HM-Mitsubishi to introduce Pajero Sport Automatic in autumn

HM-Mitsubishi has announced that it will launch the Pajero Sport SUV with an automatic transmission in India, this autumn.

The Pajero Sport AT is likely to use the same 2.5-litre, turbo charged, diesel engine as its manual sibling. This unit develops 178 PS and 400 Nm of torque and comes attached to a 5-speed transmission, which is expected to be replaced by a 5-speed automatic gearbox.

The Pajero Sport, which was launched in India in 2012, has been available with a manual gearbox only, while its chief competitor, the Toyota Fortuner, came with an optional 4-speed automatic. This limited the Pajero Sport's clientele to only those people who wanted a manual. Apart from that, the company brought the car into India as a CBU, which attracted maximum duties and kept its price higher than the competition. Later, HM-Mitsubishi started assembling the Pajero Sport in India and managed to bring its price down. However, it was too late and the car's sales have been dismal in comparison with the Fortuner's. Additionally, HM-Mitsubishi's sales and service experience has been nothing to write home about. Dealerships and workshops are few and far between and spares can be difficult to source.

In fact, Mitsubishi's collective sales in India have been so dismal, that it has discontinued most of its products. Only the Pajero Sport and the Montero remain on the company's portfolio. With the introduction of the automatic, the company hopes to start a turnaround. Mitsubishi has as many as five new models lined up for launch in India by 2016 (link to news article).