BA Grandis

Now in its fourth generation, Mitsubishi elected to rename the Nimbus seven-seater Grandis.

It was the first all-new vehicle to reach Australia with Mitsubishi’s bolder exterior design and stands as a vast improvement over the Nimbus and van-based Starwagon it replaced.

But it is far from being a revelation in the often-overlooked people-mover class.

Still, the Grandis does have significant mechanical and packaging improvements over the faithful Nimbus and brings a new level of safety equipment to the class - six airbags and ABS brakes, for instance.

Motivation comes from a 2.4-litre SOHC 16-valve four-cylinder engine emitting 121kW of power and 217Nm of torque – channelled through a four-speed automatic gearbox with Tiptronic-style shifts.

From August 2006 the Grandis range was re-jigged with the renaming of the base model to LS, while a sporty VRX version was introduced, with its own grille, bumper and wheel designs headlining a raft of trim and specification upgrades.