Best Motorbuys: February 21, 2020

NEW CAR REVIEW
By Ross Kiddie
Mitsubishi Outlander Sport
Car makers have become increasingly
aware of the need for safety. I applaud
that, and most of the cars now sold
new are high on safety kit. Mitsubishi, in
particular, build with state-of-the-art passive
and active elements.
However, there are some drivers who
don’t want or need all of the trick warning
features, and in most cases manufacturers
have offered the function to switch many
of them off – lane departure warning, blind
spot monitoring, rear cross traffic alert, to
name a few.
Mitsubishi has gone one step further, it
has completely deleted some of those
electronic safety elements from the
Outlander, not all variants, but a limited
edition Outlander Sport has arrived and it
sits a value-packed $39,990.
For the alarmists, that hasn’t affected the
Outlander’s excellent five-star Australasian
New Car Assessment Program safety rating,
it is still intact, and if you have just $40k
to spend on an Outlander and want those
passive features, the XLS has them, along
with VRX ($45k).
To my way of thinking, the Outlander Sport
is great buying, and it would be the sport
utility vehicle for me, it is one which allows
the driver to trust his own judgement
around spatial awareness.
The Outlander has been with us since the
early 2000s and, while it has had several
model lifecycles along the way, the concept
hasn’t changed, it is the quintessential
SUV that has blitzed the New Zealand new
car market over the years, and has been a
popular used Japanese import. It stands out
for its ease of use, practicality, functionality
and, what’s more, it’s just a darn nice vehicle
to drive, it feels so right in all areas.
The new Sport is available only as a
limited edition model, the first batch has a
production run of just 300 units, although
another shipment is likely to follow.
The Sport is a four-wheel-drive model and
comes with seven seats (fronts heated
and electrically adjustable), full leather
trim, electric sunroof, electric tailgate,
keyless entry and ignition, and 8in multimedia
dashboard display. It also gets extra
cosmetic treatment – big spoiler, 18in black
wheels, and a host of piano black cosmetic
trim detailing.
Elsewhere, the Outlander Sport is the
desirable SUV which I mentioned in my
introduction. It has a comfortable interior
environment, and is spacious. The cargo
area measures up to 1608-litres, which is
enough capacity to carry those tricky items
we tend to move from time to time such as
the cardboard box the Kiddie-household’s
new television came in.
While it carries a Sport badge, mechanically
the Outlander retains the tried and true
powerplant which has essentially served it
since its introduction. It’s a 2.4-litre fourcylinder
petrol engine (diesel available
in other variants), and is hooked to a
continuously variable automatic.
Mitsubishi claims 126kW and 224Nm of
torque from the engine, these are par
figures and contribute to good performance
under all conditions – bearing in mind that
many SUVS are used for towing, and the
Outlander in this form is rated with a 1600kg
tow rating. In terms of acceleration, there’s
enough strength from under the bonnet to
record a 9sec standstill to 100km/h time.
It is also an engine that has been continually
developed so that fuel usage is minimised.
Mitsubishi also claims a combined cycle
average of 7.2-litres per 100km. That is
consistent with the fuel usage readout in
the evaluation car, it was constantly sitting
around 9l/100km during both inner city
driving and on a highway loop.
I used the roads near the Selwyn River to
evaluate the Sport, it sits beautifully on the
road and whisks through the air without
overly noticeable sound.
Power is channelled to the front wheels –
Page 22
Price: Mitsubishi Outlander Sport,
$39,990
Dimensions: Length, 4695mm;
width, 1810mm; height, 1710mm
Configuration: Four-cylinder, fourwheel-drive,
2360cc, 126kW, 224Nm,
continuously variable automatic
Performance: 0-100km/h, 9sec
Fuel usage: 7.2l/100km
spreading to all four when slippage up front
is detected. A centre console switch can be
pressed to dial in fully-engaged four-wheeldrive
and centre diff lock.
I only left the seal for a short excursion into
the loose shingle. SUVs aren’t really offroaders
as such, but with 190mm of ground
clearance the Outlander does have genuine
cross-country ability, it can be presented with
undulating terrain with confidence. It steers
directly in deep shingle and it has suspension
which absorbs well ruts and corrugations.
Power is put to ground through large 225/55
Toyo rubber. Such is the level of grip and
suspension sophistication, the Outlander
can be driven enthusiastically on the seal.
The Mitsubishi Motor Corporation likes to
have long life-cycles for its models. I’m a big
believer in that. Too often good cars aren’t
with us long enough, yet it’s fair to say the
Outlander has been kept fresh and modern
along the way, it is an example of how well
a vehicle can do with solid engineering
practices and clever marketing.
I can’t help but think how value-based the
Sport model is, at $40k it is a bargain. Those
who do get one of the 300 should be very
happy with it.