In-depth reviews

Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV owner reviews

“The Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV was an excellent plug-in hybrid option at launch but it now feels dated”

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by Andy Goodwin

16 Sep 2021

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Carbuyer Rating

3.3 out of 5

Owners Rating

3.8 out of 5

Reviews

Owner Reviews

5 out of 5
4 out of 5
3 out of 5
2 out of 5
1 out of 5

68%of people would recommend this car to a friend

Common Problems

Other (15 cases)
Suspension (1 case)
Electrics (3 cases)
Electrics, Engine, Other (2 cases)
Brakes, Electrics, Engine, Gearbox / clutch, Suspension, Other (1 case)

Review 1 of 41

Tell us what you think about your car?

It is very spacious car, good space, great looking car outside and inside. The only drawback is poor mpg, and low electric battery range - only 22 miles on full charge which takes about 3 hours for full charge. This plug-in hybrid only returns around 35mpg any other 2.0L petrol car may give this sort of mpg. Good family car but not ideal for lots of miles or as a taxi.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

No Red thumbs down

Tell us what you think about your car?

This car has some serious drawbacks, but is basically a good car: Bad points 1) you have to push the gear-lever forward to go backwards! 2) The seat belt beeper goes when you are reversing (unnecessary along with the reversing beepers. 3) The Kenwood infotainment system is bad because Garmin is appalling and charges £50 to upgrade the maps, there's no separate clock on the car, so when you are using the sat nav, it only gives you arrival time, not actual time. The Kenwood instructions are awful and cover so many different models on one CD and booklet so it's incomprehensible to ordinary people.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

Tell us what you think about your car?

I decided after much research to go with a halfway PHEV option rather than plumping for a full EV. Quite a step up in size from my Skoda Fabia especially when making this move for fuel economy reasons - my 1.2 TSI was only returning 33mpg because of the nature of my usual journey. The Outlander's fuel economy is far superior. Even on 1 Degree C mornings my engine does not kick in unless I turn on the cabin heater or hit the accelerator too hard, but being from Yorkshire, I will survive with just the heated seats which doesn't turn on the engine. My commutes to and from work normally don't require the engine at all and so my commute has reduced from £1.45 of fuel to less than 80p in electricity (in winter). The Outlander has done some combined journeys of motorway and 30-40MPH roads and still managed to achieve 45MPG over the 165 mile trip, for this type of car, its not bad going. but I didn't get it for long journeys, I got it as a local runabout to do the same job as the Fabia. I would have to say, that you really need to know how you plan to use the car before you commit to buying and getting disappointed with the economy and writing negative reviews. It takes an understanding of how the hybrid system saves and releases energy, what causes the engine to power up, when the battery save mode is best used (higher speeds), and if wanting to heat the cabin up quickly for a short duration use the battery charge option especially if battery level is low. This not only warms the engine up faster due to being under load but it is taking advantage of the rotational losses on the engine being used for more than 1 purpose. Yes this also effectively uses more fuel, but at least some of the energy is being put back into the battery and the faster warming up of the cabin means the engine can be turned off much sooner. I wouldn't use the battery charge option for any other reason though, its just a very inefficient way to charge up the battery. The max battery range of 31-32 miles is not likely unless you have no speed interruptions, a perfectly flat 30 MPH road and no ancillaries turned on. Having said that, using battery only, I managed 24 miles, in 5 Degrees C, slightly hilly roads, and BTW, my car has 143,000 miles on the clock. I feel so confident that the 47,000/Year Motorway miles the previous owner put onto it didn't impact on battery performance much at all. I cannot wait to see how far it will go in summer temps. As far as charging is concerned, I am using the slowest option, the 13A charger supplied with the car. It serves it purpose perfectly. Slow public chargers are almost a false economy from what I have found out. If in a supermarket car park you are likely restricted to max stay of 90-120 minutes before getting a fine. it will only half fill the car in that time. Some charging networks have monthly subscriptions of £8/month or more and even if there is no electrical usage charge (but sometimes 9p/KWH) there is still very likely a £1 connection charge..... The battery from 0-100% only costs me £1.25 on my home electricity. And finally these slow chargers, require you to use your own cable which are typically £130 or more. So I am completely avoiding the idea of making use of slow chargers. Fast chargers however, I need to look into further, The infotainment system is functional but as you will see in many reports, badly laid out on the buttons both at the sides and on screen, ultra slow CPU performance, chargeable £119 Map updates, but still does an OK job on each of its features. I have had VW/Skodas for over 18 years and can see where the Mitsubishi is lacking, but for the £9,000 I paid for this 40 Month old car, I am more than happy enough. I do miss the parking sensors at the back even though it has a reversing camera though, when it gets dirty, its next to useless and you are left with mirrors. To sum up, this is not a car suited for all journeys if you are looking for great economy, YouTube reviews may give mixed info, and if it's not the car for you, it is still a very good taste of pure EV without range anxiety. If the right EV is out there to follow the Outlander, at the right price, I am likely to be buying it all because the Outlander help me get there. So far a nail in the tyre and faulty shock absorber have been my issues- no big deals though.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

Tell us what you think about your car?

The only good thing is low BIK. Ipod integration plays songs only in alphabetical order. Car was immobilised after rapid charge in Scotland - even petrol engine was disabled. (but the good news was after 3 hour wait in cold rain and snow, and taking best part of a week to get the car back to me there was 'no fault found'). Unreliable technology. Excessively boastful economy claims. Avoid.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

No Red thumbs down

Tell us what you think about your car?

I have had this as a company car for a month now, using it for short commutes to and from work and the weekly site visit via motorway. As a low mileage user, the very low BIK makes it a no brainer even with a much higher P11D rating over my old car. I can manage to do my daily commute of around 18 miles on my battery with engine charging only really kicking in on steep inclines. I have only had it on the motorway once and averaged mid 30's so probably not for the high mileage user unless your company is paying for the fuel (mine does not). I am not getting anywhere near the 32 miles on battery alone but it is winter and the battery empties alarmingly when you have the heating and demisters on. Easy to drive and park as long as the cameras are not wet. The interior has surprised me, a lot nicer and plusher than I was expecting from the reviews but it still has typically Japanese style, more function over form but I don't mind it. It appears well screwed together and the info system is good if a little long winded. I only have had to refer to the manual once to fill it with petrol as the release cap is operated by a lever by the floor. Mine doesn't come with parking sensors which seems a bit stingy on a £40k+ car but the rest of the equipment level is excellent and nearly there with my wife's X3. If you are looking for a SUV for your family, do very few miles then this is an excellent choice. The price is high and quality doesn't quite match the price tag (X3, Q5, Evoque territory) but I would recommend it .

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

Tell us what you think about your car?

It does everything it says it will do. If your journey is 32 miles a day or less then the battery will cover it. A full battery charge is costing around £1 per day, £28 a month. My fuel cost for the same travel was £140 a month in comparison. My main gripe is with the paintwork which appears to be very soft. The least small stone coming in contact with the bonnet removes a chip, after 3 months the bonnet is now littered with them and a visit to Mr chip is called for. Dealer completely disowned the problem.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

Tell us what you think about your car?

We bought the car with 89,000 on the clock but with minimal wear and still looking good. That was in April 2016. We have now done 140,000. We drive thru France to south of Spain and back twice a year with the two dogs which increases the mileage but in Spain as in the UK we have a three pin socket to charge. Otherwise we are on the edge of Guildford or Cadiz and with typically 28 miles charged overnight rarely go to the petrol station. We service the car in Jerez Spain at a mitsubishi dealer as labour rates are £58.00 per hour. We have had a couple of niggles: the boot does not always shut electrically and the sockets along the centre console between the seats have just stopped working. Having said that it is the perfect car for us coupled with a two seater MB 200 SLK AMG for fun days out with the hood down. So we were very lucky to be able to get a full spec car at a fraction of the price due to the high mileage but we always buy used and let someone else take the depreciation hit.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

Tell us what you think about your car?

The Mitsubishi PHEV is a brilliant SUV once you understand how to drive it. Very comfortable and easy to drive in pure silence. But you must charge it up when possible and always use regenerative braking. On long straight roads, press "save battery". In towns and villages or traffic jams, use pure electric. On long haul journeys leave it on 'save battery'. In this mode the battery is used but very slowly. Motorway driving you can expect 40mpg, in local driving 85mpg or more. I highly recommend one.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

Tell us what you think about your car?

Not sure why the motoring hacks keep getting it wrong on this vehicle. I'm averaging 180mpg and to date have covered 20,000 miles in 18 months. On long trips the average will drop to 45mpg, or 55mpg with the Eco button. Regeneration is one of best, and on a long trip with any traffic the batteries will get some recharge. As an example a 300mile trip North was 50% electric, 50% Petrol. We use £35 in fuel and £30 in Electric a month compared to our Volvo XC90 2.4TD which used £240 diesel a month for the same trips. This is our second Outlander and the facelift model is a step up in quality, and design. It's quiet, comfortable and has plenty of equipment. I wouldn't bother with the lane departure, collision warning on the GX4hs they proved to be annoying when we test drove one, and ended up switching them off. It comes with Front and Rear cameras with 360 degree parking view. The Navigation system is hopeless, and no better than the previous model. There's a Security issue which is still not fixed – requires owners to disable the WiFi for app control. It was highlighted by a newspaper article over 12months ago, and confirmed by Mitsubishi. Dealers are generally hopeless, and seem to be disappearing fast. Don't choose the optional dealer fit front and rear parking sensors they are hopeless and we had to have them removed in the end. This was not an issue with the previous model, and Mitsubishi are adamant there's nothing wrong with them. It took several months to get them to remove and refund the costs.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

Tell us what you think about your car?

I got the Outlander as a company car in Feb 2016 and covered just over 8k miles in that time. Having previously driven a diesel car the saving in BIK and expected mpg were a big draw. Of course i did not expect to do anything like the quoted mpg figures, but will come back to that shortly. The car is a big and comfortable cruiser. It is surprisingly quiet on motorway at speed despite its bulk and large mirrors. It is also very relaxing to drive. The CVT gearbox makes it very smooth and although you do get the usual whining noise (can be irritating) on hard acceleration its a massive improvement on my short lived experience with a Prius a few years back. The car is very responsive be it from a standstill or at speed. In fact acceleration on the motorway is surprisingly good considering the size. The silence however makes you drive it faster than you realise. Motorway is definietly where this car is designed to live as it is very soft, and wobbly otherwise. MPG - must say a big disappointment. As i mentioned i did not expect anything like the figures quoted but I did genuinely believe 50mpg would be achievable. unfortunately it is not the case. Venturing anywhere beyond a B road immediately makes mpg drop to around 30-33mpg. And that is across 3 of these vehicles all driven by different people with different driving styles. My daily commute of around 20 miles is done on electric power alone but assuming it costs around £1 to charge its not really that much of cash saver as it seems (when compared to my previous diesel estate doing around 55mpg on the same run) - you of course do not pull in to a petrol station so the spend on electric charge is of course not that visible. Another of my moans is the equipment and features - whatever way you look at it it is an almost £40k car. Surely at that level things like illuminated window opening buttons are not too much to ask for? The interior lights look like something that came from an 80's car and there is no illumination inside at night apart from dials and the buttons on the air con and sat nav. It is a dark place. This brings us on to the "media unit" and sat nav. Again it is like a cheap aftermarket thing with very confusing layout and tons of information that you will never need, even if you understood it. figuring out what your mpg is can be very challenging indeed. Handbrake - again, this is supposed to be a "cutting edge" vehicle, but you are presented with this huge, clunky handbrake handle rather than a neat electronic solution you get in considerably cheaper family hatchbacks. Lastly the app, oh yes the app. It must be the most frustrating piece of technology I have ever used. The car connects to your smartphone via wifi, but don't be fooled by this -the car does not have wifi hotspot. It is extremely clunky and unless you are standing right next to the car it doesn't work. Also whilst driving your phone will automatically connect itself to the car which for some reason makes your Bluetooth stop working - so you need to stop, disable wifi on your phone, then carry on driving. Overall a bit of a mixed bag. It certainly has its good point which are size, the smoothness, motorway comfort, but the disappointing quality, lack of basic features (button illumination) and frustrating technology together with very poor fuel consumption and so so ride anywhere but the motorway make this hard to recommend. When fully charged it will do around 25-27 miles on electric power alone, so if that is of appeal and you can perhaps charge it at work during the day then perhaps yes. But if you do any miles on the motorway or faster A roads normal diesel will certainly cost you less. Apologies about the moany review but I hope this helps any potential buyers. I find the car to be very frustrating to live with and I know my experiences are shared between my 2 other colleagues who drive these.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

No Red thumbs down

Tell us what you think about your car?

Prior to the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV we owned a Volvo XC90 4.4 V8 so I was quite concerned how we might get on with this car but after a couple of months of ownership, very happy we made the switch. The reason we changed was principally to save on fuel costs and have predictable outgoings with servicing so a new car fitted the bill. We needed a car that can tow caravan as we regularly do short trips in the UK and 2 weeks in the summer overseas. This was another reason for being nervous as towing with a hybrid is a bit new. We had to change our Caravan to accommodate the max tow weight of 1500KGs but we where looking to change the caravan as well. So life with the car. I had the opportunity to drive a diesel Outlander for 2 weeks after I purchased the Outlander PHEV (that's another story) and after the 2 weeks and completed over a 1000 miles very happy we made the choice to go with the PHEV vs the diesel. Having done nearly 3000 miles in the PHEV I have a different to Carbuyer that the PHEV does drive better, on short journeys, it's more refined near silent, and handles well. Long journeys or after the battery runs out and the engine kicks in then it revs as though you are in the wrong gear if pushing hard, its just the way the CVT works. Day to day though this rarely comes into play and visits to the petrol station are few and far between. When we tow we need to fill up as you can imagine the battery quickly gets drained with a Van behind it. The battery never quite goes to empty as the engine always tops it up in preference to driving the wheels directly although it can do both. Inside the car its functional if not plush, this is where I do miss the Volvo a bit. Some hard plastic and oddly for an electric car, no memory seats, not even as an option or self dimming mirror. Most other things are there and these are minor quibbles. An option that should be available but isn't is parking sensors. The model we have, GX4H, has a camera but this can get wet and obscure the rear when reversing, we had after market sensors fitted and happy we did. The sat nav display is OK but not great, the actual navigation element is fine, does the job. Bluetooth could be better, its simply takes calls in and out, the phonebook function is a bit limited, maybe because I use a Windows phone, but again it does the basics and it's not a premium car so I don't mark it down for this. The biggest plus is that it is easy to drive. My wife knows nothing about cars, just wants to get in and drive it and does not care if it is on battery or engine, it just works. All she does is plug it in after each use to keep it topped up and this alone is saving us £80 a week in fuel, yes we have to pay for electricity but it is no where near an 18mpg car cost! Not something you often think of when buying a car is the after sales service from a dealer and in this case Mitsubishi. We had cause to use the Mitsubishi assistance, it's a long story which I won't detail here but the dealer (Chertsey) and Mitsubishi customer services work together to solve a replacement car with a tow bar in a short space of time and crossed many hurdles to keep us happy. At no time did I need to push or had cause to panic as they had the situation in control. It's the sort of service when it's most needed you expect and hope someone will deliver but often fail. These guys exceeded my expectations and if aftersales is a consideration for you its an A+, 10 out of 10 for what they did, highly recommended. Only reason didn't give it 5 stars, no memory seats! This car would not make sense of long journeys as you would quickly loose the battery and then it would just run on the petrol engine. Mitsubishi dealers are quite good at ensuring it's right for what you need it for, at least when spoke to them.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

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Have owned this car for three weeks and cant believe the mpg I am getting, on one journey from Heathrow to Maidenhead had an average mpg of 276.9. Roughly doing 40-80 miles a day at the moment taking wife to work going home then picking her up, when we first got the car filled the tank up at a cost of 48 pounds, have traveled 310 miles and the petrol gauge is showing just under 3/4 full. I charge at night to take my wife to work a journey of around 17 miles, when i get there usually have about 8 miles EV so do a quick public charge - costing £1.50 then go home and recharge again. I know it seems a lot of charging but in all honesty i quite enjoy seeing how much the car will get mpg. I've had a Lexus 400h prior to this and yes the lexus is better build and more comfortable, but I would not swap the PHEV. A great car and my wife loves it as when we were using the lexus it was costing 70 pounds a week minimum. So for me yes it could with a couple of add ons such full closure, memory seats but price and value great.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

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Love the ride. Compared to my last x3 cars (BMWs) it is supremely comfortable. It's quiet - especially when running on electric and it tows my 1500kg Caravan with ease. Good view out and comfortable seats. Difficult to clean due to its height.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

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Battery degradation and ev range drop by 3miles in less then first 250 miles.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

No Red thumbs down

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I recently drove 780 miles on 24 liters of petrol in this car, which works out at 145mpg. It doesn't do as well as that most of the time, and on long trips the mpg depressingly heads towards 40. But despite the fact it's not much better than a normal internal combustion vehicle over long distances, it's good at some elements of long distance. Even when the battery charge is too low for full-throttle electric drive, when stuck in jams, well this type of drive train should just become compulsory. It can travel for miles in nose-tail queues while not adding to the fumes around. (So yes, why should my family breathe your noxious exhausts because you haven't a vehicle with zero emissions in these situations?) If you need a vehicle that can handle all conditions, give you independent axle 4WD electric transmission, up to 300 miles range when you need it but run at about 1/3rd the cost of fossil fuel when used mostly for short journeys, this car is for you.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

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Have run the car for 13 months - up until the recall the car had been exceptional! It allowed me to commute each day (23miles round trip) on electric charge. BUT since the safety recall - it fails to discharge the battery as its default power source. I am now having to fill the car up with petrol every 2 weeks - rather than every 6 weeks! I can complete my journey to work for 3 days before a change in battery charge is visible! I have spoken to the main dealer - which has hooked it up to the computer. There are no warnings showing and they've given 'cold weather' as a reason ( I have run it through a winter before - no issues at all). I have contacted Mitsubishi customer care - they have suggested the main dealer compares its performance against a similar age vehicle they have. As of yet, they have not sorted this!

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

No Red thumbs down

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We've had our PHEV for a while now, and have driven it a fair bit. It's a generally nice car - it's not going to give you goosebumps driving it, it's not going to win any drag racers, rallies or even beauty competitions, but it is going to drive you, your kids and a vast array of paraphernalia from A to B very nicely. If you can charge it up over night, then the school run or trip to the shops will be all electric (unless it's cold - the batteries perform much worse in the cold, so the engine makes up for it a lot when it's cold). Even driving well beyond the estimated range of the electric will still predominantly use electric - as a general rule, it'll use electric as much as it can and so you get great looking MPG. We went on holiday with it, and didn't charge it more than a couple of times. We got about 40MPG on a couple of tanks of petrol. Not brilliant, but not terrible either. Charging at home overnight is the most useful way to use this car. We've tried a few carparks and motorway services, but honestly, it's mostly not worth the trouble. It costs about £4 to charge the battery (according to the manual), and a lot of public charging options cost more than that. However, if you can get cheap/free charge somewhere, then all the better. Beware though, many supermarkets and such like need you to supply a cable (which costs about £100), so you really need to use that cable a lot to make it worth the cost of it. One potential loophole that's worth looking into is if you're visiting some sort of attraction, you may find an electric charge point which may be free to use and be helpfully located near the entrance. Not sure how long that sort of benefit will continue to exist though, as more people take advantage. Getting a charge point at home is pretty easy, so long as you can get a cable from your fuse board to wherever you want the charge point. That may be easy, but it could also be a real pain in the neck. If it's hard to do, you'll need an electrician to put in the cable because the 'free' or subsidised charge point fitters will only work a few hours, which won't cover doing a complex cable run. After all that, you're driving around quite happily. The car is super-easy to drive, and it mostly takes care of everything itself. It doesn't remember your preferences though, so won't stay in "B5" mode to get maximum brake regeneration, so you have to remember to set this each time you put the car into 'drive' (a few clicks of the flappy paddles is easy, but also easy to forget). The entertainment unit/gps is awful. No cars have good ones, but the dealer said "it's average" - I'd argue it's worse than that. It too doesn't remember your preferences, so if you like to see map + turn instructions, you have to select this every time you use it. Even if you just want to go to a postcode, you have to enter a street name too, which is an unnecessary hassle. The voice sounds like she's telling you off the whole time, and can't be changed at all. The directions are dubious (Google Maps does better, even without traffic issues), the time estimates are usually wrong, and even though our car is brand new, it doesn't know some roads and junctions that are years old. Playing radio or USB connected music is pretty straight forward, although arguably more complicated than it needs to be. There are seemingly a gazillion menus, none of which are especially logical and you'll find yourself pressing the wrong touch-screen button quite frequently. If you're a techno-phobe, then you may struggle - this definitely isn't an over-simplified system! Pairing with a phone is pretty easy, although I'm not convinced it works terribly well. I see the bluetooth icon showing disconnected on occasion. I don't use this aspect of things much, so haven't really put it through it's paces yet. Elsewhere the technology is pretty decent though. The surround camera is really great ('teacup mode' as we call it because the button for it looks like a teacup). It's a shame there's no proximity beeps though. The reversing camera is really good too - it's genuinely easy to park a pretty big car in a small space using the cameras alone. This is an example of in-car technology 'done right', and a far contrast to the entertainment/gps system. The proximity-keys work nicely. It's handy not having to get it out of your pocket to get in and drive somewhere (although you will need it to lock the car). I also like that it automatically folds the wing mirrors in when you lock it. It'd be great if there was a way to close the boot, windows and sunroof automatically to lock the car though. All in all, we're very happy with our new car. So long as you have a way to charge it up overnight, then it's a great car for short trips. It's comfortable and capable for long trips, but it's a lot more like any other SUV in that use-case. Most of the technology is good and does what you want without too much fuss, except the entertainment/gps system, which in my opinion is a real let-down for the car.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

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This car has been exactly what we needed. During the week I can commute 17miles through the countryside to work looking over hedgerows without using any fuel. At the weekend we pull a 7m caravan, all-be-it using rather more petrol! I would describe it as a car which can tow rather than as a tow-car, mainly because the engine working as a generator for long periods and the petrol tank being small and requiring filling regularly can become tiresome. On a long incline, the battery empties to the point where there is a drop in power which has to be accounted for. That said we have towed the van to Inverness and Venice with bikes on the roof of the car and experienced no reliability issues what so ever. Space inside is cavernous, the dash is a bit plain but there's loads of functionality. Importantly we can play Spotify and BBC iPlayer! The low slung batteries make cornering on my drive through the lanes each day a notably composed experience. Ours is the earlier model and I would happily consider the face-lifted version for our next car. Due to reliability worries on such new technology, we leased this car but if we have this model again we will buy.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

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I think whether this is the car for you very much depends on what you use it for. I have seen lots of reviews lambasting it for claiming 150mpg+ but only returning 30mpg or less in real life. That's fair enough, but those reviewers tend to say they use it for fairly long commutes on the motorways. This isn't a good car for long distance driving. It's modern and comfortable enough, I have taken it on long journeys and never had a problem with it coping, but once the battery runs out (at about 20-25 miles) you have a large petrol car carrying two electric motors and a battery about. That affects mpg, and on motorways my mpg tends to be about 35. Not terrible, but not good, and clearly a long way from the mpg claimed in the standard tests. But most of my driving is a 6 mile drive to work, and bits and pieces around town. Almost all of this is done under battery power alone, and would be even more efficient if I didn't have to go on urban dual carriageways. I once went 2 1/2 months between fill-ups. I have had the car 11 months now, so I have driven it is a variety of weathers. Cold does reduce battery range, as does using the heaters, a/c etc. I have been recording my fuel consumption and with a mix of mainly urban driving and longer trips every so often, I have averaged 77mpg. Not bad for an SUV. So whether this is the car for you depends on what you want to do with it. A Porsche 911 would be a terrible option for towing a horse box, but it doesn't make it a bad car. A Land Rover Defender wouldn't be great for track days. The Outlander PHEV isn't great if you're doing lots of motorway miles. But if you're doing shortish trips, it's comfortable, pretty roomy, practical and cheap to run.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

No Red thumbs down

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I seriously regret the decision to believe that the true mpg might have some element of honesty attached. My previous car was an X Trail which gave me 38-40mpg (This should suggest that my driving style is average) I have driven 1520 miles, used £149.00 petrol and £41,80 elec. £190.80 Total To me gives 13.07p/mile At £4.70 per gallon, this is 35.96 mpg I thought it reasonable to expect some better saving.

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My previous car was a BMW 5 series 2.0d M Sport so I was expecting a test drive with weightless steering, poor ride and lack of power and had already convinced myself this car was not for me. In less than 1 minute driving out of the dealership I turned to my daughter and said " I like this!". How wrong I was to judge it just because it didn't have a German badge. The steering feels weighted just like my BMW and the ride is no worse than my previous M Sport suspension with 19inch alloys. The extra ride height is great to. I was concerned the power would be a compromise but it feels much quicker than what the stats claim. With no turbo lag of a diesel the car quickly pulls away in electric and 0-30mph it'll give a good fight against most cars off the lights. If the petrol engine kicks in when you really floor it off the lights I have to agree it is a little gruff but this rarely happens and you'll soon get used to it. My biggest worry was motorway driving but again it surprised me being so quiet and comfortable at speeds. There is no additional wind noise that I've noticed over my 5 series and the electric and petrol engine combined if doing much over 70mph is so quiet you think it is running on electric only. If you need to overtake and put your foot down the electric and petrol combined is near 200bhp so believe me it goes much quicker than you expect. I admit I enjoy dropping the car behind which has to be a surprise when they see a two tonne 4x4 pull away from them. The finish inside is good quality and nothing rattles but design isn't on par with German cars but I'm pleased with it. The sound system is great to. All mod cons included. Great car and my BIK tax is approx £60pm.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

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As a farmer and a retired Chartered Surveyor, having owned many cars, all from new, from Morris Minor, via MG, Peugeot, Simca, Mercedes Benz, BMW, Izuzu, Shogun and Outlander, I find this car bought in September, 2014 a joy to drive, keep and run. After every journey I connect to my special electric point and she is ready to leave home on electric power only. A trifle expensive to buy and there is no history yet of second hand values. I am having difficulty in finding a public electric point in North Norfolk. So am always using my own. I do not yet know what it will do to my electricity bills.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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I've had this car for seven months find it comfortable to drive. I bought it second-hand with 7800 miles on the clock and have found Mitsubishi's economy claims rather exaggerated, The MMCS and sat nav by Garmin are very badly thought out and badly explained in manual, even for me as a retired technician who's used to electronic Manuals. The system has proved unreliable, too, and I'm hoping it will be replaced under warranty. After sales service not what I expected as all , services more expensive than my previous Nissan Qashqai. In general car drives well and for it's size is good on fuel on short distance runs. It's also very quiet and responsive on acceleration;better than my old diesel. Hopefully I hope the entertainment display gets replaced on warranty its the only down side to my purchase. As plug in hybrids go and it's a nice car to drive.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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I have only owned car for a couple of months, but am getting 50+ miles per gallon minimum. You have to be very smooth and judicious with the throttle and engage cruise control whenever possible, utilising regenerative braking when you can. It is only economical if you are doing relatively short runs, with charging in between. If you want brisk acceleration and achieving the speed limit at all times, you will get much poorer mpg when the batteries run out of charge and you have assistance from the engine for long periods. That said, I love the car and playing with the settings on the MMCS, although it is far from logically set up.

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Yes Green thumbs up

Tell us what you think about your car?

Had this car for 5 months excellent to drive with very good MPG , this car replaced a Nissan X trail and is one of the 3 cars in the family which include 2 prestige high performance German brands. I decided to replace the X trail after having 4 in row over an eight year period, I have used it on long trips in Europe and I could see driving it flat out on a motorway all day would reduce the MPG that said 4 up the worse MPG was 42, If you charge it each night and do about 25- 30 miles a day it is vey cheap to run, easy and comfortable to drive. If you want to cross continents at high speed, travel high mileage or lots of long journeys I would suggest this is not the car for you but if you need large SUV with the running cost of a small hatchback that does not sound like there is a bag of spanners rattling about under the bonnet and do local running, a short commute and the occasional long journey and all for a reasonable price it could be for you.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Just bought this car at one year old, and loving it. All my local mileage is electric, and my long distance mileage, travelling on motorways at around 70 mph is giving 40 mpg. As around half my mileage is local, I estimate I will get a combined 80mpg through the full year. The car is good to drive, I have owned a Lexus hybrid and Prius in the past, and this is more economical and a better overall proposition. Buying this car for £20k at one year old, with 4 years warranty left, I calculated that it would save me around £4K over 5 years compared to my 2010 Qasquai taking all costs and residual values into account, so the accountant in me was happy! Very happy with the car and low ongoing Costs!

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Yes Green thumbs up

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I have had my Outlander PHEV from new and decided to wire a review after the first 10,000 miles. The black glossed internal plastics are very easily scratched, and now after 8 months the car looks very bad - and has some really badly marked area's - Even though I have attempted to be very careful. The paint is extremely poor and my bonnet is really badly chipped, the paintwork is also really badly marked by swirls from the hand car wash garages. I know another 4 Outlander PHEV owners and they also have really bad paint damage. I have spoken to Mitsubishi about the faults, and they don't seem to care! The MPG on long runs is very poor - If i do long motorway miles i'm lucky to get above 50 MPG - but I can normally get 100% EV for my daily commute.

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No Red thumbs down

Tell us what you think about your car?

Avoid at all costs! The dealership, Mitsubishi Assist and Lex AutoLease have to be collectively the utter worst service/product I have ever had the misfortune to come across. Currently neither myself or any of the above know where the car is! I have cancelled my DD for the monthly payment to protect myself. After the PHEV failed to charge at a motorway services the EV warning light came on and we had broken down. The car was left at the services for 4 days due to Mitsubishi Assist giving out incomplete information, as verified by a managers call several days later. Since the car arrived at the dealership I have not had and still do not have a replacement car and no contact as to when and where the vehicle is or returned. The car disappeared 6 weeks ago, as far as I can see I’m Mitsubishi's research and Development department that has no idea what’s going on. The PHEV is dangerous on the motorway too. Accelerating in the fast lane then the EV warning comes pinging on ‘no propulsion’, this equates to your speed being ‘fixed’, you take your foot off the accelerator, you slow, you press the accelerator and your speed remains the same. You have to get over to the slow lane by looking over your shoulder hoping the cars will let you in, think about it! This has to be illegal.

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No Red thumbs down

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I have really mixed feelings about this car. I bought it because I liked the PHEV concept and wanted an economical SUV, my previous car was an Audi Q5 so the Outlander didn't have a tough act to follow. The Q5 was poor to mediocre in every field. Sadly I'm really let down by its most boasted about feature, the economy! It's not just not incredible on fuel, it's quite appalling! My daily commute is just over 35 miles and being a former Police Advanced driver I thought I could eek a little extra from the batteries but no, I was immediately disappointed to see that the claimed 32 miles wasn't achievable but as adventurous as the claimed fuel economy. The batteries on a motorway are an absolute waste, at 70 mph they last minutes not miles so, that being the majority of my commute it's a bit of a disappointment. I'm averaging about 33mpg whilst still charging at least once a day. That figure really is poor when you consider I'm utilising regenerative braking at every opportunity and keep it in eco mode continuously! I said I had mixed feelings because despite its appalling fuel economy I really like the car. It is nice to drive, handles well, roadholding is good, interior is nicely finished. I have the same problem with the Bluetooth dropping out mid call but I found this was caused by the WiFi function on my phone logging onto the car itself, knocking off the WiFi cures the interference. So overall I like it despite feeling utterly duped by Mitsubishi and it winds me up watching the never-ending TV ads which blatantly mislead the public with the imbellished figures, they should advertise what a thoroughly nice, well put together car it is.

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No Red thumbs down

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Excellent car. I know that the interior is not as exciting as the technology nor is the exterior design. However, the technology and the level of equipment are outstanding. Highly recommended car. Well done Mitsubishi!

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Yes Green thumbs up

Tell us what you think about your car?

I'm very happy with this car. Most of our trips are under 30 miles so can be made in electric drive mode. 26 miles on the battery is more realistic than the quoted 33 miles and not quite so good in the winter. It takes 4 to 5 hours to recharge using the chargemaster external 3Kw charger. We did not get the 7Kw one as our solar panels can provide half the charge if the sun is shining. We're now looking to a different energy supplier for half price electricity at night. For long runs we have found that using battery save mode from the start with a full battery avoids using the petrol engine to put charge in the battery. The charge goes down slightly but only slowly. The best petrol consumption seems to be achieved using 'Bo' for driving for most of the time and regenerative braking if you can anticipate the need to brake in advance. You need to set it back to 'Bo' afterwards of course. On a long run we can get 42 mpg with little battery use. Phone control using Android works well. Excellent performance for a 1.8 Tonne car. The build quality seems good. Sat nav not so good with poor menu structure. The all-leather seats in our model are very comfortable. Occasionally we get flashed at night when using the LED self leveling dipped beam lights. It seems these are not adjustable, which is rather silly. So far we've had no problems with the paint. My wife loves the car .

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Yes Green thumbs up

Tell us what you think about your car?

We haven't had ours very long, I will say we are pleased with it and its performance. It's roomy, travels on battery alone to the last mile then the engine takes over. It drives like a dream and we love it. Just one issue, on the test drive we were sold you can control the car temperature on cold mornings you can simply program the cars heater to come on and pre warm it on very cold mornings from the comfort of your home via an app. its works on any phone, but to our disappointment our phones were not compatible our only answer was to obtain a iPhone. it appears that the Outlander requires an update to suit our Android phone. We're not very pleased with after service either, they did try to fix that issue but it's still not resolved.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

Tell us what you think about your car?

40,000 miles at 55mpg average, the equivalent of 52mpg if you allow for electricity costs. It's comfy and fast on A and B roads. The CVT automatic gearbox is noisy on hard acceleration, though. My best fuel consumption has been 116 mpg, the worst 35 at 70mph plus on the motorway. I have a new one on order for 31st March and that says it all. The only problem I've experienced has been a split drivers door arm rest due to my bony elbow. It wasn't covered under warranty as it was caused by "an external influence", my only gripe.

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Yes Green thumbs up

Tell us what you think about your car?

Breathtakingly unreliable, noisy, poor build quality and heavy on fuel. I have had my Outlander for just over six months. In that time, it has broken down and required recovery four times. It has spent nearly two months off the road being repaired. The problem has been traced to an issue with the 'connectors' in the battery compartment. How well fixed it is remains to be seen but I am not filled with confidence. Mitsubishi's own customer services are terribly lacking and have no concept of customer care. Apart from having a very unreliable vehicle, this was the most disappointing thing. When it is on the road, the drive from the electric motors is strong, linear and smooth in a way that a direct internal combustion engine cannot match. This is the primary strength of the vehicle and why people buy them in the first place (company car tax benefits aside). The interior is okay. It is nothing special and does not compete with European cars for the quality of the plastics and certainly does not come close for the design ergonomics. The placements of the various buttons and switches defies any kind of logic and seems at best, very random. Apart from the constant and significant failures to the eV system in my car, the general build quality seems very poor for a Japanese car. Both front headrests rattle which is just annoying and no amount of adjustment keeps them quite for more than a couple of minutes. The cover for the rear compartment also rattles, no matter whether it is in place or rolled up. The alarm goes off on a very regular basis for no apparent reason. To the point where I receive hate-mail from my neighbours. None of these issues have been rectified by the dealer's service department. As far as MPG goes, this is the least fuel efficient car I have ever had (okay, not the very worst as I did have a Porsche 928 for a while and that was pretty bad). A full charge will give you about a 20 mile range. Beyond that you are generating your own electricity and I have rarely got the MPG up to 30. On longer Motorway journeys, it usually returns around 28MPG. I know it is a big and fairly heavy car with a large frontal area to cause plenty of drag but these seem like pretty bad figures even if you take all of that into account. I suspect if you charge very regularly and only take very short urban journeys you could get much better results. Overall, I could only recommend this car to someone that takes very short journeys in an urban environment and does not mind about constant breakdowns, long waits for recovery and is happy to deal with a customer services department that could not care less about their customers.

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No Red thumbs down

Tell us what you think about your car?

This car is just fantastic! Running costs are very good, my average fuel consumption is 95 mpg! Nothing went wrong with this car. 4X4 is superior (I was stuck in mud, but got out without help :) )

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Yes Green thumbs up

Tell us what you think about your car?

With only 5% BIK (now 7%) this was the smartest choice for me financially as a company car driver. The car is big and comfortable and has everything onboard that you would need. I also think it is a good looking car that is very relaxing to drive. If however you pay for your own petrol and do a lot of miles this is not the car for you. It is also not a "driver's" car. If you enjoy a spirited drive through the country lanes this will not offer the kind of experience you are probably looking for. In summary it is a practical family car that is perfect for the company car driver.

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No Red thumbs down

Tell us what you think about your car?

Since taking delivery of the car last year, I have covered around 20k miles in 6 months. Much of the driving is for sales purposes and takes in a lot of motorways. The build quality is superb except for a small slot near the lower seatbelt anchor which has no cover and seems to collect stones which cannot be removed from the undertray - quite annoying. Except for that the machine has been faultless. Good acceleration if you give it the beans (with battery + engine) and acceptable if you are on battery only. Battery range is not near 32 miles, but if you charge regularly either at home or when you stop at motorway services, the fuel efficiency is pretty acceptable. It will happily trundle along at 70mph on battery alone until the battery is exhausted. The 45 litre tank means that I have to fill up virtually every day, but its not a real problem. Snow and freezing weather performance is very good with a very controllable delivery of power. Body roll is virtually nil due to the low centre of gravity. Excellent roadholding without much wallowing. The brakes are good but if you use the regenerative braking paddles and anticipate, you only need to use them to come to a full stop. When you fast charge, the battery goes from around 30% (normal minimum for this hybrid design) to 80% (maximum fast charge limit) in 22 minutes. Fine if you stop for the loo and a coffee or lunch. People NEVER believe the economy figures for traditional internal combustion engine cars so why moan if they refuse to charge regularly and only get 40mpg. It's a life choice with changes which need embracing. Great around town and you'll not need to put in any fuel at all if you only do short journeys. Lots of bells and whistles which make it quite engaging to drive and get the best from it- Enjoy!!!

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Yes Green thumbs up

Tell us what you think about your car?

Intriguing car to own - like being in a mobile laboratory with lots of green info. Can't treat PHEV like a normal car - always aware that economy is "key" and constant surveillance/adjustment is needed to achieve best results. However when favourable results are achieved it is quite rewarding. Quite pleased with car overall but disappointed with fuel consumption on longer runs -definitely a short journey vehicle for maximum smile factor!! For me it sorts a few bucket list items now achieved providing a hybrid & SUV all in one package -certainly stimulates conversation over a pint at the local . A few bullet points worthy of note :- ~no lockable storage anywhere in car for wallet,phone etc - ~no spare wheel - hate the very thought of a puncture! ~remote connection to mobile does not function properly ie:- can't remotely warm up from cold as advertised ~navigation complex - difficult to use ~best electric range has been 22 mile , not 32 as claimed ~mpg with 30% elec/70%petrol around 42mpg

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

Tell us what you think about your car?

Best thing I ever did. I will never go back to a standard motor again. The majority of my trips are under 20miles, so no fuel - fab! Mpg on motorway about 45 which is good for a 2 ton 4x4 petrol motor. But I hardly ever go on the motorway. I also use my phone to tell the phev to heat its self up and defrost the windows in winter before I get in. No more scrapping, it's a very clever car. I have solar panels which is a plus, free charging too! Driving has never been so much fun and silent. What a car! It's a no brainer.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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I have to say this car is terrible with regards to MPG. I bought this car thinking I would get 60-70mpg but on a normal day I'm lucky to get 35mpg. I almost feel like I was sold a duff story with regards to the mpg. The ride is good and spec also good. When going from 40 to 70 it's pretty fast for car this size.

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No Red thumbs down

Tell us what you think about your car?

Great car but some small problems with bluetooth phone connections can anyone help? Several other owners have a similar problem with IOS 7 through IOS 8.02

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

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