Mitsubishi Pajero gets 20 Australian-developed accessories

Key takeaways

• Twenty Australian-developed accessories will be available when the Pajero launches in December.
• Front protection bars keep the Pajero’s driver-assistance systems fully functional.
• Towing package includes a weight distribution hitch and reinforced frame mounting.

The new Mitsubishi Pajero will launch in Australia in December with 20 locally developed Mitsubishi Genuine Accessories available through dealers. Mitsubishi Motors Australia’s accessories engineering team began planning the range almost five years before the SUV reaches showrooms.

That team started working with Mitsubishi Motors Corporation in early 2022, securing details like pre-wiring, mounting points and vehicle structures so items such as protection bars and towing gear could be built into the Pajero from the start. Early access to CAD data let the Australian engineers develop concepts before any physical vehicles existed.

Prototype parts were then fitted and tested on real vehicles at Mitsubishi’s Okazaki R&D facility in Japan, before specialist suppliers turned them into production parts.

Steve Pearson, MMAL’s Engineering Manager, Accessory Development, has worked at Mitsubishi since 1990 and says the focus was on how Australians use their vehicles.

“Australians ask a lot of their four-wheel drives. They tow caravans, travel off-road and cover enormous distances, so our accessories must be more than cosmetic additions. They need to be engineered as part of the vehicle experience,” Pearson said.

Mitsubishi Pajero accessories list

The Australian-developed range covers protection, towing and lighting:

• Front protection: hooped and hoopless steel front protection bars, black and polished nudge bars, side protection bar and under-ride protection
• Towing: towbar, towbar harness, electric brake harness and weight distribution hitch
• Lighting: driving lamps and LED light bar
• Body protection: headlamp protectors and three hood protectors in clear, tinted and matte black, the last with an integrated Pajero logo
• Touring gear: roof rack, snorkel and winch cradle

The front protection bars, winch cradle, weight distribution hitch, headlamp protectors, hood protectors and driving lamps are made in Australia. Mitsubishi says the bars were engineered to work with the Pajero’s driver-assistance technology, so those systems keep full functionality.

Pajero towing package

The tow bar is a bigger job than usual. Mitsubishi’s local team worked with the Japanese engineers to reinforce the frame and modify the vehicle’s tow bar mounting area, rather than simply designing a bolt-on bar.

Mitsubishi says this allows a genuine weight distribution hitch, and the setup also supports the off-road couplings popular with touring Australians.

Genuine accessories fitted before delivery are covered by Mitsubishi’s standard 5-year/100,000km new car warranty. Eligible vehicles on the extended warranty, with all scheduled services done at a Mitsubishi dealer, can have accessories covered for up to 10 years or 200,000km.

Accessory pricing was not included in the release. The wider accessories range will roll out at launch, and the 20 local items can be specified through dealers when the Pajero goes on sale in December.