Key Points
- Mitsubishi unveiled a rugged, seven-seat fifth-generation Pajero targeting the Toyota Land Cruiser segment.
- A U.S. return as the Montero remains undecided, potentially arriving around 2030 with Nissan-based electrified powertrains.
- Mitsubishi needs a competitive, rugged three-row SUV as American sales and Outlander demand decline.
A Pajero By Another Name
I loved the Mitsubishi Montero and Montero Sport, but those SUVs died two decades ago, vestiges of what made the brand grea, along with the Lancer Evolution. Mitsubishi just pulled the cover off the fifth-generation Pajero, and it looks every bit the serious off-roader the nameplate used to be: upright body, boxed fenders, vertical grille, flat hood, and a ladder frame that Mitsubishi says was significantly stiffened for the new generation.
There’s a lot to love here. Details of the upcoming Pajero include independent front suspension paired with a five-link solid rear axle, ground clearance of just over nine inches, and the seven-seat cabin with sliding second-row seats and twin 14.3-inch screens. Mitsubishi is aiming it at the internationally sold Toyota Land Cruiser (Lexus LX in America). Naturally, American enthusiasts want to know whether it comes back as the Montero, a name that vanished from U.S. showrooms after 2006. If it does come our way, it could give the brand the legit three-row SUV boost it desperately needs.
The Montero’s U.S. Future is Uncertain
Mitsubishi
There’s clearly room for another player in the rugged three-row SUV game, but Mitsubishi isn’t saying yes quite yet. They’re also not responding with a hard no. Super helpful, right? Well, the company’s North American arm stated in late August that “no decision has been made regarding a US introduction of this vehicle,” while noting the model’s return strengthens Mitsubishi globally. The Pajero is planned for roughly 100 countries worldwide, so why bring it here as the new Montero? It would be the brand’s first ladder-frame SUV in American in 20 years. Talk about a long time coming.
Mitsubishi
North America was conspicuously absent from Mitsubishi’s plans and that Thai production makes a U.S. version a tough sell in the form shown. No current Mitsubishi model sold in America is made at the Mitsubishi plant. It’s more plausible that the future Montero will be built on the next-generation Nissan Frontier’s bones, a decision that may not become clear until closer to 2030.
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Mitsubishi
That timeline lines up with what dealers reportedly heard. At a private product preview near Chicago last June, Mitsubishi walked U.S. retailers through the Pajero, new Outlanders, and a future midsize pickup, with the Montero penciled in for around 2030.
There’s also a powertrain problem. The global Pajero launches with a 2.4-liter turbodiesel four making 204 horsepower and 354 pound-feet through an eight-speed automatic — a combination that just wouldn’t work for American SUV buyers. Efficient, yes. Potent, no. A hybrid is reportedly in the pipeline, and there’s report that every new Mitsubishi launched in the U.S. will be electrified. An electrified three-row SUV to compete with gas or gas-electric hybrids in America might not fly, but none of this is anywhere in the ballpark of confirmed, so it’s almost moot.
Why The Brand Needs It
Mitsubishi
Mitsubishi’s U.S. business is shrinking badly. The company sold 94,754 vehicles here in 2025, down roughly 13 to 14 percent year over year and below the 100,000-unit mark. Sales of the brands biggest vehicle, the three-row Outlander, dropped by 34.7% in 2025 compared to the previous year. The tiny Mirage’s discontinuation gutted volume, with sales collapsing from 29,766 units to 14,577. The lineup is now three crossovers deep and lacks a competitive midsize three-row SUV. The Outlander’s third row is an afterthought with a ridiculous 18.7 inches of legroom. It’s for emergencies (or cargo) only.
That’s the strategic hole a Montero could fill nicely, and there’s no doubt that buyers would flock to it, especially with the more modern interior that’s only made it to the Outlander so far. The rugged body-on-frame segment is one of the few genuinely growing corners of the U.S. market, and it carries the transaction prices and margins Mitsubishi desperately needs after years of building cheap alternatives to better designed, better appointed, and bigger competitors.
The Montero name also means something to buyers old enough to remember Dakar-winning Pajeros, and Mitsubishi has nothing in America that even has a whiff of that tradition. Mitsubishi has no rally-inspired car like the Lancer Evo to compete with the Subaru WRX, nor does it have a single SUV that communicates ruggedness, and the Outlander Trail Edition (essentially, a trim package) won’t cut that path sufifciently.
Final Thoughts
If the Montero does return, expect it around 2030, electrified, and possibly riding on Nissan hardware rather than the Thai-built Pajero we’re looking at now. Whatever the case, it’s clear that Mitsubishi needs to inject some excitement into its current rather ho-hum lineup that does not include a genuinely rugged and roomy three-row SUV.
About the author
Amos Kwon
Contributing Writer, Autoblog