1998 4x4 of the Year Models: Mitsubishi Montero Sport LS

If you were hoping for dramatic new faces in this year's test, look to the Mercedes and the Durango. The other entrants should be familiar, including the mid-level Mitsubishi Montero Sport LS, which was eligible for last year's testing but wasn't yet on the market. Since the Sport has been for sale for a year, you've no doubt seen plenty of them on the road. Even though we have too, we just couldn't warm up to its appearance, which is more rounded than the original Montero, so it fell near bottom in the body-styling category, including points deducted for too-tall side mirrors. One benefit of our test vehicle was the exterior tire carrier, which omits the across-the-tailgate third brake light seen on most Montero Sports. Removing the spare from the underside also aids departure angle, and we never had a problem with the gate-mounted spare rattling even a bit.

Although we weren't fans of the interior either (especially not the above-the-dash voltmeter and oil pressure gauge placement), we were really impressed with the amount of cargo space, including tons of hidden compartments-impressive enough for the full Monty to nail Second Place in the cargo category, right behind the big ol' Yukon.

Once we got past its looks, its personality was much more appealing. Four-wheel-drive engagement was topnotch, and blazing down fire roads and across sand was a blast. It was optioned with the Off-Road Package, including a locking rear differential that gave great traction at the touch of a button. We were told the locker would only engage in low range, which was true, but we found that it didn't self-disengaged above 12 mph as reported. The locking diff helped the Montero get deeper into off-road situations, and even though the stock nerf bars limited ground clearance, they did an excellent job of protecting the body from dents. Underbody clearance was a bit slim, but there was no bottoming out, thanks to the suspension.

Yet its 3.0L V-6 wasn't a perfect match for the five-speed manual tranny-it needed a lower First gear, more low-rpm torque, or both. As a result, we spent a lot of time trying to find the right gear so the engine wouldn't get bogged down. It scored really well in dragstrip brake testing.

The Sport was basically the middle child of the test-it scored dead center in nearly all the categories. Yet when a quick run from one end of the desert to the other was called for, the Montero Sport was the ride of choice.

Mitsubishi Montero Sport LS
Likes
•Button-activated rear locker
•Easy 4WD engagement
•Great cargo area

Dislikes
•Least-liked interior
•Needs lower First gear
•Low-ranked styling