- Doors and Seats
5 doors, 5 seats
- Engine
2.0i, 4 cyl.
- Engine Power
110kW, 190Nm
- Fuel
Petrol (91) 6.9L/100KM
- Manufacturer
FWD
- Transmission
Auto (CVT)
- Warranty
5 Yr, 130000 KMs
- Ancap Safety
NA
2015 Mitsubishi Outlander Review
We headed over to the Mitsubishi Dealership in Arncliffe to pick up a brand new Mitsubishi Outlander XLS 2WD to play with for the week. Jesse, the car enthusiast in our family, was as happy as a pig in mud from the moment he was handed the keys.
- Reverse parking camera & guidelines, Multi-information display, Incredible handling, Comfortable seats, Plenty of boot space
- Digital radio can be a hit and a miss (and difficult to find out how to change at first!), Safety locking feature of the car can be a bit annoying (though easily changed on the navigation screen)
Our goal was to see how the Outlander fit into our day to day life so our first test was one that every car driver would perform quite a few times a month; parking at a shopping centre.
We all know the issues; the tight carspaces, trying to align your car with the dodgy parking jobs of other shops and ensuring there's plenty of room either side so that your door doesn't end up being dinged by a frantic shopper desperate to return home to put their screaming kids in time out.
Luckily, the parking guidelines on the Outlander's reversing camera made parking in a multi-storey car park a breeze - even on a busy Friday afternoon. The car was perfectly parked in seconds and we were off to do our shopping.
Once we returned, we popped our shopping into the back of the Outlander which had plenty of boot space to fill. The only difficult part? Figuring out how to open the boot for the first time. As the safety lock option was set on the car (meaning only the driver's side door opens when you click unlock once), the boot would not open and we spent a few minutes googling and scratching our heads before realising the whole car needed to be unlocked for the boot to release.
On our way home, we got to thinking about where we could roam with our new wheels and decided to set off on an adventure down the coast - testing the Outlander's handling on the winding roads of the national park.
The morning of our grand adventure was a wet one and the second we turned on the engine we noticed one very cool feature; automatic windshield wipers. The windshield senses the rain hitting it and adjusts the speed accordingly, ensuring you can always see the road ahead of you.
We programmed the GPS system, impressed by the multi-information display in front of the wheel which allows you to see your upcoming turns right on the dash, rather than having to constantly look at the GPS screen.
The winding roads of the Royal National Park are always fun to drive through, however, we often find we notice how our other cars lack in the steering department on some of the sharper turns. The Outlander, however, handles brilliantly - taking each and every corner smoothly, regardless of how sharp they may be.
After winding our way through the national park, we decided to pull over around Stanwell Tops to watch the hang gliders for a little while from the warmth and comfort of the Outlander. After deciding we'd never have the guts to take up hang gliding as a hobby, we were back on the road to head across the Sea Cliff Bridge to take in the views.
After driving for just under two hours, we hopped out of the car for a picnic lunch at the beach, expecting that awful fatigued feeling you get after being in the car for an extended period - but it was nowhere to be found! The comfortable leather seats of the Mitsubishi Outlander meant we were sitting comfortably and ready to go when we arrived at our destination.
Upon returning to the car, we noticed the radio was definitely having some issues. As we'd gone from Sydney to Wollongong, the digital radio of the Outlander was not having a bar of it and we had to switch radio modes (hitting the "mode" button on the steering wheel) to find a local station as there was no digital radio stations available in the area.
Whilst we may have picked up the Outlander thinking it would be just "okay", we returned it to the dealership with heavy hearts as we'd fallen in love with this urban beauty in just a week. Perfect for couples and day to day city driving as well as small families and coastal adventures, this is one car you've got to test drive at least once!
See our full review and all the photos at: http://www.southerninlaw.com/2015/06/the-best-weekend-girls-day-out-and-coastal-escape.html