Fully Loaded: 1992 Mitsubishi Mighty Max 4×4

In the 1980s and 90s, compact pickup trucks were immensely popular across multiple demographics. Anyone who has ever needed to transport furniture or make a dump run knows how incredibly useful pickup trucks are, but especially with a smaller form factor that doesn’t lead to difficulty parking or maneuvering tight spaces. These days, there’s been a mild resurgence in smaller trucks like the Ford Ranger, but we will still have a long way to go to return to the peak era of smaller-scale trucks that still came with features like V6 power and four-wheel drive, such as this 1992 Mitsubishi Mighty Max listed here on craigslist for $3,900.

Thanks to Barn Finds reader Tony Primo for the tip. Gosh, I love this truck. I’ve always been a fan of the Mighty Max, and in both 2WD and 4WD form. If you went for the former, you not only had a great in-town errand runner at your disposal, but you could also dip a toe into mini-truck culture, which oftentimes involved lowering the pickup in question and perhaps going so far as to add hydraulic or air-ride suspension. Of course, that’s an entirely different tangent of the small pickup market, but if you spent any time at the newsstand in the 90s, you’d see several magazines devoted to this custom culture. The 4WD variants of these models, such as the Mighty Max shown here, lived in a completely different universe, where they were prized for the combination of reliability, affordable pricing, and off-road ability.

You could argue the Toyota Hilux/Tacoma has effectively dominated this segment so hard that there’s little point to any competitors entering the ring. After all, Mitsubishi bowed out of the pickup world in the late 90s (at least with its own products – the awful rebadged Dodge Dakota, the Raider DuroCross, is entirely forgettable) citing the lack of interest in a smaller truck with limited engine options, and that consumers wanted bigger and more powerful models. Now, Mitsubishi isn’t exactly a roaring success story as of late, but their 90s products were solid; surely, they could have kept building the Mighty Max and had a formidable competitor to the Tacoma? Regardless, very few are left today, which makes examples like the one shown here quite rare. Simple controls and bare-bones features – exactly what a pickup should be.

The seller indicates this is a one-owner Nevada truck, and that’s not at all surprising. To find one of these in this sort of condition almost guarantees it’s been loved by one caretaker for many years. The odometer shows reasonable mileage for the year, but it’s not all that high on an annual basis. Hidden in the listing is the fact that this Mighty Max has seemingly been well maintained, with the seller nothing that the timing belt, water pump, and radiator have all been replaced. The 6G72 3.0L V6 engine is a workhorse, and makes good power – 151 horsepower and 174 lb.-ft. of torque – and with a 5-speed, it’s likely pretty fun to drive. There are very few Mighty Max pickups left, and hardly any with a V6, 4WD, and a stick, so move fast if you’d like to park this in your driveway.