Mitsubishi Raider Review

2007 Mitsubishi Raider LS Extended Cab Shown

Though known mostly for its sporty cars and SUVs, Mitsubishi has been dabbling with small pickups for almost three decades in the U.S. market. In fact, one of its first U.S.-bound products was a compact pickup truck rebadged as a Dodge.

Today, there's the Mitsubishi Raider. The brand's only pickup offering, its aggressive styling allows it to slot in well with other fearlessly styled products in the Mitsubishi line. However, there's some role reversal going on, as underneath the Raider's bulging fenders is essentially the midsize Dodge Dakota pickup.

This lineage does give the Raider a few advantages. It has plenty of towing capacity and it handles better than most competing pickup trucks. But there are plenty of drawbacks as well.

Neither the V6 nor the V8 provide anywhere close to class-leading power. The Mitsubishi Raider also lacks a longer bed option and the refinement of its competitors. As such, most compact or midsize pickup shoppers will be better served by competing trucks such as the Nissan Frontier or Toyota Tacoma.

Current Mitsubishi Raider

The Mitsubishi Raider comes in two body styles: a "Double Cab" crew cab, which has four full-size doors, or an extended cab, which has two reverse-opening rear doors and a longer cargo bed. The extended cab is available in only one trim, the LS. It is equipped with a 3.7-liter V6 engine capable of 210 horsepower. A six-speed manual transmission is standard and a four-speed automatic is optional. Rear-wheel drive is the only drive choice in this case.

Selecting a Double Cab is a bit more involved. There are three trims: LS, SE and Duro Cross. The Double Cab LS comes with either the 3.7-liter V6 or a 235-hp 4.7-liter V8, while the SE comes with the V8. The V6 is available with a four-speed automatic and the V8 gets a five-speed automatic. Four-wheel drive is available only on the Double Cab LS. The Duro Cross offers the increased ground clearance, beefy suspension, skid plates and aggressive tires of a 4WD truck but in actuality is a 2WD vehicle.

The Raider's cabin is spacious. The Double Cab has a respectable amount of room for four adults. The rear seats flip up and reveal built-in storage trays. The extended cab doesn't have as much interior space, and its rear seats are quite cramped. Style-wise, the Raider has a long way to go. The fit and finish isn't up to the standards of several competing models and there isn't much to distinguish the pickup's cabin other than a bit of aluminum trim and a few white-faced gauges.

In road tests, we found the Mitsubishi Raider to be a rather nimble drive. The Raider feels stable and steady on all manner of roads. The suspension is tuned to provide carlike handling while keeping the ride comfortable, even in bumpy situations. Handling is excellent on- or off-road, and the pickup's shift-on-the-fly four-wheel-drive system provides especially good traction on rough terrain. The major downside is under the hood. Buyers should look past the V6 and go directly for the V8, which isn't particularly impressive either. It's just the better of the two choices.

Past Mitsubishi Raiders

The Mitsubishi Raider debuted for the 2006 model year. Only minor changes have occurred since. Used-truck shoppers might encounter a couple different trim levels. Previously, Mitsubishi offered an XLS trim (similar to the current SE) as well as a 4WD version of the Duro Cross.

SELECT A SPECIFIC MITSUBISHI RAIDER MODEL YEAR*

* Edmunds.com maintains vehicle data as far back as 1990.