. Judge for yourself: the frames, in the usual sense of the word, do not have Pajero, but the entire structure is based on a powerful spatial farm, like that used in supercars, therefore, with a minimum increase in the equipped mass, the body has rigidity comparable to that in ordinary frame SUVs . But then the listing of such bells and whistles begins that are not available to the absolute majority of the now produced SUVs, and the SUVs, perhaps, are also an automatic five-step (!) Gearbox with the possibility of forced switching, independent suspensions of all wheels, disk brakes, again at all wheels. You have not forgotten what we are talking about an off -road car?
 
If you look at Mitsubishi Pajero on the side, then an old Russian proverb immediately comes to mind: okay it is cut, firmly sewn. According to off -road canons, it was built almost perfectly: there is practically no front overhang, an optimally short wheelbase, and only the luggage compartment is slightly protruding, significantly reducing the parameters of geometric patency. However, the designers probably provided for the possibility that the rear overhang on a steep rise can catch on the irregularities of the road, so the spare wheel is carried out on the rear door, and the gas tank is located far from the dangerous zone. In case of emergency, you can, of course, simply stretch out an iron beam that protrudes from under the rear bumper. In principle, the same can be done with any obstacle - the front is also worth the powerful steel protection, which will take on all the blows previously intended for the crankcase of the engine pallet. And even in the case of a petty accident, you can once again admire the genius of design thought: the front bumper is made of several parts, so that you do not have to spend four -digit amounts on its restoration.
 
Pajero, generally speaking, has many small new details, of which, as in a mosaic, and the appearance of the car is formed. The front size located in the ledge of the front bumper smoothly flows from the plastic exterator of the wheel arch directly into the front wing, which has no more or less even plane. There are few of them in the new Pajero, which is why one of those present on the test called the car the body of the bodyman. But what is gratifying - all this is collected with quality, which is very difficult to achieve on such a complex and high -tech product as a car. Remembering the quality of the assembly, a new field struck me (and there a hand got into the gap between the hood and the grill), I specifically checked how Pajero was doing this. So it’s not that the hand, the little finger will not fit anywhere - all the gaps, including between the doors, are measured in millimeters, and even household equipment can be envied.
 
If, by the perfection of the chassis and rejuvenation of controllability with Mitsubishi Pajero, several models, even solarmates, then the transmission of this car, in my opinion, is the most perfect mechanism of those that are offered in this, and in neighboring classes too. Before buying any SUV, a car enthusiast is always faced with a choice: with what type of drive to choose a car? A constant all -wheel drive, of course, is better, but on dry asphalt and on a flat road, its advantages will be expressed only in the form of an exorbitant appetite of your SUV. You can take a model where the front bridge is connected only if necessary, to overcome, for example, difficult or very slippery sections, but, as a rule, on such cars you can not drive in all -wheel drive constantly, because this threatens with a very strong wear of some transmission nodes and Even tires.
 
In the case of the new Mitsubishi Pajero, this problem of choice automatically disappears, since the future driver of this car is just not necessary to choose. The fact is that, depending on the need for Pajero, it can be a rear -wheel drive, and all -wheel drive, and even with a locking of an intended differential. To make it clear to you, I will explain everything by the example of the modes of work of the hand -made box. So, the first mode is 2n. As you can understand from the name, if the lever of the handout is in this position, then the rear wheels are leading, and the front bridge is completely disconnected. It is completely, because the front wheel drive is turned off, starting from the hand and ending with the hubs of the front wheels. All its details are in motionless state, and the engine energy is not spent on their useless rotation, which is why the car wins in dynamics, and fuel consumption is reduced to more acceptable values. But if suddenly the situation has changed and you already need all -wheel drive for movement, then in one movement, transferring the lever to position 4n, you turn the rear -wheel drive Pajero into a car with a drive of all four wheels. Moreover, all these transformations can be made directly on the go, at speeds up to 100 km/h. You do not need to stop, as in other jeeps, turn on a neutral, drive back or do something else like that. But not only that, you can drive in this mode of operation of the transmission arbitrarily long, at least the entire service life of the car. True, most owners of such Pajero do not need this: as a rule, they will include this mode only in the off -season, from November to March, thus significantly increasing the stability of the car on slippery coatings.
 
In the principle of two of the above -mentioned transmission modes, it would be enough for the full operation of the car, but, as experience shows, the presence of certain reserves and large clearance sometimes provoke large owners of large and not very SUVs to some nonsense, which they then have to grin bitterly. They pull the people to adventures, well, at least you crack. But only in the case of Mitsubishi Pajero they will have a small surprise. In addition to excellent asphalt habits, this car also provides very decent indicators even on very serious off -road. Suppose, unfolding somewhere on a snowy forest road, you did not notice the boundaries of a more or less solid coating and sank into a deep hole sprinkled with snow. In most cases, such a trip could have only one perspective - to close the car and go in search of a tractor or a powerful all -wheel drive truck. But Mitsubishi Pajero can prove that it is not for nothing that he eats his bread, that is, diesel fuel.
 
Turn the handout lever to the 4HLC position, and the entire engine power begins to evenly be distributed between the front and rear axles, allowing you to more fully use the adhesive properties of the tires. The center differential is now blocked, and only diagonal hanging can stop the car when one of the wheels on each axis loses its adhesion to the road. You must easily leave the pit in this mode, but if it doesn’t work out in this mode, then it’s too early to despair, because you have another mode in stock - 4 LLC, the most off -road. It is specially highlighted in red, because it is possible to move the lender lever to this position only when the car stands still. Why? Because this action implies the inclusion of a lowering series of gears, blocking the center differential, as well as blocking the rear differential, but you can do this only if you have previously paid for the installation, because it is proposed only as an option. Apparently, marketers of the company logically assumed that 95% of future owners of the new Mitsubishi Pajero do not need such a feldular at all, but at the same time, the rest of the five percent simply cannot live without such blocking, therefore it was taken to the category of ordered equipment.
 
But all this, of course, is pure theory. It is poorly believed that the owner of a prestigious SUV, the cost of which is comparable to the price of a three or four-room apartment in a good area, will drive his all-terrain vehicle on some kind of slurry or arrange a certain semblance of rally-raid. We had an SUV, and, of course, will be primarily a prestigious and convenient vehicle, most often used for everyday trips on business. Therefore, it is precisely the fitness of the SUV to the asphalt life. It was here that Mitsubishi Pajero comes to the fore: independent pendants provide a very high level of comfort, and the car is controlled very easily.
 
Not limousine, of course, but other similar models in comparison with Pajero look and are felt simply by village tractors. True, minor road defects are transmitted to the body very clearly, but pits and potholes are simply ignored. As for the curbs, so you can say that climbing them is a favorite lesson in Pajero. I had to call five or even seven times at various heights of the obstacles of this kind, and, I must say, they all could not even stop the car for a fraction of a second, I didn’t even have to bastard.
 
In fact, the suspension is harsh, but I would call it simply very elastic, and optimally elastic. A couple of times we drove through a rather deep pits at high speed, and the suspension never showed even a hint of breakdown, but we have to pay a slightly lower smoothness of the course for such reliability. Although, if you are a great comfort fan, you can experiment with tires - depending on the brand and model, their running qualities can vary very much, so that in dependence, you can achieve excellent controllability, or high smoothness, or good passage.
 
Trips to the new Mitsubishi Pajero give rise to not quite funny thoughts. Thoughts about where to earn an amount sufficient to buy such a car, because it does not leave anyone indifferent even when just stands. The sun is reflected on its polished sides, shimmering and gleaming on each of the many bends. Looking at all this perfection, only one question arises: what will be the following, fourth generation of Mitsubishi Pajero? How will the creators of all admirers of SUVs once again surprise? We will be able to find out the answer to this question in eight to nine years, but for now, some of us can enjoy the driving of this miracle, each time admiring the exact work of such a perfect mechanism.
 
Pavel Kozlovsky
 

Source: "Avtogazeta"