If you’ve been wishing for the glory days of Mitsubishi’s Ralliart to make a comeback, then prepare to be disappointed
by Isaac Atienza, onAs part of their updated "Small but Beautiful" midterm plan, Mitsubishi Motors is doing a lot of things to bring back the brand’s "Mitsubishi Motors-ness". The revival of Ralliart is one of them, but oh boy you’ll be disappointed on how this famed motorsport sub-brand made its comeback.
Thailand is one of Mitsubishi’s core markets, and it’s also where Ralliart’s revival made its global debut. Unfortunately, while its marketing materials depict a Pajero Sport (also known as the Montero Sport) and Triton (also known as the Strada or L200) kicking up dust and doing some rally-style driving, don’t expect any form of performance upgrades.
That’s because these Ralliart parts are mere aesthetics and accessories packages for the Pajero Sport and Triton. Starting with the Pajero Sport, these upgrades include Ralliart side decals, red front and rear bumper garnishes, black roof, black tailgate spoiler, black fender flares, mud flaps, and floor mats.
Likewise, the Triton receives the same Ralliart side graphics, black roof, front red bumper garnishes, mud flaps, and floor mats. This comes in addition to a bed liner, which is optional on the standard Triton.
Further adding insult to injury is the fact that these Ralliart accessory packs are only available for the two-wheel drive (2WD) variants of the Pajero Sport and Triton. As a matter of fact, it’s only the low-riding variant of the Triton that gets these features.
And if that’s not disappointing enough, the engines or even the chassis of these two vehicles remain untouched. In the case of the Pajero Sport, it is powered by a 2.4-liter four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine that produces 181 horsepower and 430 Nm (317 lb-ft) of torque that’s mated to an 8-speed automatic.
On the other hand, the low-riding version of the Triton is powered by an older diesel engine from the Mitsubishi lineup, a 2.5-liter four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine that produces just 128 horses and 240 Nm (177 lb-ft) of torque that’s connected to a 5-speed manual.
Thankfully, these two disappointments are limited to Thailand, for now. Let’s just say that Mitsubishi Ralliart’s comeback isn’t what we were expecting. Or maybe their take on what "Small but Beautiful" means is way different and less exciting than what we were imagining in the first place.
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