Not long ago, Mitsubishi was a leading brand in off-roading. Its legendary Montero helped many users in Spain and around the world realize their dream of driving and enjoying an authentic 4×4 vehicle.
Not in vain, Mitsubishi is a pioneer company in the development of vehicles with permanent all-wheel drive and this year it celebrates the 90th anniversary of the launch, in 1934, of its 4WD system in the PX-33, the first vehicle manufactured in Japan to incorporate this technology.
A technology that has not stopped evolving and that today is represented in the new Outlander PHEV that the brand has just presented. It is worth remembering that the Outlander was at the time a very successful SUV in Europe and that it also contributed to popularizing plug-in hybrid technology.
The Outlander appeared in 2013 and since then more than 200,000 units have been sold in Europe. Now the second generation arrives, deeply renewed and with improvements that affect the plug-in hybrid system.
Measuring 4.71 meters long and 1.74 meters high, the distance between the axles is 2.70 meters to offer good habitability. The ground clearance, an important figure in a car of this philosophy, is 19.8 centimeters. That is, almost a centimeter more than the previous model.
There are no major changes to its exterior appearance, but there is an update of small style details. Thus, on the front we find a large grille between the upper daytime running lights with a modern and technological appearance. And, also, some huge optics at the bottom.
At the rear there are new, more stylized taillights and a large light gray plastic diffuser. To complete a robust and certainly imposing appearance, it mounts 20-inch wheels and exhibits a fairly high beltline.
In the United States it is sold with three rows of seats and seven seats, but in Europe it will only arrive in a five-seat version. Of course, equally spacious.
The cabin is finished with quality materials, seeking a premium perception from new customers. All instrumentation is digital, with a rather conventional design, and the central infotainment screen is not excessively large. And it maintains, at the bottom of the dashboard, the physical climate control buttons.
For Europe, the new Outlander PHEV will arrive with the 2.4-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine. In principle, with a total power of 250 HP, in the absence of official confirmation.
This power is the result of adding the gasoline engine (131 HP), plus two other electric motors, one on each axle. The front 85 kW (115 HP) and the rear 100 kW (136 HP). It is likely that for our market these benefits could be somewhat better. And, naturally, with Mitsubishi’s own all-wheel drive.
The Japanese brand has evolved PHEV, plug-in hybrid technology, thanks to the presence of a 20 kWh battery. The autonomy in 100% electric mode will be around 80 km, a very good figure considering the size of the vehicle.
Hybrid operation, with the battery depleted, has two modes: with the gasoline engine moving the wheels and the electric motors supporting at times or with the electric motors moving the car and the gasoline engine acting as a generator.
The Super-All Wheel Control (S-AWC) system achieves the ideal balance of longitudinal torque distribution, which is most important in the brand’s engineering philosophy. The goal is to offer an SUV that anyone can drive comfortably, anywhere and with maximum safety. S-AWC configures all-wheel drive based on the driving modes the driver chooses.
