Offered for three short years in the U.S. in the late 1980s, Mitsubishi’s Pajeho family was the parent to both the Mitsubishi Montero and the cousin vehicle, the Dodge Raider. This one needs mucho deferred maintenance that’s been skipped since the seller bought it five years ago. They have it posted here on craigslist in Portland, Oregon, and they’re asking $3,500. Here is the original listing, and thanks to Curvette for the tip!
That has to be one of the coolest little profiles for a 4×4. The Dodge Raider only came in a two-door body style for us Yanks here in the U.S., but Mitsubishi Montero buyers could have gotten a Montero with four doors if they wanted. These weren’t necessarily smooth or refined, as they were more commercial vehicles in their original heritage.
That we got them for 1987, 1988, and 1989 here in the U.S. makes them fairly rare to see today. We’ve only seen four Dodge Raiders back to April of 2016 here on Barn Finds. On the flip side, we’ve seen two Mitsubishi Monteros, but they were both from 1991 and were both big four-door models. Make mine a little Dodge Raider every time, as long as it has a five-speed manual, which this one does. Here’s what the rear cargo area looks like. I love the side-hinged cargo door.
The interior is more plush than I imagined, but this model was made for posh-loving Americans who, by the late 1980s, were used to having nice things. I like the subdued colors of the exterior and interior; it helps this little 4WD rig blend in more than stand out. The seats look good, if not a little dirty in the front, and we don’t get to see the back seat. The seller says this is a West Coast survivor with no rust other than the usual surface rust, but it does ride a bit rough, as they all did – it’s a leaf spring truck. The five-speed manual makes it fun to drive.
The engine is Mitsubishi’s 4G54 (the same one in my 1980 Dodge D-50 Sport pickup), which is a 2.6-liter SOHC inline-four with 109 horsepower (9 more than mine) and 142 lb-ft of torque when new. The seller has owned this little rig for five years and 2,000 miles and hasn’t changed the oil once. Ouch. For $30, I’m doing that once a year at least. They say, “This truck really drives like an old truck, takes a good 10 seconds to turn over when cold, idles rough until you drive it a bit — lots of creaks and squeaks, one of the tires regularly needs air and all the tires are old as hell. I don’t care because it all adds to the charm for me.” So there ya go. It looks like it’s worth $3,500 to me, but I’d plan on doing everything there is to do, maintenance-wise. Any thoughts on this “inexpensive” Dodge Raider?
The Mitsubishi Montero was always the closest thing to an Isuzu Trooper ( 2 door and 4 door). I like the short 2 door ones like this, especially with a stick. I always liked the center 3 gauge pods on the dash ( kind of reminds me of my Trooper) and the gauge that shows how much you’re banking left or right. ( my apologies, I’m a dummy tonight and cant think of the name of the gauge, I want to say Inclineometer). For 3500 bucks it looks like its not rusted out and seems pretty good looking.
Has a great engine, back when Mitsu knew quality. What happenned to them? They built the Zero after all, not to mention my home stereo pre amp and power amp that I have used faithfully since the 1980s. Let me guess, private equity take over? They ruin so much in our world, might just be the answer. When greedy people take over a car company, cheapness in parts and engineering soon follow. Look at the Tundra engines. Toyota for petes sake!
Steal. Cool little 4×4. Everything cheap and interesting seems to be out west.
Would own this if close.
Seems to be a decent sized engine for this size, bet it hops
And it has a winch!
The middle gauge is called an inclinometer. This was the first car my wife and I bought new in 1987. If this was east of the Rockies, I would be on this like a duck on a June bug! These ate head gaskets but there is nothing on this rig that a competent backyard mechanic can’t tackle. The short wheel base and lively drivetrain makes this a beast in the dirt but tippy during fast directional changes on the street. Don’t ask how I know. You can keep your first Gen Bronco, give me the two door Montero every day! In the Midwest they have almost all succumbed to the dreaded tin worm so my dream of finding another continues.
If it was east of the Rockies, it would most likely be a pile of RUST.
These are undeniably cool. Mine would have to be a V6, though. I nearly bought one in the early 90s, but I went with a Cherokee instead. Mild regret.
“all the tires are old as hell.”
That’s not good, especially on a tall SUV that is likely to roll if a tire blows.
I would like to see someone Slightly modify the top, Install a rollover bar,
and actually, remove the top, Lots of work, But now days, anything and
everything goes in this 21st Century, The 20th Century had us trying to
keep and maintain all originality, but, that was back then, This is now,
Just go for it
As I mentioned there was one locally that did just that and was asking $4500, looking back I didnt have the room and it was a conflicting vehicle , great in the snow in the winter but now a summer toy too. My opinion of these (having owned one ) is they are every bit as tough as a jeep
Yeah, “old as hell tires” and “feels fine doing 80 down the highway”. I don’t think I’ll ride with him.
One of our dealerships in the mid and late ’80s was a Chrysler/Dodge/ Plymouth franchise. (We also had Ford Mercury) c We couldn’t give these away. And we are in 4X4 country. Every Bronco II, F150 and later, E xplorer was gone as soon as it was PDIed. I drove one of these once. And remembered that it felt solid and slow. I was somewhat familiar with these as I have always been a Rally/Raid fan. (East African Safari/stuff) But nobody knew what vm they were. iffy
I had an 88 with the 4 banger and an automatic , I used it as a winter vehicle opposite my MG Midget that I drove in the summer , I PLOWED with it , it took a tremendous amount of abuse (FNRNFNR) when stuck,without the plow it would never get stuck no matter where I drove it. Someone mentioned this model won the Paris to Dakar race ( if it’s true or not I wouldnt doubt it. The only problem with it was rust, especially plowing in winter and sitting idle in summer. Brake lines , power steering lines , transmission lines constantly an issue . I wish I never sold it but it would be a maintenance draw, Oh and despite being a 4 cyl it only got 17 mpg at best , 5 when plowing. But it did earn its keep. I passed up one that someone made a convertible out of for $4500 … oh well. Sounds like this one could use a little TLC
Oh and another thing, back then I removed the Mitsubishi emblems and plunked a Mercedes emblem on the front just to confuse the neighbors
Spotted one in a local back yard the other day. Probably not running but who knows.
Torsion bars in front, leaf springs in the back for ’87-’88. ’89-on had coils on rear axle.
No one mentioned the air suspension on the driver’s seat. If it has electric windows, it probably has the bouncy seat too.