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Mitsubishi Motors Malaysia recently launched an upmarket variant of its Triton pickup truck series. This new variant, designated as the Triton 3.2 brings the total models available to 4. These are the Triton Lite available in manual mode only, Triton 2.5 which is offered both in automatic and manual transmission options and the fore mentioned 3.2, available in only automatic. We’ve just finished putting the new Triton 3.2 through its paces. Read Harvinder Singh’s write-up after the jump.
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Design
Those were the days when the designs of pickup trucks weren’t really a strong point of such vehicles, as practicality was the most important aspect of these work horses. These days, the gap between looks and practicality is closer than ever, and I must say, for the Triton, although it was very novel when it was initially launched, they really pulled it off in terms of the design.
It looks very aggressive and futuristic at the same time, and I like the front profile of the Triton as it gives a very masculine statement, when I stare at it and let my imaginations fly, it’s like the Triton is saying to me; “What?! Who you looking at?!”. Usually when it comes to pickup trucks, being a classic car nut, I would prefer the conventional Ford F100/F150 or the Ford Ranger design cues, but if they stop designing pickup trucks in such a way, or if the trucks are just plain not worth the money (in terms of quality, options, etc.), I will settle with this “more futuristic” Triton.
Of course I wouldn’t say the same for the more affordable Triton Lite which has a much more modest and down to earth look, but its thumbs up all the way for the 2.5 and 3.2 models. Compared to the 2.5, this new 3.2 features a redesigned front bumper which brings out the imposing looks even more, a rugged metal mesh grille finish, and plastic wind deflectors on all four doors. The rest of the truck is pretty much similar to its 2.5 younger brother, except for the different wheel design and of course the 3.2 insignia.
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Interior
The twin cab does offer adequate room on the inside. Leg room and head clearance isn’t a problem for any of the passengers either in the front or the rear. Apart from the redesigned climate control knobs on the dash, everything else is similar to the 2.5 Triton. I wouldn’t say the design of the interior components such as the dashboard, seats and door cards are luxurious, but it’s definitely reasonable for pickup trucks.
Both the 2.5 and this 3.2 features a “User Interface Display” screen which tells you the time, and journey data such as average fuel consumption, and yes of course, typical of a modern off-roader, it has a digital compass, a barometer, an altimeter as well as temperature indication. The fuel consumption meter on the Triton requires a long time to update the reading as the speed of your vehicle changes, sometimes minutes which is quite irritating for me. This is because it only displays your average fuel consumption over the whole journey instead of it being in real time.
It has a Kenwood audio player which, apart from a standard AM/FM tuner, it can play MP3 and WMA via CD or a USB stick. You can also hook up your iPod (and most MP3 players) via a built-in AUX in jack. The practicality of the interior is further enhanced with enough compartments and cup holders for front and rear passengers.
I do wish it had a fully functional centre arm rest. The reason why I said “fully functional” centre arm rest is because it’s just not high enough, leaving the driver nowhere to rest his left arm. The low ratio transmission transfer case shift lever can be also be a potential annoyance due to its constant vibration. This can be avoided by using a shift-by-wire knob like in the D-Max and Ranger.
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Driving (Engine)
The Triton 3.2 features 4 cylinder 3.2 litre turbo diesel power plant, which is a major upgrade compared the 2.5 standard diesel engine used in the Triton Lite and the 2.5 turbo diesel used in the Triton 2.5. Unfortunately, I wouldn’t call it a major upgrade after driving it, of course I do feel the power difference but, not as much as I expected, it feels more like a “slightly” more powerful version of the Triton 2.5. There is torque however across the entire rev range, especially from the low end, but just like most turbo diesels out there, it tends to lose power after 4,000 rpm.
Acceleration for the 160 horsepower motor is more on the modest side and when I took it to a constant high speed of 160km/h, the revs settled down on 3,000 rpm. The in cabin engine noise is on the high side thanks to thin insulation and the noisy diesel engine but its acceptable for a pickup truck.
The turbo boost on the other hand was lag-free and kicked in whenever my feet became throttle happy. Around town, the Triton behaved well, as I didn’t feel like I was driving a big huge truck and the Triton offers a decent 5.9 meter minimum turning radius. Getting in and out of parking spaces wasn’t much of a problem.
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Driving (Transmission)
The gear shifts of the Triton 3.2’s 4 speed automatic transmission was rather smooth, although I did notice that it tended to stay in gear longer at high revs right before it shifts into higher gear. The tranny kicked down into lower gear right away when slammed the pedal to the floor while cruising on high speeds (160km/h), giving me instant torque.
The Triton also comes with the “must have” transfer case enabling the driver to switch between 2 wheel drive high range, 4 wheel drive high range and the off-road, friendly 4 wheel drive low range. Shifting between 2WD HR to 4WD HR was a breeze as I was able to do it while driving (up to 100km/h) and to tackle a more stubborn or a steep road condition, I just needed to stop the vehicle, pop the Auto lever into neutral, and shift to 4WD LR mode.
In order to give it’s off roading capabilities a shot, I took the Triton (with 3 other passengers) to an off road trail nearby Genting Sempah at Karak, and after a short and very slow drive, I found that the Triton has good light off-roading capabilities, which is further helped by a standard limited slip differential. Since it was fitted with road tires, we didn’t take it further into the tropical jungle.
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Driving (Ride Comfort & Handling)
To my surprise, the ride comfort of the Triton isn’t all that bad, considering most pickup trucks offer very stiff (sometimes too stiff to me) ride qualities, especially for the rear occupants. Even on high speeds, it absorbed those irritating bumps well enough for me.
Unfortunately, to give way to a more comfortable ride, the Triton seemed to suffer from a “slightly more than usual” body roll and under steer whenever I pushed it harder on the modest twisty roads of the Karak highway, both on medium and high speeds. Anyway personally, when it comes to pickup trucks, I actually prefer to have a slightly better ride comfort, even if I have compromise on a little on handling, and I feel Mitsubishi deployed a good balance with the Triton.
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Competition
Well, as we all know, there is strong competition within the double cab pickup truck segment in Malaysia with Toyota’s Hilux, Nissan’s Frontier, Isuzu’s DMax, and Ford’s “built tough” Ranger. Among all, Triton has the cheapest low range version, priced at RM 58,129 (Triton Lite). The cheapest version you can get from other manufacturers are all priced RM 80,000 and above.
For the mid range level, all 5 manufacturers offer their 2.5 Turbo Diesel variants, all between RM 80,000 to RM 95,000, depending on specifications, however do note that there’s no automatic transmission option for the Nissan Frontier. As for the high range version, none of the other manufacturers have a 3.2 litre option, the closest is the Isuzu Dmax with a 3.0 unit as the rest retain at 2.5 litres. However, the Triton 3.2 is the most expensive one, retailing at RM 97, 041, about three thousand ringgit more than the DMax.
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Verdict
So, as you can see, Mitsubishi has a wider range, especially with the extremely affordable Triton Lite. However apart from having the Lite, and having the most amount of cubic inches within in the high range pickups, the competition is very strong among within the mid range trucks as all are available with 2.5 Turbo Diesels.
At first glance, I will opt for the Triton 2.5 if you are asking me to choose between that or the Triton 3.2, but then again, the 3.2 is only roughly RM8,000 more than the 2.5 with auto.
So, here’s my final verdict: I would stick to the Triton 2.5, especially when the road tax cost is cheaper than the 3.2 (RM 898 opposed to RM 2264). Both the Triton 2.5 and 3.2 share almost everything that matters except for the larger 3.2 motor, but as mentioned earlier on, I didn’t feel a significant power difference with the 3.2.
Story by Harvinder Singh Sidhu
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hey, paul. .looks like serendah to me..
anyways.. if i was in the market today for a pickup, i’ll get the triton.
oh…
paul; , if u compare it to the dmax…i mean the 2.5cc…any huge ediference in power and ovewrall driving??
im seeing alot of dmax nowadays on the road…but looks too ‘square’..bt the triton looks very space age!
get the new Nissan truck better la.
Wait la for navara. more masculine and power!! cannot wait for navara test drive report. hehe. btw good test drive report. ;)
Navara? Would you (hvannees) buy a below RM100K 3.2L pickup to a above RM100K 2.5L pickup ?
Luxury life style in the Jungle~
jaygan, do you read the test drive report? yes navara is slightly high in price compared to triton, and it is 2.5 compared to 3.2 triton, but it have more horsepower.
“specs on the microsite confirms that we will not be getting any detuned or lame version of the Navara’s 2.5 liter engine, we will be getting the powerful common rail intercooled direct injected version with a Variable Nozzle Turbo (VGT) producing a powerful 174 PS at 4,000rpm and 403Nm of torque at 2,000rpm”.
http://paultan.org/archives/2008/10/17/malaysian-nissan-navara-to-come-with-174-ps-engine-leather-seats-and-hid-headlamps/
at most important things to be highlight by the brightest highlighter is like Harvinder Singh said, 2.5 the road tax cost is cheaper than the 3.2 (RM 898 opposed to RM 2264).
so if i have that kind of money, i will tend to wait for navara. ok.
Why do they need so many variants? It means they have to have many more SKUs and hence higher stock keeping costs and in this case, struggling with the differentiation. So the 2.5 will still sell well while the 3.2 will struggle with the sales alone. Why? The simple road tax factor is enough to kill the differentiation they’re trying to setup on the 3.2 variant. Question, why other manufacturers can squeeze 180hp and 400nm torque out from a 2.5L engine and comply to EURO 4 emission standards while Mitsubishi has to up the engine capacity by 700cc to do so? Why cant they make it a smarter move by still keeping the 2.5L engine but tune the engine to output 170hp with 400nm torque and add luxury items and sell at 95k instead? (saving of the road tax by almost 1.5k to arrive this selling price) So how do you spec this Triton 2.5 higher output X version? Keep all the cosmetic changes as per the 3.2 but add 5 speeds automatic with cruise control, all the safety features like abs, ebd, ba, 2 airbags and better sound insulation. This should be more acceptable variant than this 3.2 version. Another historical mistake done in modern time.
1. 2.5 diesel road already reduce to RM400 plus.
2. RM3,000.00 expensive than D-Max, if compared to Horse Power, Triton is 178hp for 3.0 136hp for 2.5 & D-Max 3.0 is 136hp & 2.5 is 79hp.
2.5 manual top speed is 185km/h, tested by my self at second link, Johor & Plus in Ipoh, but i can believe 3.2 can beat 200km/h.
The EON service centre is hopeless, unefficiency & unresponsible on what they have done….really hopeless.
the triton owner.
I thought that road tax for diesel has been reduced to the same level as petrol given that the price at the pump is not very much different these days.
One of the reason that put me off buying Mitsubishi’s car is that the servicing is done by EON. Hey only recently I noticed that routine servicing of my waja cost 70% more than servicing my Innova! Makan duit again; from top to bottom!
I used to drive a pick-up but subsequently I found the center of gravity is too high and somewhat dangerous especially during wet seasons and going downhill.
Powerful, nice looking, pocket friendly but not recommended for safety.
DRC said,
October 23, 2008 @ 3:43 pm
Do you mind telling us how is your Waja routine service cost ever possible to be 70% more than Innova? AFAIK, UMW TOYOTA is the biggest bloodseeker in after sales service among the japanese brand.
Oh and this Navara & D-Max failed to score the EURO NCAP if I’m not mistaken, 1 star & half star Respectively! Triton got a 4 stars.
navara is the best turck
Jen,
you cannot drive a truck like you drive a car! The CG is higher, steering and braking requires more force, tends to oversteer, etc.
I love 4x4s but the running cost and raising petrol prices finally ended my 14 year love affair with them.
BTW the river water is hardly 6 inches – come on, the Triton is not a cissy! Try wading in the river.
Another thing – when it comes to a harcore offroading truck, there is only one choice – Toyota. Ask any loggers or real 4×4 owners. Mitsubishi would be some distance behind. Nissan is more suitable for recreational activities or light offraoding.
Ford Ranger still the best….
for those that wanna compare euro ncap test, the navara INITIALLY got 1 star, because of a delayed air bag deployment program.
after nissan reprogramed the trucks and airbag, it got 3 STARS.
so don’t anyhow bash. update yourself.
and the Navara has the MOST POWER for its class. Cheaper road tax too.
Mother Trucker pawns the Triton. woohoo!
LOL.
5 speed auto, also has LSD and HID headlamps.
hehe.
bmw x6 is the best truck
IsaacVky said,
October 23, 2008 @ 7:56 pm
Oh and this Navara & D-Max failed to score the EURO NCAP if I’m not mistaken, 1 star & half star Respectively! Triton got a 4 stars.
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Yup you are right……i saw that website too…. D-max and Navara scored the worst in pick-up category…..
Better be safe than sorry !!!
CVS,
HOW COME YOU ARE SO DEFENSIVE WHEN TALK ABOUT NAVARA?
LET ME GUESS…. WORKING FOR TAN CHONG ? KEKEKEKE
IF YES, GOOD FOR YOU AND YOUR NAVARA….
CSV,
ONE MORE THING, DONT FORGET TO LEAVE YOUR NAME AND YOUR NUMBER….
I MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN THE BEST PICK-UP TRUCK IN MALAYSIA WHICH IS
N I S S A N N A V A R A
Hai yah,
don’t need to argue la…… Ssangyong Actyon is the best……
Why are most Malaysian auto test drive not interested in providing fuel consumption figures during the duration of the test. Are we Malaysians being so well subsidised that we do not bother about consumption. And when consumption is given, it is almost always at sens per km. What crap is that? If we were to read the test at a much later date, we have try to figure out what the price of petrol/diesel was at the time of the test and take out the calculator before that sens per km makes any sense.
Give us plain simple X litres per 100 kms that everyone undestands everytime!
Paul Tan says: It’s hard to do because of the short duration of test drives this blog gets, we barely finish half a tank of fuel sometimes, but I try to make sure future test drives will have fuel consumption data. What we can do is refuel from the half tank up to a full tank again and calculate how much fuel goes in to figure out how much fuel we used. Only thing is that the car companies will get a free full tank at our expense, haha.
no, because my brother getting one. lol.
well, it sounds great…. worth buying…
CSV,
ONE MORE THING, DONT FORGET TO LEAVE YOUR NAME AND YOUR NUMBER….
I MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN THE BEST PICK-UP TRUCK IN MALAYSIA WHICH IS
N I S S A N N A V A R A
——————————-
the mother trucker
dont know bout maintainence of this coming navara, i heard some people said that turbo system for frontier not realy lasak one…and its cost arround rm7k for the turbo itself, this one i heard from the ah leong workshop,and one of my friend(nissan user) told me he meet with frontier owner (at nissan servis centre) that hv prblm with turbo unit..and it cost rm7k for replacing the unit…
quite scary for personal owner hehehe
halfcut turbodiesel engine for ford/mazda is arround rm4-5k (correct me if not)
The 3.2 model is very powerful compare to others 3.0 model , even 2.5 triton can beat the dmax if you consider power only. but the most important things is the 3.2 is out of stock now , need to book . I got a lot customers on hand but scare to get booking from them . 2.5 is very reliable to use , comes with free maintainence , even a mining company bought 12 unit from me ^^
wahhh..a lot of komisyen la then! :D
i do drive a triton, upon servicing i found out that my fuel filter gets very dirty.. does it mean that our diesel is very dirty? high sulfur? cz the engine is design for euro 4 diesel. and wats malaysia diesel gred?
Elo dont fight lah, anyway mahindra scrpio is da best truck… bravo… amma…chalo..
very poor review. this writer obvoiously doesn't know anything about pick up and possibly don't even own one.
I recently discovered I had a minor slip disc and my dr suggested me getting a 4×4.
I was looking for a car anyway so the advice was welcome for health reason.
The problem is I have never driven a 4×4 before.
I am interested in the Triton for its looks, price and driving comfort. Would love to own the 3.2 but the high road tax made me look to the 2.5
As a first time future owner of a 4×4, can you share some advice for me?
triton is great :) i have one 3.2. well here in the philippines 4×2 and 4×4 have same road tax. 4×2 is considered as 4WS here. for my experience triton has geat steering even at high speed. very good braking too. i wanted a hilux but was to scary bcuz it dosent even pass the moose test. lots of people here drive crazy. Stock dueler tires on a triton suck they slip alot on slightly wet roads.
if you like SPACESHIPS go for the triton.
if you like Solid Mean looks go for the Ford Ranger or Navarra.
if you want a rich looking truck on the outside(outside only ^^) go for hilux.
triton has a short/small bed cant even fit my yamaha atv on it. ;)
truck manufacturer should consider design rear seat & back glass foldable like those 3 drs or 5 drs car boot. this is important when driver need to up load long item.
i am still searching for advantages of Triton, Hilux, D-Max and Rangers. for me all got their own speciality. i must test all four of them before of buying one of them…?…..
for me thats a over rated 4×4 look its got low ground clearance bad fuel 9.1 try 8.4 with a dmax extra urban 7.2 urban 10.5 great ground clearance 225mm and good price 43k ls-u cant go wrong btw thats top model while triton offers electronics that brake fast and dmax is all performance btw i know their is so many problems with triton because my father inlaw has 1 (GLX-R) take it a bit off road and it shit its self n scoreboard is up to 6th repair by warranty lol and who rated 5star comfort try sit at the back and go over a speed bump 1.5star from me people who have a triton sell it before ya warranty ends and then you go offroad lets say its a womans city 4×4
I tested my friend’s Triton 3.2, when Iacceelate at the beginning, can feel the vibration very strong until the truck go faster then it stop vibrating, the owner sent the truck to check at the service center, they changed something, but still the same, is anyone have the same problem?
sorry for my email add. error
proud to drive a 2.5 manual red triton since 2008. It’s still in top condition and standard specs. Always go off road (40%) and on road (60%). Already twice changing 4tires. Now in 92k milage. My original GS battery is still supplying more than sufficient DC. Triton never disappoint me and family. Good review this is.
I recently bought a mitsubishi triton lite turbo.. was wondering where can i get a reliable authorized workshop in kl..
Any issue with the triton lite turbo since getting it? I am planing to get one soon. Hope you could share some of the feed back since Paul haven’t share with us on the lite version.
@ Caleb, can you share your feedback on the lite turbo since you had it from last sept. I am planning to get it soon, need your view and advise. Thanks