2004 Mitsubishi Outlander GLS 2.4 from South Africa

Summary:

Absolutely no regrets

Faults:

Nothing, although the car is still quite new.

General Comments:

This car offers excellent value for the money. It is a lot cheaper than the competition (RAV4, Forrester, X-Trail). I test-drove all major competing brand before buying the Outlander and I'm happy with the choice. The most common criticism one reads in the Internet reviews is that the engine is underpowered. I disagree with this, and I am actually surprised about this issue. The only explanation for so many negative reviews must the fact that most reviewers are based in Northern America where large number of cylinders and obscene cubic capacity seems to be the norm. I drive pretty fast myself, and have not had any problems at low speed, or at the highway. Overtaking is easy, and the automatic transmission is the smoothest I've driven, save for the Audi Multitronic. The timing of the shifting is so perfect and predictible that it's easy to effect it with minor changes of the pressure on the accelerator pedal. Of course this car is quite heavy, and that should be kept in mind while driving and accelerating. The GLS version has every possible convenience feature (real leather, cruise control, climate control, full-size spare, etc) except for the headlight wipers. The fuel economy is good for a car of this weight and comes to about 12l/100km mixed enthusiastic driving. The dealer service has been excellent and the new car had a full tank of petrol. Future services are free for the next 2 years. The only criticism I have is that the one-touch window winder feature only works when winding the window down.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 5th April, 2004

31st Mar 2005, 16:55

If you want one touch window winder to work the window up, I hope you don't have a dog...

In reply to 31st Mar 2005, 16:55

8th Oct 2012, 01:06

One touch feature for a window to go... UP...?!

Never ever heard of that one!... and I've had at least 85 cars since I was 16 years old.

A previous poster made fun of big engines in North America... maybe so... but the GM 3.8 V6 in full sized vehicles gets 31-32 MPG at 70-75mph. And 23-24 MPG in stop and go driving. Very few of my 4 cylinder cars get such MPG numbers. I'm not making up these numbers, trust me: A lot of big engine (and big car) American vehicles get these MPG numbers... and easily last 250-300,000 miles... contrary to general belief. My Subarus (old and new-er) only get 21-24... but in deep mountain snows we can't live without 'em. My point is simple; that the assumption that big cubes mean high fuel consumption just isn't always true.

My Mitsubishi experience has been the same as most of these posters... a great product at a great price. Very reliable engines and well built cars. Can't wait to get an Outlander. Have owned most every other AWD Mitsubishi makes, and have always been impressed.

These reviews have me looking for a nice used Outlander. I never buy a car until it hits 100,000 miles. And I almost never have problems. All the Outlanders I've seen have pretty low miles. But I'm looking forward to trying one. I'm totally happy with my Subarus, but this Outlander has sparked my interest... for sure...