- Diesel-powered 4WD to be bigger than Land Cruiser, cheaper than a Patrol.
- New Pajero unlikely to be based on the upcoming Y63 Nissan Patrol.
- Mitsubishi Australia is keen to get it, while NZ is a possibility.
Mitsubishi will have a large 4WD in Australia next year, with the Pajero promising to be bigger than a Toyota Land Cruiser 300 Series, and cheaper than a Nissan Patrol, according to reports out of Japan.
The 2026 Mitsubishi Pajero has begun to take shape in digital renderings, including in the new image from designer Theottle that leads this story, with most using the Y63 Nissan Patrol as a starting point.
Reports suggest the new Pajero is unlikely to borrow from the Y63 Patrol – with Nissan on the record as keen to keep what it considers its flagship model to itself – with Mitsubishi to reportedly use the Triton platform as the SUV's starting point instead.
And according to the auto sleuths at Japan's Best Car, the model will put the 'large' in large SUV, measuring 5100mm in length, 1930mm in width and 1815mm in height.
For perspective, the 2025 Land Cruiser GR Sport is 4995mm in length, 1990mm in width and 1955mm in height, making the new Pajero longer, but slightly shorter and narrower than the LC300.
According to Best Car, Mitsubishi would target a starting price in its domestic market of around 6.5m Yen, or NZ$74,000, for the Pajero. While international pricing is never a guarantee of local RRPs, a similar pricing strategy would see it significantly undercut the cheapest LC300 (NZ$139,990) and Y62 Nissan Patrol (NZ$109,290).
What is assured is the model's eventual arrival in Australia, with the brand's local CEO Shaun Westcott having previously told CarsGuide that Mitsubishi Australia is campaigning for the Pajero.
"I have put up my hand and said we would love to have one because it's a very valuable nameplate, because it is a fantastic product, because it's a halo product," Westcott told CarsGuide.
"For all of the above reasons, we would love to have one here.
“I cannot tell you what it is, what it looks like, what the powertrain is, whether there’s a ladder frame, whether there’s monocoque. I cannot give you any of that information other than to say that Mitsubishi has announced that we are working on a large SUV."
Reports increasingly point to the new model now sharing the Triton's diesel powertrain – a twin-turbo-diesel 2.4-litre that produces 150kW and 470Nm. But reports suggest the new model will be future-proofed, with a mid-term plan to fit Mitsubishi's next-generation petrol plug-in hybrid technology.
If the latest news is accurate, all will be revealed soon, with the Pajero set for a reported global launch in the second half of 2026.