During testing for the award, a crew of highly qualified and experienced four-wheel drive judges pitted Mitsubishi’s victorious Pajero and the Triton 4x4 against a selection of the best new and upgraded four-wheel drives of 2008.

Putting the six finalists through their paces on risky sand dunes, steep hill descents and climbs, challenging water crossings and, of course, covering plenty of blacktop kilometres, the judges scored each contender against stringent criteria to decide a winner.

The honour of Overlander’s 4WD of The Year award goes to the vehicle that scored highest against the judges’ criteria.

Editor of Overlander magazine, Mathieu Raudonikis lead the judging panel for the awards, and agreed that the Mitsubishi Pajero was the best all-rounder for 2008.

"We’d go so far as to say the NT Pajero is the best handling 4WD ever from a Japanese car company.

"It really has the power to match the sporty chassis and the Paj absolutely ate up smooth dirt roads without losing composure when they got rougher," said Raudonikis.

Overlander’s senior road tester, Fraser Stronach added that the Pajero "simply does everything well and nothing badly, and as such is the worthy recipient of the 4WD of the Year crown for 2008."

The icing on the cake for Mitsubishi was to have two vehicles in the final six for this prestigious shortlist of the best four-wheel drives for 2008.

The Mitsubishi Triton 4x4 was named a deserving finalist, ranking overall 5th, being praised for its attention to security and safety with the inclusion of its revolutionary Super Select system that finally gives utility drivers the option of full-time 4WD.

Pajero’s latest accolade follows the recent announcement of the NT’s win of 4X4 Australia Magazine’s 4x4 of The Year award earlier this month.

MMAL’s president and chief executive officer, Robert McEniry is proud that the Pajero has once again been recognised as the best all-round four-wheel drive.

"The Pajero has had a deserved place in the hearts of Australian four-wheel drive enthusiasts for over 25 years. I am so pleased to see that the mighty Pajero has continued to match the increasing demands of the modern adventurer, and still offers all the power, efficiency, towing, functionality and style you could ever need," said Mr McEniry.

"To receive this award further cements the Pajero as a class-leader and simply a fantastic vehicle that will take whatever is thrown at it in its stride," McEniry concluded.

The 2009 NT Pajero four-wheel drive line-up, released in December 2008, includes a stunning upgraded 3.2-litre turbo diesel engine, stylish cabin and exterior refinements, significantly increased towing capacity and numerous revised specifications to the popular three-door and five-door range.