New Car Overview of the 2006 Mitsubishi Raider Mid-Size Pickup Truck

Description: Mid-Size Pickup Truck
Base MSRP Range: $19,180 - $33,920
Invoice Price Range: $18,019-31,867
Where built: USA

The new mid-size truck from Mitsubishi shows V6 or V8 engines for two-wheel-drive (2WD) or four-wheel-drive (4WD) traction in three trims -- LS, DuroCross and XLS.

Raider also offers two different cab formats. The Extended Cab contains two rows of seats for four and two rear-hinged access doors, while the Double Cab has four full-size doors and seats for five. A truck box behind the cab varies in length. Raider Extended Cab has a long-bed design, while the Double Cab uses an abbreviated bed.

Raider's V6 engine displaces 3.7 liters and runs to 210 hp, but the 4.7-liter V8 reaches 230 hp. Raider LS employs the V6 exclusively and XLS gets the V8 only, while DuroCross offers either plant. And Raider has two 4WD choices -- either an on-demand 4WD system for LS and DuroCross or the full-time AWD system on XLS with 4WD high and low settings.

The marque of Mitsubishi mounts on four different cars in 2006 for the North American market plus three sport-utility vehicles and a new mid-size truck. Eclipse, the sporty 2+2 coupe, pops out of Mitsubishi's Illinois assembly plant in a bold new design this year, while the truck -- called Raider -- rolls out of a DaimlerChrysler factory in Michigan with V8 power plus Extended Cab and Double Cab versions.