Mitsubishi Triton 2017 Review

Travelling over 3000km towing a caravan will test any vehicle, as we found out with this test of the latest Mitsubishi Triton

Mitsubishi Triton GLX (4WD single-cab cab-chassis)
Tow Test

In late 2016, the Triton came in for a minor upgrade with most models getting more tech and more features. The workaday GLX cab chassis, however, was basically left alone, save for an AM/FM CD audio system with 6.1-inch colour touch screen, speed-sensing automatic door locks and crash detection door unlocking.

There was also the recent inclusion of optional five-speed automatic transmission on this model which in the past has only been offered on the higher-grade utes.

We grabbed one of the new autos just before Christmas and I strapped my 18ft caravan on the back for a two-week sojourn from Melbourne to the North Coast of NSW and back. The van weighs in at close to two tonnes and has a ball weight of around 200kg, which is well inside the claimed maximum tow weight of 3000kg for the Triton and the maximum towball download of 300kg.

The Triton is a genuine one-tonner with a kerb mass of 1650kg (plus tray) and a GVM of 2900kg. The quoted GCM is 5785kg which doesn’t really make sense to me unless my maths is crappy (which it is), but it’s close to that.

We didn’t have anything in the tray except our second fridge, and there were two of us up front, so I figure our gross weight was around 3900kg.

Mitsubishi had fitted one of its standard tow bars on the back and a Redarc brake controller, so we were right to go.

The Triton is powered by a quite refined 2.4-litre common-rail intercooled turbo-diesel engine. Peak power is quoted as 133kW at 3500rpm, while torque is an impressive 430Nm at 2500rpm across both manual and automatic models. The Triton achieves a quoted fuel consumption of 7.6L/100km but we didn’t get to verify this as we had the van on for virtually all the trip.

In GLX trim, the Triton retails for $37,490 (drive-away) including the excellent aluminium tray. For that, the Triton is pretty Spartan inside. It’s an entry-level spec that’s more designed for the tradie or fleet buyer, but will fit the bill as the basis for a tourer or off-roader with a few mods added.

That said, this spec does give some creature comforts. Air-conditioning is standard – and excellent by the way – there is also cruise control, a basic trip computer, Bluetooth with steering-wheel-mounted phone controls, 12-volt and USB plugs, as well as electric windows and mirrors and the afore-mentioned touchscreen audio system.

The seats aren’t too bad with durable cloth covering and a reasonable amount of adjustment, plus your tilt and telescopic adjustment of the steering wheel; so it’s easy to get a comfortable driving position. Storage is limited being a single-cab, but you do get a storage box between the seats and big door pockets.

Our Triton was fitted with big industrial-gauge rubber floor mats which looked like they’d outlast the vehicle, but proved handy when out in the bush.

Being a four-wheel drive one-tonner, the ride unladen is pretty rough, but it smoothed out a bit with the van on the back.

The GLX Tritons get 16-inch steel wheels shod with 245/70-series Bridgestone Dueler tyres which are allegedly all-terrain rubber, but are more road-biased than off-road.

The level of insulation on this spec isn’t high so there is a bit of road noise when travelling but it’s not too invasive and you soon get used to it.

The five-speed auto is a pretty slick ‘box with smooth changes up and down. Fourth is a direct 1:1 ratio and fifth is a tall 0.716. This translates to a loping cruise that sees the diesel spinning at 1900rpm at 100km/h in fifth. It’ll jump up about 1000 revs on the downchange to fourth putting you smack bang in the middle of peak torque and maximum power – great for those long hill climbs with the load on.

The economy from the little turbo-diesel varied quite a bit on our trip with the range generally varying between 12.0-14.0L/100km. Overall for the 3000-plus kilometres of our trip we averaged 13.4L/100km.

The performance of the 2.4-litre oiler mated to the auto was remarkably good. At times I’d shift manually – especially when climbing or descending hills, but for the most part I left it to its own devices and let it do its thing, which it did very well. The Triton had no trouble towing my dual-axle van and I didn’t feel like I was holding up the traffic to any great degree.

We didn’t get to try out the four-wheel drive capabilities of the Triton save for slipping it into 4H to get up a long and steep dirt driveway, and a bit of low range for some delicate manoeuvring of my van on the farm. But for the enthusiasts, the Triton has a very useful low range ratio of 2.566:1.

Overall, I enjoyed the Triton. My only gripe would be the space in the cab, and if I was to buy one, I’d certainly consider the Club Cab for that bit of extra interior room at the expense of not much tray space.