The short answer is that it depends entirely on which Pajero you mean, because the chassis changed fundamentally halfway through the car’s life and the two halves drive nothing like each other.
A Gen 2 is a body-on-frame truck with torsion bars at the front and leaves at the back. A Gen 4 is a unibody with a subframe and independent suspension at both ends. Calling both of them “the Pajero” and then generalising about handling is how most of the advice online goes wrong.
The chassis split, which is the whole story
| Generation | Chassis | Suspension, front / rear | Ground clearance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gen 1 (1982 to 1991) | Body-on-frame | Torsion bar / leaf and coil | ~200 mm |
| Gen 2 (1991 to 1999) | Body-on-frame | Torsion bar / leaf and coil | 205 mm |
| Gen 3 (1999 to 2006) | Unibody with subframe | Independent / independent | 205 mm |
| Gen 4 (2006 to 2021) | Unibody with subframe | Independent / independent | 220 mm |
| Pajero Sport | Ladder frame | Independent / multi-link | 218 mm |
Note the Pajero Sport at the bottom. The modern car in the range is the ladder-frame one, which catches people out when they assume the newest Pajero must be the most car-like.
On the highway
From the third generation the Pajero moved to a stiff unibody with an integrated subframe and independent suspension front and rear. On tar the result is settled, quiet and car-like: it tracks straight at cruising speed, absorbs bumps without the secondary jiggle a leaf-sprung vehicle gives you, and makes a 1 000 km day genuinely comfortable. This is the trait that sold the Gen 3 and Gen 4 to families.
A Gen 1 or Gen 2 is a different vehicle on the same road. Torsion bars and leaves mean more body roll, more steering correction, more noise and a ride that moves with the surface rather than over it. The short wheelbase cars in particular are lively, because a short wheelbase and a tall body is not a combination that rewards speed. They are not unpleasant, but they ask to be driven rather than aimed.
Off the road
From the Gen 2 onward the Super Select system does the heavy lifting. You can run in rear-wheel drive, select full-time 4WD in high range on any surface including tar, lock the centre differential for loose going, and drop to low range with the centre diff locked for steep or technical work.
The ability to use 4H on tar is the part that matters more than the brochure suggests. A part-time system forces a choice at the start of a surface and punishes you for getting it wrong. Super Select lets you leave it in 4H across mixed gravel and tar all day, which is most of South African touring.
The articulation trade-off, honestly
Independent suspension gives up wheel travel. That is simply true, and a solid-axle vehicle will keep rubber on the ground over a crossed-up obstacle where an independent car lifts a wheel.
What the Gen 3 and Gen 4 do about it is brake-based traction control, which detects the spinning wheel and brakes it so torque crosses to the one with grip. In practice this works well, and the car gets through things that look like they should have stopped it. What it does not do is feel elegant: there is noise, a pause, and a sense of the vehicle sorting itself out rather than flowing over the obstacle.
| Gen 3 / Gen 4 (unibody, independent) | Solid-axle rivals | |
|---|---|---|
| Highway ride and refinement | Excellent, settled and quiet | Firmer, more truck-like |
| On-road stability | Very good | Good |
| Extreme articulation | Limited, covered by traction control | Greater wheel travel |
| Damage tolerance | Unibody damage is expensive to put right | Frame repairs are more straightforward |
| All-round versatility | Outstanding | Strong off-road, less refined on-road |
The published numbers, correctly attributed
Wading depth gets misquoted constantly, including the common claim that the Gen 4 wades 700 mm. It does not: 700 mm is the Pajero Sport’s figure. Mitsubishi does not publish a Gen 4 number.
| Model | Wading depth | Approach / departure |
|---|---|---|
| Gen 2 | 600 mm | 44° / 34° (SWB) |
| Gen 4 | Not published | Not published |
| Pajero Sport | 700 mm | 30° / not published |
On any Pajero over fifteen years old, treat the published wading figure as historical anyway. Real depth is set by the condition of your diff breathers, door seals and air intake path today, not by what the brochure claimed when the car was new.
What actually changes how yours handles
Owners spend a great deal on suspension and comparatively nothing on the two things that make the biggest difference.
- Tyres and pressures. The single largest influence on how a Pajero behaves on gravel, and the cheapest to change. Our guide to all-terrain tyres covers pattern, load rating and the pressures for each surface.
- Worn dampers and bushes. On a twenty-year-old car the handling complaint is almost never the design. It is tired components, and replacing them restores more than any upgrade adds.
- Load and roof weight. A loaded roof rack raises the centre of gravity on an already tall vehicle, and it changes highway stability in crosswinds more than owners expect.
Short wheelbase against long, which changes more than the chassis does
Within a single generation the wheelbase makes a bigger difference to how the car feels than most owners expect. A Gen 2 SWB sits on 2 420 mm; the LWB on 2 725 mm. That 305 mm is the difference between two quite distinct vehicles.
| Short wheelbase | Long wheelbase | |
|---|---|---|
| Highway stability | Busier, more correction, more affected by crosswind | Settled and relaxed |
| Ramp-over and tight tracks | Excellent, turns inside almost anything | Compromised on tight switchbacks |
| Ride over corrugation | Pitches more, shorter wheelbase finds the frequency | Smoother |
| Towing | Less stable | Clearly better |
| Load and passengers | Limited | The practical choice |
The short cars are the more entertaining thing to drive on a trail and the more tiring thing to drive to it. Our full comparison of the two body styles goes into the detail.
Towing
The Gen 2 is rated at 2 500 kg braked, the Gen 1 at 2 000 kg, and the Pajero Sport at 3 100 kg. The long-wheelbase cars tow more stably than the short ones for the obvious reason, and the unibody generations are the more settled tow vehicles on tar.
Which suits you
If your driving is highway plus regular gravel, dirt roads and moderate 4×4 tracks, which describes most South African touring, a Gen 3 or Gen 4 is very hard to beat. The refinement is real and the capability is more than most owners will use.
If you are chasing maximum flex on technical rock, or you want something you can repair simply and cheaply after a hard knock, the older body-on-frame cars or a solid-axle rival make a better case. To understand the drivetrain underneath all of it, read our full guide to Super Select 4WD.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Mitsubishi Pajero comfortable on the highway?
From the third generation, yes. The unibody and independent suspension give a settled, quiet, car-like ride. Gen 1 and Gen 2 are body-on-frame with torsion bars and leaf springs, and ride noticeably more like a truck.
How deep can a Pajero wade?
Mitsubishi publishes 600 mm for the Gen 2 and 700 mm for the Pajero Sport. There is no published figure for the Gen 4, and the widely repeated claim that it wades 700 mm is the Sport’s number misapplied. On an older vehicle, condition matters more than the specification.
Does the Pajero have a solid rear axle?
The Gen 3 and Gen 4 use independent suspension at both ends rather than a solid rear axle. Gen 1 and Gen 2 use a live rear axle on leaf and coil springs.
What is Super Select 4WD?
Mitsubishi’s off-road 4WD system with four modes: 2H, 4H, 4H-Lock and 4L. It lets you drive in rear-wheel drive or full-time 4WD on tar, then lock the centre differential and select low range off it.
Is the Pajero better on-road or off-road?
From the Gen 3 it is deliberately balanced: more refined on tar than most ladder-frame 4x4s while remaining highly capable off it. That versatility, rather than specialisation at either extreme, is the point of the car.