Ford Everest Sport vs Isuzu MU-X LS-T vs Mitsubishi Pajero Sport GSR 2023 comparison review: off-road test

The Ford Everest Sport is available as a 4WD wagon with a 3.0-litre turbo-diesel V6 engine or a rear-wheel drive wagon with a 2.0-litre four-cylinder twin-turbo – both have a 10-speed automatic transmission. Our test vehicle has the V6 engine. It has selectable 4WD with a 4A (4WD Auto) mode.

The V6 variant has a manufacturer suggested retail price of $69,590, before on-road costs, but our test vehicle was equipped with the Touring Pack ($2300), Towing Pack ($1700) and it has prestige paint ('Sedona Orange', $700).

Standard features include a 12.0-inch touchscreen (in portrait-style layout) with sat nav, Apple CarPlay (wireless or wired) and Android Auto, a wireless smartphone charger, dual zone climate control, heated and ventilated power-adjustable, front seats, and leather-accented trim.

It has 20-inch alloy wheels with Goodyear Wrangler Territory HTs (255/55R20), LED headlights with auto high beam, LED daytime running lights, LED tail-lights, and hands-free rear door.

If you’d prefer a more off-road-suited wheel-and-tyre combination, you can choose the 18-inch black alloys on All-Terrain tyres as no-cost options.

Exterior paint jobs include the no-cost 'Arctic White', or choose from 'Meteor Grey', 'Aluminium Silver', 'Blue Lightning', Sedona Orange (our test vehicle’s paint), 'Equinox Bronze' and 'Shadow Black' – each costing $700 a pop.

The Isuzu MU-X LS-T is $69,488 including all options and on-road costs, and that’s an Isuzu-provided drive-away price that’s correct at time of writing. 

It is the top-shelf variant in the three-variant MU-X line-up.

Optional extras on our test vehicle include tow bar kit ($1182.25), 12-pin plug ($393.25), electronic brake controller ($896.05), rubber mats ($241.67) and premium paint ('Galaxy Blue Mica', $650.)

The MU-X has a 3.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine, a six-speed automatic transmission, and a part-time four-wheel drive system.

Standard features include a 9.0-inch multimedia display with sat-nav, Android Auto and wireless Apple CarPlay, an eight-speaker sound system, remote engine start, smart entry and start, and new 20-inch six-spoke machined-alloy wheels on 265/60R20 Bridgestone 684II HT tyres.

The most recent round of updates to the LS-T included a new grille design across the range, revised LED tail-light surrounds, and a new auto-off feature for blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert systems when towing.

Exterior paint jobs include 'Mineral White', 'Mercury Silver Metallic', 'Obsidian Grey Mica', 'Basalt Black Mica', 'Magnetic Red Mica', 'Cobalt Blue Mica', 'Moonstone White Pearl' and the new Galaxy Blue Mica (on our test vehicle).

Note: the Mitsubishi Pajero Sport GSR provided to us for this test was a 22MY (model year) vehicle; the prices (listed below, including accessories) are applicable to a 23MY vehicle. 

The Mitsubishi Pajero Sport GSR has a manufacturer suggested retail price (MSRP) of $62,440 (excluding on-road costs), but our test vehicle was fitted with a bunch of accessories including Redarc Electric brake controller with harness ($689), a towbar kit with 12-pin plug ($1555), carpet mat set ($236), a 50mm chrome towball ($41), so if it were a 23MY vehicle its total MSRP would be $64,961.

Our test vehicles come in Galaxy Blue Mica (MU-X), Sedona Orange (Everest) and Black Mica (Pajero Sport). (Image: Glen Sullivan)

Standard features include an 8.0-inch touchscreen multimedia system (with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto), paddle shifters on the steering wheel, leather-appointed seats, power-adjustable and heated front seats, LED daytime running lights, 'Multi Around Monitor', dual zone climate control, 18-inch black alloy wheels and a power tailgate.

The Pajero Sport has 2.4-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine, an eight-speed automatic transmission, and a four-wheel drive system (Super Select II 4WD) that enables it to be driven in full-time 4WD, even on high-traction surfaces.

Exterior paint jobs for the GSR include 'Black Mica' (pearlescent, on our test vehicle), 'Terra Rosa' (pearlescent) and 'White Diamond' (prestige).

The Everest is an impressive off-roader and, in Sport grade, it's a vehicle well suited to an adventurous lifestyle.

The V6 is torquey, rarely stressed and it offers plenty of its 600Nm across a wide rev range.

The 10-speed auto transmission is cluey – most of the previous-gen’s scrambling between ratios has been ironed out – and if you want to take over duties yourself you can do so via the shifter.

That said, the so-called ‘e-Shifter’ in 4WD Everests is a mildly annoying toggle/rocker-switch that's a bit too fiddly for my liking, even though I eventually became used to it (read: grudgingly put up with it).

The Everest Sport is well suited to an adventurous lifestyle. (Image: Glen Sullivan)

Low-range gearing is adequate and the Everest has an electronic rear diff lock for more dirt-grabbing control.

Driver-assist tech aimed at making 4WDing easier is plentiful and includes off-road driving modes such as Mud/Ruts and Sand, which seamlessly and effectively adjust engine outputs, throttle, transmission, braking, as well as traction and stability controls to best suit the driving conditions.

Also, the track-view/360-degree camera and vehicle-info read-out (displaying driveline/diff lock indicators, and steering, pitch and roll angles) – are nice features, but they’re more a novelty than a necessity.

The front camera, designed to offer the driver more ground-level visibility than you're afforded over the Everest’s huge bonnet, delivers a skewed fish-eye view of the track, and is adversely affected by the mix of bright sunlight and deep shadows of thick bushland.

The Everest has a listed length of 4914mm. (Image: Jarryd Sullivan)

Bonus: I’m now used to the front wheel track indicators on the screen and consider them a handy addition.

But all the tech wizardry combines to make the Everest almost too clever, almost too clinical in its execution, a bit too far removed in driving terms from its surroundings.

Hill descent control is quietly effective and, as it has shown in our recent Ranger tests, it again held the Everest to a safely controlled 3.0-4.0km/h while we tackled short but steep downhills at our 4WD testing grounds.

Size does matter when it comes to navigating a vehicle through thick bushland, and out in the rough stuff, bigger doesn’t always mean better. 

The Everest's underbelly feels vulnerable. (Image: Jarryd Sullivan)

The Everest has a listed length of 4914mm (with a 2900mm wheelbase), a width of 2015mm, and a height of 1837mm. It has a turning circle of 11.8m and an official kerb weight is 2457kg.

So, this is not an insubstantial wagon to steer along narrow overgrown tracks.

And, ultimately, its dimensions are what prevent the Everest from being a real off-road beast. When you drive it you have to constantly be mindful of its size and drive accordingly, with a very careful and measured approach not required in more nimble 4WD wagons, such as the MU-X or Pajero Sport.

It feels low – even though official ground clearance is listed as 226mm – and its underbelly feels vulnerable.

The Everest's wheelbase especially, negatively affects its ability to traverse sharply-angled rock steps without experiencing undercarriage bumps or side-step scrapes.

Approach angle is 30.2 degrees, departure angle is 25 degrees, and ramp break-over is 21.9 degrees, but remember that if you fit a towbar to the rear that will impact the Everest’s departure angle.

Compromised off-road angles are not always a serious issue – and those can be negated to a degree with careful and considered driving, but they are far from ideal and if you want to avoid belly-scraping and sidestep run-ins with rock, tree stumps or grounded tree branches, then it's something to keep in mind.

Wading depth is 800mm and, while we punched it through a knee-deep mudhole four times, we never came close to challenging its water-crossing ability. 

The Everest Sport's 20-inch alloy wheels are less desirable when 4WDing. (Image: Glen Sullivan)

The Everest’s wheel travel – how far the axle can move up and down relative to the chassis – is probably the weakest of these three vehicles, as the other two in this test consistently dropped tyres closer to the dirt, or even to the dirt, on terrain where the Everest was left hanging.

Another strike against the Everest is the fact that, as standard, it has 20-inch alloy wheels with Goodyear Wrangler Territory HTs (255/55R20).

A 20-inch wheel-and-tyre combination is a no-no when 4WDing, with 18-, 17- or even 16-inch far more preferable.

A 20-inch tyre does not give the driver much flexibility in terms of how much air they can drop out of the tyre for off-roading – because there isn’t much tyre to start with!

The MU-X is a solid off-road tourer. (Image: Glen Sullivan)

Also, when you start dropping air pressures in a 20-inch tyre, it impacts the vehicle’s running ground clearance, so making an already vulnerable undercarriage even more susceptible to damage.

To Ford’s credit, it does offer 18-inch black alloys on All-Terrain tyres as a no-cost option.

And even though the Everest’s standard tyres are described as “all-season”, they’re realistically not suited for anything beyond light-duty 4WDing.

As always, with most standard 4WDs, these kinds of problems – compromised off-road angles and less-than-ideal off-road tyres – can be addressed with a mild (two inch or so) aftermarket suspension lift and a good set of aggressive LT-construction all-terrain tyres.

The MU-X has a listed length of 4850mm. (Image: Jarryd Sullivan)

Another thing, the brake pedal feel spongy, taking a long time between initial foot pressure to actually 'biting', and then the brakes – discs all round – come into play quite abruptly.

Otherwise, I like the new Everest. It's nice to drive, comfortable and packed full of tech, but I reckon it's better suited to towing and recreational open-road or bush track duties than being used as a hard-core 4WD.

The MU-X is a solid off-road tourer. I’ve been critical of it in the past, saying the platform underpinning it is better suited to the D-Max than the MU-X. And I stand by that.

But the MU-X has proven itself to be more than capable of tackling serious 4WD challenges without flinching. The gap between suitability of platform for the D-Max and MU-X has narrowed, in the latter’s favour.

The MU-X tackled serious 4WD challenges with ease. (Image: Jarryd Sullivan)

The punchy engine and six-speed auto work really well for low-speed, low-range off-roading.

As mentioned, while it’s not the torquiest engine in the 4WD wagon realm, there is plenty of torque on tap across a wide rev range. It never feels stressed, you can keep revs low and controlled and it ticks along nicely, getting the job done. 

Low-range gearing is good, throttle response is tight – with a pedal that's not too sensitive when you’re traversing bumpy 4WD-only territory – and traction control has been recalibrated over previous-gens to exhibit a tighter effectiveness. 

The MU-X's rear diff lock can be engaged at speeds up to 8.0km/h and only when you're in four-wheel drive low-range (4L).

It will disengage when you hit 30km/h or more. Note: when you engage the diff lock, off-road traction control is disengaged. It's a handy addition that'll help to keep you moving on traction-compromised terrain and give you peace of mind on the tracks.

Hill descent control is impressive, holding our test vehicle to a controlled 3.0-4.0km/h while driving down our set-piece downhills.

The MU-X is 4850mm long (with a 2855mm wheelbase), 1870mm wide, and 1825mm high. It has a 11.4m turning circle.

The MU-X has approach, departure and ramp-over angles of 29.2 degrees, 26.4 degrees, and 23.1 degrees, respectively – all standard measurements for an unmodified 4WD wagon of this kind.

The MU-X LS-T wears showroom-standard 265/50R20 Highway-Terrain tyres. (Image: Glen Sullivan)

So, this is generally an impressive off-roader in stock-standard form, but there are a few trade-offs.

It has an official 235mm of ground clearance, but it still feels vulnerable at times to rubbing the earth with its undercarriage and pronounced side steps.

This low-riding sensation can be negated with slower, more considered driving, but can be more effectively resolved with an aftermarket suspension / lift if you plan to use your MU-X as an off-road tourer.

Wading depth is an official 800mm and while we punched it through our knee-deep mudhole four times – across and back, across and back – we never came close to seriously testing the MU-X’s water-crossing ability. 

The Pajero Sport is a highly manoeuvrable 4WD on an ageing platform. (Image: Glen Sullivan)

The MU-X’s wheel travel – how far the axle can move up and down relative to the chassis – was, by increments, probably the best of these three vehicles, stretching its tyres closest to the dirt, getting the most flex.

But a noticeable trade-off is its 20-inch wheel-and-tyre combination, which are far from ideal for 4WDing.

In order to make your MU-X even more effective off-road, buy a set of decent 18-inch all-terrains to replace its showroom-standard 265/50R20 Highway-Terrain tyres.

However, despite some of its admittedly minor flaws, the MU-X is still one of the best 4WD wagons on the market when it comes to difficult off-roading.

The Pajero Sport has a listed length of 4825mm. (Image: Jarryd Sullivan)

The Pajero Sport is a highly manoeuvrable 4WD on an ageing platform, but it carries its age pretty bloody well.

Official dimensions are listed as 4825mm long (with a 2800mm wheelbase), 1815mm wide, and 1835mm high. It has a 11m turning circle. 

The Pajero Sport is the smallest in this trio and a very nimble and very capable off-roader, largely because you're able to tap into a few different ways engineered to help you to dominate tough low-range challenges.

First up, it has selectable off-road modes, including Gravel, Sand, Mud/Snow (when in high-range 4WD) and Rock (when in low-range 4WD).

The Pajero Sport is a very nimble and capable off-roader. (Image: Jarryd Sullivan)

All of those adjust engine output, transmission settings and braking, the aim being to produce superior traction to suit those specific conditions and terrains.

Next, it has decent high- and low-range gearing and a very effective Super Select II 4WD system.

Via a dial near the shifter, you can switch from 2H into 4H (four-wheel drive high-range), if you're not already driving with 4H engaged, and that gives you the best traction possible in low-traction conditions, which you may face on back-country roads and dirt tracks.

There's no risk of transmission wind-up because the centre diff is open when 4H is engaged in the Pajero Sport. It really does add an extra element of safety and sure-footedness to your driving experience.

Then turn the dial to 4HLc (four-wheel drive high-range locked centre diff) and you're ready to take on more difficult terrain but at lower speeds, because the centre diff is no longer open.

If you're keen to tackle even harder stuff than high-range territory, turn the dial to 4LLc (four-wheel drive low-range locked centre diff) and the Pajero Sport has a real opportunity to excel in low-speed low-range four-wheel driving.

And, finally, as well as its centre diff-lock – which is activated when 4HLc (4WD high-range, locked centre diff) or 4LLc (4WD low-range, locked centre diff) is selected – the Pajero Sport has a rear diff lock, which is engaged/disengaged via a button in front of the shifter and this further help you to easily maintain a safe forward momentum.

Hill descent control works well, sustaining a controlled low speed all the way down every hill.

The Pajero Sport's tyres would perform better with more aggressive rubber. (Image: Glen Sullivan)

Its riding on Toyo Open Country A32 all-terrain tyres (265/60R18 110H) and while they’re preferable in off-road terms to the 20-inch wheel-and-tyre packages on the other two vehicles in this test, it would perform even better with more aggressive rubber.

Wheel travel is good, although not the best in this trio, ground clearance (218mm) is pretty good, although you still have to mind your driving line through rough terrain and be mindful of approach, departure and ramp-over angles.

All-round, the Pajero Sport is an effective off-road package, and does everything in a safe and controlled way.

All of these vehicles are well catered for in terms of accessories, including a wide range available from the carmakers themselves and also from Australia’s thriving aftermarket industry – think bullbars, nudge bars, snorkels, towbar kits, cargo barriers and the like.

The Everest is covered by a five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty.

Ford offers a five-year roadside assistance, and a capped-price service plan.

Service intervals are scheduled for every 12 months or 15,000km and the maintenance cost for the first 48 months/60,000km (the first four services) is capped at $329 a pop for MY22 or MY23 Everests.

The Everest is covered by Ford's five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty. (Image: Glen Sullivan)

The MU-X has a six-year/150,000km warranty and seven years of roadside assistance. That warranty is okay in terms of years, but unlimited km would be a welcome sweetener.

Service intervals are scheduled for every 12 months or 15,000km, whichever occurs soonest.

Capped price servicing covers the first seven scheduled services (or up to seven years/105,000km, whichever occurs first) for 19MY and later vehicles.

The cost per service is $409 at 12 months/15,000km, $429 at 24 months/30,000km, $629 at 36 months/45,000km, $529 at 48 months/60,000km, $319 at 60 months/75,000km, $769 at 72 months/90,000km, and $429 at 84 months/105,000km – for a total cost of $3513, according to Isuzu.

The MU-X is covered of Isuzu's six-year/150,000km warranty. (Image: Glen Sullivan)

The Pajero Sport is covered by a 10-year/200,000 kilometre new car warranty, (whichever occurs first and when all scheduled services are completed at a Mitsubishi Dealership), 10 years of capped price servicing, and four years of roadside assistance.

Service intervals are set for 12 months or 15,000km, and capped price servicing covers the first 10 regular services at those scheduled 15,000km/12 month intervals.

The average cost per service (over 10 years) is $599 a time – and that’s been calculated by CarsGuide’s crack team of expert bean-counters.

The Pajero Sport is covered by Mitsubishi's 10-year/200,000 kilometre warranty. (Image: Glen Sullivan)