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Relax and just drive – Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV 4h long term review 2

Mitsubishi Outlander side profile
Shining on the virtuous...Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV can wander the local streets in full EV zero emission mode

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25 January 2019

THE updated Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV features a new 2.4-litre petrol engine. That’s up from 2.0-litres on the previous model.

This latest engine in the 2019 Outlander PHEV provides greater economy thanks to sophisticated switching between Otto and Atkinson cycle modes. You won’t notice the changeover except in your wallet thanks to the improved mpg.

The new engine certainly makes the Outlander extremely quiet and smooth to drive. In fact it’s impressively relaxed because of that.

And that’s definitely the way we like to drive the Mitsubishi. Go beyond unhurried and relaxed and the Outlander gets a bit flustered. Accelerate and the engine looks for higher revs and becomes all rather fussy.

But keep the Mitsubishi flowing along and it all remains highly refined. This is helped by the improved chassis stiffness introduced on MY 2019 Outlander along with suspension tweaks – it all means the Outlander PHEV makes a good fist of ignoring potholes and bumps in the road and maintaining an air of good natured composure.

Not only has the latest Outlander PHEV got a bigger engine but its battery has also received a boost:  it now offers a total of 28 miles in full EV mode.

It means if your daily commute is around 20 miles you will easily do this in full zero emission setting, wafting around silently and with that rather pleasing sensation that you’re not contributing to dirty air in your local area. There is a switch on the central tunnel marked EV which ensures you stay fully zero emission to do this.

If the engine and battery have been updated, then the charging port has not. This remains a more elderly Type 1 socket. Not that it really matters.

We’ve been able to easily charge the Outlander’s battery using the home three-pin circuitry (no blowing of fuses and so on). The only time that we’ve not been able to charge the car was when the neighbour placed a pile of wood in the shared drive… We couldn’t get the car close enough to the mains.

However, the Outlander also has regenerative braking; instead of ‘wasting’ energy generated when you stand on the brakes, the energy is used to top up the battery instead. It’s effective too, allowing you to use ‘hybrid’ mode on longer journeys effectively.

If we have one issue there do seem to be a lot of different buttons you can push which can seem a little overwhelming if you’re into just driving rather than engaging with the tech.

But we’ll let you know how we’re exploring them as we go further with the Mitsubishi.

For now, we’ll just relax and drive.

Outlander PHEV interior
There’s no denying the sumptuousness of the leather interior – or the number of buttons that require pushing to change modes

Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV 2.4 4h auto 4WD

  • P11D value – £39,445
  • Power – 135bhp
  • Torque – 211Nm
  • Transmission – four-wheel drive automatic
  • Engine – 2.4 litre MIVEC Atkinson cycle petrol engine with 13.8kWh capacity lithium ion battery
  • Top speed – 106mph
  • 0-62mph – 10.5s
  • CO2 emissions – 46g/km
  • Official mpg – 52.1mpg (no battery engine only) / 159.5mpg (Weighted Combined MPG including battery EV running)
  • Test mpg – 57.5mpg
  • Company car tax band 2017/18 – 13%

 

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