The Outlander is the best-selling model in Mitsubishi Australia’s current crop of vehicles and second only behind the Toyota RAV4 in the highly competitive medium sized SUV under $60k segment, which accounted for around 16% of all new vehicles sold in Australia in 2024.
This new generation Outlander was released back in 2022 to the local market and the mid-cycle refresh has just been revealed overseas. I recently drove the top-of-the-line 2024 Mitsubishi Outlander Plug-In Hybrid GSR. The GSR additions above the variant below it, the Exceed Tourer, are largely cosmetic with 20″ black alloy wheels, gloss black front and rear under garnish, grille, door mirrors, and roof rail with a black ‘Outlander’ bonnet emblem and black leather appointed seat trim with silver stitching.
The plug-in hybrid EV (PHEV) Outlander versions use two small and lightweight high-powered motors in the front and rear to and while mainly running on motor power, the vehicle can also seamlessly switch to engine power in response to battery and driving conditions. The combined output (engine and electric motors) is 185kW and 450Nm and it has a single-speed transmission. There is no difference between the towing capacity between the PHEV and petrol models, both being a maximum of 1,600kg for braked trailers and 750kg for unbraked trailers with a maximum towball load of 160kg.
The PHEV Outlander has a 20.0kWh battery capacity with a electric-only driving range quoted at 84km on a full charge, but after I fully charged it the computer indicated that it had around 70km of pure EV range. The Outlander comes standard with a Mode 2 and Mode 3 charge cable for either charging at home or a public charger, where Mitsubishi claims you can reach an 80% battery capacity in just 38 minutes. The charge plug is located at the rear of the vehicle on the driver’s side the light next to the plug displays green when the vehicle is charging. The charge time is initially displayed on the driver’s dash when you first plug it in and then it disappears and a red plug light displays when charging is occurring. For my week I topped the battery up almost every night to maximise the benefit of having EV range on hand.
We enjoyed a number of family road trips during the time that I had Outlander and I was pleasantly surprised by the fuel figure I achieved. Officially, the combined fuel economy is unrealistic as all PHEVs at 1.5L/100km, but I achieved my best ever fuel economy ever with the Outlander at 3.2L/100km and a minimum 91 RON is recommended. The Outlander drove nicely and there was a smooth transition between the internal combustion engine and the electric motors, the only annoyance for me was that the engine revs hard when you are going up hills and the brake pedal felt soft and had a long travel.
There seven drive modes for Plug-in Hybrid EV models including Normal, Eco, Tarmac, Gravel, Snow, Mud (AWD only) and Power. I spent the week in Normal mode with just a short trip on gravel when we headed to the Drawing Room Rocks lookout near Berry. Outlander’s Super-All Wheel Control optimises drive and braking force at each wheel and the drive mode selector allows the driver to adjust the chassis control system to suit the conditions. The 12.3-inch full digital driver display can be customised and has different graphics for each mode and a cool start up animation as well.
This Outlander had one touch keyless entry a and keyless start and even though it had over 13,000km on the odometer and the cabin was still looking quite good. There’s a large panoramic sunroof, front half opens only, a 10.8-inch head up display, and a nice steering wheel design with no gloss black plastic on it. That could not be said for the centre console though and in addition to dust and finger marks, at the wrong angle the sunshine glares off the centre console and right into your eyes. The two cup holders in the console have grippy sides and a removable mat in the base for easy cleaning and there are good sized drink bottle storage cubbies in the front doors.
Both front seats have power adjustment for recline, forward/back, seat height front and rear, and 4-way lumbar support with the driver’s seat also having two memory positions. They are also heated, as is the steering wheel, and have a basic massage function. There are three massage settings that can be selected from the infotainment screen, Lumbar, Relaxing, and Refreshing with intensity and speed control as well. But I didn’t notice any difference between the three massage types and they all felt like a shove in the back, rather than a relaxing experience.
Wireless Apple CarPlay is available, as is wired Android Auto, which I used to connect to the 9-inch infotainment screen without any problems. The Android Auto uses the USB-C port and in the cubby at the front of the centre console there is also one USB-A port, one 12V socket, and a wireless charging pad for compatible devices. In addition to your smartphone the other media sources available include AM/FM radio, DAB, USB1, USB2, and Bluetooth. You can switch between these sources using the voice control, which is activated by pressing the button on the steering wheel with the masculine looking silhouette on it. The voice control worked well for me for changing the radio station, making phone calls, and setting a destination on the sat nav.
With the second-row seats fully back there was plenty of leg room for me and headroom was also good, but the seats lacked under thigh support and my knees felt like they were sitting up high. The second-row seats are 60:40 split with manual forward/back and recline adjustment. The centre seat can of the second row can be independently lowered down and has two rigid cup holders in it and there is good sized drink bottle storage in rear door cubbies. The Outlander has two ISOfix/three rear tether child seat restraint points on the second-row seats.
I like the thick carpet mats over the rear floor including the transmission tunnel as they add a little bit of luxury. The outer rear seats are also heated and there are manual blinds on the rear windows. Rear passengers get two central air vents with individual direction control and one central on/off switch with digital rear temperature control that can also be to adjusted from the front as well. Below the air vents is one USB-C port, one USB-A port and a 220-240V 1500W power plug. This is enough to support electrical equipment and appliances like a laptop, hair dryer, hot plate, kettle, phone charger and much more.
Mitsubishi describes the seven seat Outlander as a 5+2 seat SUV and this is very accurate because with the second-row seats fully pushed back there is zero leg room in the third-row and with the second-row seat forward as far as my legs would allow there was barely any leg room in the third row. It’s also a tight squeeze to access the third row and the head room is limited and I had to sit with my head tilted forward and my knees were sitting up high. There’re also no child seat restraint points in the third row, so they really are temporary emergency use seats only.
To use the third-row seats, you need to remove the charge cords from the boot space and the cargo cover first. The third-row seat is raised manually in a two-step process and then you flip the headrests up. With the third-row seats up there is room in the boot space for the charge cords and some school bags, but the cargo cover does not fit and has to be left behind, which is a problem if you aren’t at home.
With the third-row seat folded down the boot is a good size and would easily fit a pram and the weekly shop and the second-row seats can also be fully lowered using the latches in the boot, but these seats do not lie completely flat. The boot has gesture open and close boot or you can press the button on the tailgate, key fob or in the cabin to do this. An annoying thing was the Velcro that holds the small cargo cover between the main cover and the second-row seats had failed on this Outlander, so the material just hung down in the way. The boot has four substantial tie down points, two hooks, one light and another 220-240V 1500W plug. There’s a tyre repair kit under the boot floor and even though the Outlander is an SUV with off-road driving modes, the lack of a spare tyre does mean that off-roading isn’t really a viable option.
All models in the current Mitsubishi Outlander range have a 5-star (2022) ANCAP safety rating with an Adult Occupant Protection score of 83% and a Child Occupant Protection score of 92%. Dual frontal, side chest-protecting, and side head-protecting (curtain) airbags are standard. A centre airbag which provides added protection to front seat occupants in side impact crashes, as well as a driver knee airbag, are also standard on all variants.
Autonomous emergency braking (AEB) (Car to Car, Vulnerable Road User and Junction Assist), a lane support system with lane keep assist, lane departure warning and emergency lane keeping, an advanced speed assistance system and blind spot monitoring are also standard. The adaptive cruise control did decide not to work on one of our road trips that happened to be on a double demerit point weekend, which was annoying having to concentrate on my speed all of the time.
ANCAP tests of the AEB (Car-to-Car) system showed GOOD performance with collisions avoided or mitigated in most scenarios, including AEB Junction Assist where the test vehicle can autonomously brake to avoid crashes when turning across the path of an oncoming vehicle. Overall, effectiveness of the AEB (Car-to-Car) system performance was rated as GOOD. ANCAP tests of lane support system functionality showed GOOD performance, including in the more critical emergency lane keeping test scenarios, with overall performance classified as GOOD. The overall ANCAP Safety Assist score is 83%.
This Outlander also has 360-degree view rear view camera and standard rear/front view camera with front and rear parking sensors and the vehicle makes quite a noise when reversing to warn nearby pedestrians. For convenience you also get auto lights with auto high beam and auto rain sensing wipers.
All new Mitsubishi vehicles have a 10 Year/200,000km warranty, whichever occurs first, and when all scheduled services are completed at a Mitsubishi Dealership, plus the drive battery is covered for 8 years or 160,000kms (whichever occurs first). Capped Price Servicing is included for 10 Years/150,000km (whichever occurs first) for the first 10 regular services (at 15,000km/12 month scheduled intervals). Twelve months Roadside Assist is included with your new vehicle and continues for a full 12 months each time the vehicle is presented to an authorised Mitsubishi dealer for an eligible Capped Price Service for a maximum of up to four years.
Pricing for the 2024 Mitsubishi Outlander Plug-In Hybrid GSR starts at $73,790 plus on-road costs and as tested with carpet floor mats ($226) this Outlander PHEV was $74,016 plus on-roads. You can Build and Price your Mitsubishi Outlander online or visit your preferred Mitsubishi dealer for more information.
| Pros | Cons |
| It’s fuel efficient | The engine is noisy going up hills |
| There are two 220-240V 1500W power plugs | The massage function |
| Thick carpet floor mats | No spare tyre |
Photographs by Driven Women Magazine.