Mitsubishi have made it official that they will launch the Mitsubishi Pajero Sport AT in India by the end of this year. The Pajero Sport AT was showcased at the 2014 Bangkok Motor Show which commenced today.
The Pajero Sport AT sold in Thailand is powered by the same 2.5-liter four-cylinder 16v DOHC diesel engine as the Indian model. It outputs an identical 178 PS at 4,000 rpm, though torque at 350 Nm is lower compared to the 400 Nm of the Pajero Sport MT. While the MT produces this torque from 2,000-2,500 rpm, the AT has access to it from 1,800-3,500 rpm.
The Pajero Sport AT uses a 5-speed INVECS-II automatic gearbox with Sportronic function. The drive is sent to all the wheels. Other features such as entertainment systems and safety equipment are carried over from the manual transmission variant.
When the Pajero Sport AT is launched in India, it will compete with the Hyundai Santa Fe AT, Toyota Fortuner AT, Ssangyong Rexton AT and Chevrolet Captiva AT.
The Pajero Sport in India is locally assembled from CKD (Completely Knocked Down) kits sourced from Thailand. The SUV is assembled at Hindustan Motor's Tiruvallur plant, located on the outskirts of Chennai.