Now that the winners of our annual Top 12 Best Buys awards have been revealed (grab a copy of the April 2021 issue of CAR magazine for the full article), we can take a look at the individual categories.
So, which vehicle won the large SUV/crossover segment? Well, the Mitsubishi Pajero Sport beat the likes of the Toyota Fortuner and Ford Everest to the gong.
As a reminder, big bakkie-based family SUVs from the likes of Toyota, Ford, Isuzu and Mitsubishi compete in this sector, as does the Kia Sorento and Hyundai Santa Fe. We favour vehicles with diverse talents and good value for money.
Sometimes many intangibles go into a great car. Yes, the recently updated Pajero Sport nails the brief in terms of affordability and value for money – especially at the top of range where an all-bells-and-whistles Exceed model undercuts similar competition by upwards of R100k; but it’s in less obvious ways that the Mitsubishi snatches the award here, too.
Its recent makeover has imbued it with a sleeker, less polarising aesthetic. As we found in our February 2021 test against the Fortuner, it possesses all the high-quality specification and refinement of its archrival, while feeling lighter on its feet to drive and more robust when the going gets tough. In our opinion you really can’t go wrong with the Pajero Sport.
