I asked Mitsubishi Motors Australia to give me a drive of the 2020 Outlander as soon as it was launched and I’ve just collected an Exceed variant with a diesel engine.
Frankly, I’m pretty partial to Mitsubishi and particularly the Outlander. My cousin Julie has recently taken delivery of a 7-seater ES – it’s her second one – I sold the first one to Julie back in 2010. Mitsubishi must be doing something right for her to go straight to another Outlander.
What is it? The Mitsubishi Outlander Exceed is a mid-size crossover SUV manufactured by Japanese automaker Mitsubishi Motors. The first generation, designed by Frenchman Olivier Boulay, was launched in 2001 with the Australian version arriving in 2003.
There’s no doubt that the “nose’ was a major talking point at the time, but progressively the design architecture changed and the second edition with a more acceptable front came out in 2006
The PHEV (Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle) version of Outlander was released at the Paris Motor Show in 2012 and continues to be the only mainstream PHEV vehicle available in Australia.
Competition? Everybody. I’m struggling to think of any importer that doesn’t have a medium SUV available in Australia and that presents a problem for all manufacturers.
They’ve got to get prospects into their showrooms to drive the car, so are continually refreshing the vehicles in this segment.
How Much?
Mitsubishi Outlander starts from $29,490 (RRP) before government charges and dealer delivery and climbs the price and specification ladder, topping out with the Mitsubishi Outlander Exceed Diesel Auto at about $53, 350 on road, driveaway in Queensland.
With the 2020 model, Mitsubishi has upgraded the Exceed with this new gear.
- Introduction of S-AWC system to Exceed model
- New 8’ infotainment screen including the introduction of TomTom® navigation, including maps and speed limit information
So, not a lot of change. Below is the published pricing from Mitsubishi for all the models in the Outlander range. Prices shown are suggested retail prices before government charges and dealer delivery
2020 Outlander Range Pricing
| Model | Engine | Transmission | Seats | RRP |
| ES 2WD | 2.0l | 5MT | 5 | $29,490 |
| ES 2WD w/ADAS | 2.4l | CVT | 5 | $33,290 |
| ES 2WD | 2.4l | CVT | 7 | $31,790 |
| ES AWD | 2.4l | CVT | 7 | $34,290 |
| ES AWD w/ADAS | 2.4l | CVT | 5 | $35,790 |
| LS 2WD | 2.4l | CVT | 7 | $34,290 |
| LS AWD | 2.4l | CVT | 7 | $36,790 |
| LS AWD | 2.2l Did I/C T/C | 6AT | 7 | $40,290 |
| Exceed AWD | 2.4l petrol | CVT | 7 | $43,290 |
| Exceed AWD | 2.2l DiD I/C T/C | 6AT | 7 | $46,790 |
Front of the Mitsubishi Outlander Exceed
I like the front end look of the Mitsubishi – it has certainly changed since the first model in 2003 The Exceed version gets LED low and high beam headlights, with automatic levelling function, headlight washers, LED daytime running lights, front and rear LED fog lights as well as LED brake lights. The engine in this car is a 2.2l DiDi Turbo Diesel with a 6-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifters included.
Maximum power (kW@rpm)
110 @ 3500
Maximum torque (Nm@rpm)
360 @1500-2750
Fuel tank capacity (L)
60
Down the Side
Besides showing you the profile of the Mitsubishi Outlander Exceed, in this section, I like to indicate the safety, security and driver assistance package. I include the equipment that I think is important for a potential new car buyer.
Safety, Security and Driver Assistance
ACTIVE SAFETY
Forward Collision Mitigation system (FCM) with pedestrian detection
Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC)
Lane Departure Warning (LDW)
Blind Spot Warning (BSW)
Lane Change Assist (LCA)
Rear Cross-Traffic Alert (RCTA)
Automatic High Beam (AHB)
Emergency Stop Signal Function (ESS)
Emergency Brake Assist system (EBA)
Hill Start Assist (HSA)
Active Stability Control (ASC)
Active Traction Control (ATC)
AIRBAGS
Driver & front passenger SRS airbags
Driver & front passenger side SRS airbags
Curtain SRS airbags
Driver knee airbag
CHILD SAFETY
ISO-Fix child seat anchorage – 2
Child restraint top tether – 3
Childproof rear door locks
DRIVER ASSISTANCE
Cruise control
Electro-chromatic rearview mirror
Electric park brake
Brake auto-hold function
Speed limit display
ECO drive function
Automatic dusk sensing headlights
Automatic rain-sensing wipers
Rear wiper and washer
Intermittent rear wiper and washer
PARKING ASSISTANCE
Multi Around Monitor (MAM)
Rearview camera
Front parking sensors
Rear parking sensors
SECURITY
Theft protection alarm
Encrypted engine immobiliser
At The Back
The Mitsubishi Outlander Exceed is a 7-seater vehicle and with the rear seats in position, there really isn’t a lot of luggage room. Put the 3rd-row seats down and you have 1048 litres of carrying capacity. With the second row stowed, a massive 1845 litres of space ensues, but you’re probably not buying this vehicle to only carry 2 people.
Exceed has an electronic tailgate so that’s a nice thing
Ok, so this isn’t a vehicle that you’ll use to tow your 8-metre caravan, but it does get to tow 2000kg with electric brakes fitted and has a towball maximum load of 200kg.
With crossbars fitted you can load (inc the bars) up to 80kg on the roof.
Drivers Seat and Interior
ANCAP
The ANCAP published safety rating for the Mitsubishi Outlander is for a test conducted in 2014 and doesn’t reflect the current vehicle.
Arguably the Outlander has the necessary equipment to achieve a 5-star rating in 2019, but unless this new vehicle is crashed, I’m unable to make a definitive ruling.
Green Vehicle Guide
Green Vehicle Guide is a Federal Government initiative providing car buyers with comparisons of fuel consumption for the new vehicles that they may be considering.
The MY20 Mitsubishi Outlander Exceed has a published combined (highway and city) fuel consumption of 6.2 litres per 100 kilometres.
Comprehensive Insurance – Mitsubishi Outlander Exceed
I use RACQ Insurance to give you a guide as to what you’ll pay for your annual comprehensive car insurance. Conditions for this cover are:
- A male driver over 60 years of age, having held a license for over 10 years
- Bronze member of RACQ with 1 other insurance policies
- Has paid cash for the car. The car is parked in a driveway overnight.
- The driver resides in postcode 4017
- The car is fitted with an engine immobilizer
- No at-fault claim in the last 3 years, with no license suspensions
- Rating 1 currently, having held that rating 1 for 10 years or more
- No driver under 25 will use the vehicle.
The premium quoted online by RACQ Insurance for Private Use – $512.17 with a $750 excess. Variations from the information above may result in different outcomes. Check online with RACQ Insurance for your own particular quote. (Effective November 10th 2019)
Finance – Mitsubishi Outlander Exceed
I’ve included some indicative repayment figures for this car. It’s RRP drive away is $53,350, but I reckon you could buy it better than that (Contact Car Business for a price).
So if you finance this Mitsubishi Outlander Exceed over 60 months, your repayments work out this way, with no balloon at the end of the term. Adding a ballon will reduce the payments significantly
Monthly $1045.36
Fortnightly $480.63
Weekly $241.24
Interest rate 5.40%
Repayments are indicative only and will depend on your application. Some people will get a lower rate and some a higher rate. Some fees and charges are excluded for this example
Warranty & Service – Mitsubishi Outlander Exceed 4×4 Diesel
Mitsubishi currently has a 7-year/150,000klm warranty on offer for their range effective until 31st December 2019
In addition, they’re offering 2-years free servicing, which drops the 4-year capped-price service cost from $1196 down to $598.
Many other brands are covering their vehicles with capped price service for the term of their warranty, so Mitsubishi is lagging behind here.
Be careful when you take your vehicle in for service. Some new car dealers will try to upsell items such as Power Steering, Air Conditioning and Fuel Injector service. To avoid unnecessary spend, simply ask the dealer to advise whether this is a Mitsubishi recommended service. If they so no, then you should say no too.
As far as roadside assistance is concerned, Mitsubishi provides Roadside Assistance on all new vehicles for the first 12 months and then extend it for every year that you have your car serviced at one of their dealers. So if you stick to the capped price program, then yopu have roadside assistance for 5 years in total
Where to Buy – Dealers
My test vehicle was supplied by Mitsubishi Motors Australia. I’m not paid for my reviews, so I can guarantee that my thoughts are completely unbiased.
If you’re in the market to buy any new Mitsubishi, pick your dealer carefully. When I want to check out the ‘worthiness’ of a dealer, I Google ‘Mitsubishi Dealers Brisbane where the city is the one that you live in or around and the brand is that particular one you’re interested in. I only list dealers who have achieved a minimum of 15 reviews with Google and then only those with 4 stars or higher.
From a South East Queensland perspective here are the dealers I’d visit:
Northside Nundah Mitsubishi 4.3 Stars from 306 Reviews
Southside Motorama Mitsubishi 4.6 Stars from 361 Reviews
Eastside Bartons Bayside 4.8 Stars from 129 Reviews
Westside Blue Ribbon Mitsubishi 4.2 Stars from 89 Reviews
Gold Coast Von Bibra Helensvale 4.9 Stars from 216 Reviews
Sunshine Coast Cricks Nambour Mitsubishi 4.4 Stars from 107 Reviews
(Google Stars and review numbers effective 10th November 2019)
Pro’s and Cons
I was expecting this Mitsubishi Outlander Exceed to be as good as the opposition brands like Mazda, Nissan and Volkswagen, but I’m a bit disappointed.
Pro’s
- The exterior is pretty – enough chrome-look features without going overboard
- Tow capacity is good for a vehicle of this size
- It does have Apple Car Play and Android Auto, so a tick here
Con’s
- The sunroof is very small
- Leather trim seems cheap in comparison to Mazda. Perforated would have been nice.
- Adaptive Cruise Control brakes but doesn’t come to a full stop?
- The TomTom navigation system is wildly underdone and doesn’t even give me a visible clock when you’re using the navigation.
My Opinion
I like the Mitsubishi Outlander and particularly the Exceed model I’ve tested.
There’s plenty of room, it’s smooth on the highway and around town, but the ‘premium feel’ is a bit lacking for a vehicle around $54,000
I was expecting that Mitsubishi would step up the luxury in their latest version, but sadly that wasn’t the case.
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Finance Disclaimer:
The provided quote should be used as an indication only and does not represent either approval or pre-qualifications for a loan.
The quoted payments apply for the example given and in this instance do not include fees and charges, as different terms, fees or other loan amounts may result in different outcomes between financiers.
The specific details of your loan will be provided to you in your loan contract.
It is advised that you consult your financial adviser before taking out any loan
