From what I’ve found, Mitsubishi referred to their regular cab long-bed pickups in this era as “one-ton” trucks. I can’t find any specific info on that in brochures, though. This 1985 Mitsubishi Mighty Max One-ton pickup is listed here on Facebook Marketplace in Kaukauna, WI, and they’re asking $3,000. Here is the original listing, and thanks to Lothar… of the Hill People for the one-ton tip!
Hopefully, one of you can shed some light on the unusual naming convention of this tiny truck. Some forums said that it was Mitsubishi’s response to Toyota’s one-ton pickup, and as the owner of a somewhat similar but five-year-older Dodge version, I can’t imagine this truck hauling one ton of anything but feathers. Wait, a ton of feathers still weighs a ton. It looks like there’s a ton of weight on the left front tire; it’s a bit low.
That bumper is a factory-correct option, as shown on page 7 of this 1985 Mitsubishi pickup brochure, and buyers could get a step bumper like that in either chrome or black. The paint has seen better days, although it looks surprisingly nice on the passenger side for some reason. Bright Silver is the color, and silver seems to degrade more quickly than most other colors or tones. I believe this is a base model Mighty Max pickup, as shown with a black grille. The higher trim levels have silver grilles. The seller says this is a Colorado truck and is solid underneath, a very good thing to hear on a four-decade-old Japanese vehicle, or really on any vehicle.
We don’t get to see inside the truck bed, but I’m guessing it looks well-used, as everything else does on this 15.4-foot-long truck. The interior could have benefited from a five-minute clean-up job, if not an hour or more of heavy cleaning. Rent that hot-water extraction carpet cleaner, get those seats clean. Seriously. It’s amazing what a little time will do to bring in more money on used vehicles. Bucket seats and a 5-speed manual would mean the top model in the Dodge D-50 lineup, but Mitsubishi must have used a different system.
This isn’t the 2.6 engine I expected to see, and thanks to the seller for taking the time to show the engine! They say this is a 4G63B 2.0-liter SOHC inline-four. It should have 88 horsepower and 108 lb-ft of torque when new. The brochure shows a 5-speed as not being available on the base model pickup, but the seller says it is, and it sends power to the rear wheels. It has an Australian header (very cool!) and the head was rebuilt, along with adding a “Chinese Weber” carb. They mention that this truck needs a bit of tinkering in order to be a regular driver. I paid $2,000 for my almost-perfect 1980 Dodge D-50 Sport pickup, but that was back in 2017. Have any of you heard of a little Mitsubishi pickup being referred to as a one-ton truck?
I always enjoy it when you post a link to the original sales brochures Scotty. I’m definitely a fan of Mitsubishi pickups. I temember the Toyota “One Ton” models, but not these. You’d have to look at the door sticker ( if its there) to see the GVWR rating. It’s amazing that it has all its original sheetmetal and that nothings rusted through, at least from what I can see. Noce one Scotty!!!
The Toyota one tons were for real. You could even forgo the bed and add dual rear wheels. These cab n chassis were used for campers and box trucks and many other things. I remember the Ford Couriers were used for u-haul and other type box trucks. I see no reason to doubt a one ton set up was available (say springs and such). However I don’t think all the long beds were that heavily set up. 🤷🏽♂️🫶🏼