Many buyers looking for genuine 4 x 4's don't want trucks but do want performance coupled with creature comforts.  Others are just looking for enough room to carry kids, dogs and camping gear safely for the holidays.
With that in mind there's a lot to like about Mitsubishi's Challenger 4x4 the latest in their SUV stable.
The base model is the LS available as a 5 seater with a 5 speed manual or a 5 speed auto transmission.  The LS can take 2 extra seats but only when teamed with the auto transmission.  The XLS which is only available with the 5 speed auto can be configured with 5 or 7 seats.
Both models are powered by the 2.5litre 4 cylinder Hi Power Turbo Diesel that powers the Triton – giving 131kw of power and 350Nm of torque.  All models have Mitsubishi's Super Select 4WD system – with four distinct driving modes allowing on the move shifting at up to 100km/h from normal 2WD to high range 4WD.  The viscous coupled centre differential instantly transforms your rear wheel drive into a sure footed all-wheel drive.  The next step locks the centre diff. and now you're really 4 wheel driving in high range.  The final slot on the 4WD lever drops you into low range 4WD with the centre diff locked and you can crawl through just about anything.  As well as all this the Challenger also has an electronically operated rear diff lock.
Climate Control, and Cruise Control are standard in the LS but Sat Nav, Bluetooth, Reversing camera and sensors are options.
To test our Challenger LS Diesel we left Melbourne and hit the highway for a long weekend headed for the edge of the outback, taking in Mildura, Broken Hill, Menindee Lakes, Ivanhoe and Hay, with a side trip out of Broken Hill, to the ghost town of Silverton where many Aussie films have been made like Mad Max, Priscilla Queen of the Desert and a Town Like Alice.
Our seven seater was fully loaded with 4 adults and two kids plus enough luggage to stay away for a month.
Some 550kms of freeway and highway cruising, which the Challenger ate up with ease, saw us in Mildura for our first night.  Next day was a short 300km hop to Broken Hill and further west to Silverton, but all passengers were comfortable and there was plenty to see with the changing desert like landscape, wild emus, kangaroos, goats, camels and eagles.
We then headed on to Menindee Lakes to marvel at all the water pouring into this vast waterway, a lot of the volume contributed by the now swollen Darling River.
Due to recent rains a number of roads had been closed but we managed to get down the just re-opened 210km stretch of dirt from Menindee to Ivanhoe on the Cobb Highway.
The Challenger drove impeccably on this deeply rutted often muddy section of road peppered with numerous cattle grids and floodways.  In all-wheel drive mode the vehicle drove more or less like it was on a paved highway and at 110kmh was never unpredictable.  The 4 x 4 performance was even more satisfying considering we just had standard issue Bridgestone Dueller H/T road tyres under us.
Once into Ivanhoe we pressed on to our final destination of Hay which was a further 300kms.  This took us via the towns of Booligal and One Tree, through treeless saltbush plains where the horizon stretches forever and the sheep grazing in this country produce their famous saltbush lamb.
Challenger falls neatly into the sporty SUV department, but unlike many others claiming to go anywhere, Challenger certainly can, and like its work mate Triton, is rough and tough.  It can go where others can't and give you a great ride at the same time.  It also has fantastic pulling power.  With a 2,500kg towing capacity it can also accommodate most vans and boats with ease.
All in all there are very few negatives - a fairly noisy engine and lack of side curtain airbags limited beyond the two front rows, this SUV really does what the brochure says it will and more.  Prices range from a touch over $44,000 to just under $59,000 and represent excellent value, particularly when you consider Mitsubishi's 5 year/130,000km warranty plus their 10 year/160,000km warranty on the drive train.  On top of that there's also 5 year roadside assistance.

Tested June 2010
Test vehicle supplied by Mitsubishi Motors Australia Limited