Mitsubishi Triton vs Peugeot Partner

What's the difference?

There was a time when utes were bought purely for work but some these days look more like high-riding prestige cars with their sparkling pearlescent paint, sumptuous leather seats that heat, cool and massage, high-tech hybrid drivetrains, independent rear suspensions and 0-100km/h times that were once the sole domain of supercars.

However, traditional ute buyers like tradies, farmers and fleets are still well catered for by some brands when seeking a utilitarian turbo-diesel workhorse designed primarily for hard yakka.

Mitsubishi has recently added 4x2 and 4x4 cab-chassis variants to its local Triton line-up comprising single-cab, club-cab and dual-cab body style across most model grades to broaden the Triton’s appeal for either working roles or adventuring.

We recently spent a week aboard one of these new cab-chassis variants in base GLX specification, to see from a tradie’s perspective if it has what it takes to cut it in the rough-and-tough world of working utes.

Is there a class of vehicle more overlooked in Australia than the humble light van?

While the pragmatic and often hatchback-based small van is dwarfed in size and sales by the popular ute as the commercial vehicle of choice here, the case is completely reversed in Europe, where light commercial vans dominate city streets, favoured for their compact nature and relative fuel efficiency.

What is it about Australia which makes the ute more successful? Is it just our history of locally producing them? Do you really even need one, or are the Europeans on to something? 

I spent a week reacquainting myself with the freshly facelifted 2025 Peugeot Partner to find out.