Driving Canada’s best-selling PHEV
The 2020 Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV (Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle), has sold more than 200,000 units across the world and is also Canada’s best-selling plug-in hybrid.
Forget about the adrenaline rush of racing through corners in some swanky sports car. Or bouncing monster 4X4s down rocky off-road ridges. No, it was time for the quieter, calmer pleasures of careful acceleration, of scrolling through display screen readouts and puzzling over power graphics in a plug-in hybrid (PHEV).
There’s a kind of nerdy joy to be found in incremental victories of stretching fuel economy and battery range, in this case within the confines of a 2020 Mitsubishi Outlander GT S-AWC PHEV.
This plugged-in version joined the third generation Outlander and it has proved popular, outselling all other PHEV SUVs, both here in Canada and in the global market.
In fact, Mitsubishi is boasting a long list of firsts that include:
• Canada’s first twin electricmotor SUV with Super All-Wheel Control (S-AWC).
• Canada’s only plug-in hybrid SUV to offer 100 per cent electric 4WD capability.
• Canada’s only plug-in hybrid SUV with a DC Fast Charging capability that can recharge the vehicle to 80 per cent in under 30 minutes.
• Canada’s only plug-in hybrid with a 10-year/160,000 km warranty on the powertrain and lithiumion battery along with a five year/100,000 km comprehensive vehicle warranty.
The Outlander PHEV is a relatively recent addition, at least here in North America, but there are still changes for the 2020 model year.
Trim levels have been adjusted with some new names and new content - SE S-AWC ($43,998), LE S-AWC ($45,498), SEL S-AWC ($47,498) and GT S-AWC ($51,998).
All starting prices are up by $500 but the changes include a next generation Smartphone-link Display Audio with eight-inch screen instead of the previous seveninch display, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto now standard, new HVAC controls, new power lumbar added to the driver’s seat and rear seat revisions for more comfort.
The top-end GT S-AWC model, tested here, also gets quilted leather upholstery and its previous Rockford-Fosgate nine-speaker audio system has been replaced with Mitsu’s own eight-speaker Power Sound system.
Those quilted seats are snugly comfortable and make for a stylish uptick in an Outlander design that, let’s admit it, has always seemed more bland than bold.
There’s still some hard plastic here and there and switches that betray econobox origins but the layout seems fairly sensible although, while I know that I can make audio changes via steering wheel buttons or the touch screen, I’d still kill for a set of volume/tuning knobs . . .
The Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV combines gasoline power and electric thrust starting with a 2.0-litre MIVEC four-cylinder engine (117 hp, 137 lb/ft) engine, supplemented by two electric motors - one on the front axle (80 hp, 101 lb/ft) and the second on the rear axle (80 hp, 144 lb/ft).
Acceleration is modest but adequate to suit demands and offer a 680 kg (1,500 lb) tow rating.
An 80-cell 300V 12kWh lithiumion battery pack fits between the two axles under the passenger cabin floor. Charging times are:
• 8 hours at 120V 12 amp household outlet.
•.3.5 hours at 240V 16 amp outlet or charge station
• 25 min (up to 80 per cent) at CHAdeMO DC fast charge station.
The 110-volt outlet at our condo parking was only rated for 8 amps so a full charge took more than 12 hours, still good enough for overnight recharging up to the expected 35 km EV range.
Which doesn’t sound like much but it’s probably enough to cover an average commute or futzing about town until the gas engine kicks in.
Driving style and regenerative braking, also controlled via the shifter and steering wheel paddles, contribute to the net fuel economy results.
The Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV is rated at 3.0Le/3.4Le/3.2Le/100km (city/hwy/comb).
I averaged 5.8L/100km (comb) over 600 km but mileage will vary depending on daily distances - how far you go on gas after the initial 35 km of EV driving.
And it also depends on whether the driver selects:
• EV Priority Mode running on electric power only.
• ECO Mode that reduces gas and electricity usage.
• Battery-Save Mode that reduces electrical assist, for example, on the highway until you get to an urban area where electric power is more efficient.
• Battery-Charge Mode that will fully recharge the battery during, for example again, an hour-long highway run.
While it may seem hard to justify the starting price jump from a regular Outlander ($29,998) to an Outlander PHEV ($44,998), even considering federal ($2,500) and provincial rebates ($1,500 B.C., $4,000 Quebec), it also comes down to balancing driving demands and fuel economy with the intangibles of personal environmental convictions.
One out of four PHEVs sold in Canada is a Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV and although new compact class entries like the RAV4 PHEV and Ford Escape PHEV are finally slated to start competing later this year, the Outlander is not resting on its laurels.
And possibly it be replaced or joined by a bigger, bolder, longerrange revised model, based on the Engelberg Tourer concept, rumoured to debut for 2021.