Kiwi comeback

The arrival of the Challenger instantly positions Mitsubishi as the vehicle marque with one of the best selections of all-wheel-drive vehicles in New Zealand.

The engine is mated to Mitsubishi's Invecs II five-speed automatic, which features a sport mode for manual operation, and the four-wheel-drive is a Super Select system which replaces the previous setup, which was known as Easy Select.

Super Select allows the driver to go from two-wheel-drive to all-wheel drive high while the Challenger is on the move, and when in that mode the system automatically adjusts the torque split between the front and rear wheels to accommodate changing road conditions.

If the driver chooses, the 4WD high ratio can be locked, so there will always be a 50:50 split between front and rear. This is called 4HLc and is the equivalent of the former Easy Select 4H mode, and for the really grunty low-down work, the Challenger can be brought to a halt and the driver can select what is known as 4LLc. And there's a rear differential lock for that very difficult rough terrain work.

While we're on the subject of the Challenger's off-road capability, it's worth noting that this new model is much better suited to the task than the old. The SUV's approach angle has been increased from 29 to 36 degrees, the departure angle is up one degree to 25 degrees, and the ground clearance is now 220mm.

But despite all that, it's interesting that Mitsubishi Motors New Zealand is pushing the new Challenger as a vehicle with very good on-road comfort as well as off-road ability.

That's an interesting claim, because my immediate opinion of the vehicle is that the on-road performance is by no means the smoothest on the market.

I found the diesel quite noisy, although I'm assured this lessens when more kilometres are put onto the odometer, and I found the ride fairly hard. To my mind, this all underlines the fact that this SUV is a development of a ute. In itself, there is nothing wrong with this. In fact, it almost assures the Challenger of having very solid off-road capability. But don't expect the vehicle to be the smoothest-driving luxury SUV around.

Then again, with a strong ladder-frame chassis which has 50 per cent more torsional rigidity than its predecessor, and with that new turbo-diesel that offers a lot more grunt, the Challenger is right up there in terms of all-round ability.

- © Fairfax NZ News