Mitsubishi has presented the new Outlander. The fourth generation is taking enormous steps, both technically and optically, compared to the outgoing model that was once so popular in the Netherlands. Still, the youngest Outlander has little relevance to us.
Between 2013 and 2015, Mitsubishi in the Netherlands did not know what happened. Suddenly it put away eight to nine thousand copies of the Outlander every year in our country. The plug-in hybrid PHEV was able to lure hordes of smart lease drivers to Mitsubishi dealers thanks to its fiscally friendly addition percentage of 7 percent and even short-term 0 percent. The new Outlander is also available again as a plug-in hybrid, although this time the technology is packaged in a more appealing design. However, he has no relevance for the Dutch consumer. The facelifted Eclipse Cross is and remains the last renewed Mitsubishi model to come to the Netherlands. So the new Outlander passes us by.
Mitsubishi Engelberg Tourer Concept (2019)
At 2.71 meters, the wheelbase of the upcoming Outlander is about 4 centimeters longer than that of the outgoing model. It is also taller than its predecessor, although it grows only one centimeter in length to 4.71 meters. Underneath the skin is the CMF platform, which the Rogue, which will soon be our new X-Trail, from alliance partner Nissan is already using. Mitsubishi is still keeping extensive technical specifications under its cap. We do know that the car will come on the market with a 183 hp and 245 Nm strong 2.5 petrol engine and that an improved plug-in hybrid (PHEV) variant is in the pipeline. There will be versions with both front and rear wheel drive. Mitsubishi mentions the presence of a CVT automatic transmission that can simulate the presence of eight gears.
The Outlander looks a lot more exuberant than its predecessor. The SUV is topped with a more eccentric version of Mitsubishi’s design language, which we first saw with the Engelberg Tourer Concept in 2019. The Gafacelifted Eclipse Cross was also designed according to this corporate identity. The fourth Outlander, which is available with 20-inch light alloy, has shorter overhangs at the front and rear than its predecessor. From now on, the headlights are located one floor below the separate LED daytime running lights that are placed in the top of the nose.
The interior is replaced by an interior that is completely contemporary. It is done with the optically not always well matched buttons. The youngest Outlander has a sleek, tidy-looking workplace with a high dashboard and slightly detached 7-inch infotainment screen. The flat air vents run optically over the entire width of the dashboard and Mitsubishi gives the Outlander a 12.3-inch digital instrumentation and a rotary knob in the center tunnel for the various driving modes. There is also a head-up display, which gives an image of 10.8 inches. The automatic lever makes way for a smaller selector lever.
As mentioned, the new Mitsubishi Outlander is not coming to the Netherlands. Is that a loss?