Mitsubishi Outlander LS 2022 Review

The 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander LS will set you back $39,490 plus on-road costs. This price includes a standard automatic transmission and third-row seating. Add $2500 if you want to swap from front-wheel drive to all-wheel drive.

In the front-wheel drive Outlander line-up, the LS sits above the five-seater ES (from $35,990 plus ORCs) and below the Aspire (from $42,990). The top-spec Exceed (from $49,990) and Exceed Tourer (from $52,490) only come as AWDs.

If you want to trade in the 2.5-litre four-cylinder engine for a plug-in hybrid powertrain, then expect to pay $54,490 plus on-road costs for the cheapest Mitsubishi Outlander ES PHEV. There is no LS PHEV.

In terms of rivals, the Outlander LS FWD lines up against the likes of the Hyundai Tucson Elite (from $39,400), Kia Sportage SX (from $37,000), Mazda CX-5 Maxx Sport (from $38,190) and Toyota RAV4 GXL (from $37,950). These are all auto FWD prices.

The 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander LS (and its siblings, apart from the ES) stands out from the medium SUV crowd because it is one of the few models in the mid-size SUV pack to come with a third row of seats.

Mitsubishi officially deems the Outlander a 5+2 and that gives you an idea how tight things are back there. It’s cramped enough packaging to force a swap from a full-size spare tyre to a space-saver.

Key Outlander LS exterior equipment includes 18-inch alloy wheels, a rear spoiler, privacy glass and silver roof rails. Because of the global computer chip shortage, a power tailgate has been deleted.

You also get a front-end styling that is divisive, to put it mildly. Mitsubishi argues the combination of bright chrome, high-mounted DRLs and oversized LEDs means people will love the Outlander or hate it, but not ignore it.

Smart keyless access gets you inside the cabin where you’ll find dual-zone air-conditioning with rear vents, cloth seat trim, leather trimming for the steering wheel and gear shifter, an electric park brake, paddle shifters, voice control, power windows, a push-button start and a security blind for the luggage area.

Seat adjustment including lumbar for the driver is manual. The 40/20/40-split second row also slides and has backrest recline. There are six cup holders – including two in row three – and door bins in the front doors and smaller ones in the rear.

So what sort of stuff are you missing out on by not paying more for a higher-spec Outlander? Power seating, that power tailgate, a sunroof, leather seat trim, tri-zone climate control, 10-speaker audio and a digital instrument panel are on the list.

The Outlander LS comes with a generous 10-year/200,000km warranty – but only if you service at a Mitsubishi dealer; otherwise it’s five years and 100,000km. There’s also a capped-price servicing plan that works out at just over $3000 for 10 scheduled services.

The 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander LS joins the rest of the range in coming with a five-star 2022 ANCAP safety rating.

Its highest ranking is 92 per cent for child occupant protection and 81 per cent for vulnerable road user protection.

The Outlander comes with eight airbags including a centre airbag to avoid head knocks between front-seat passengers. However, the curtain airbags do not protect row-three passengers.

The LS comes with a long list of sophisticated driver assist systems. It’s worth noting it picks up a couple of important features – rear automatic braking and rear cross traffic alert – that the ES misses out on.

Conversely, if you want a head-up display or 360-degree camera then you’ll have to spend more money on the Outlander Aspire. A reversing camera and front and rear parking sensors are fitted across the range.

Autonomous emergency braking (AEB) is a vital safety aid that’s standard. It operates up to 144km/h, detects pedestrians day or night and cyclists during the day. It also includes junction assist.

To that you can add adaptive cruise control, blind spot warning and a bunch of different ways to help you stay in or change lane. It does not get lane centring assist, so the self-steering is a bit ping-pong. Nor does the Outlander come with any form of auto parking assist.

Other safety spec includes a driver attention alert, traffic sign recognition, trailer stability assist, hill start assist and hill descent control, LED headlights with auto high beam and dusk sensing, LED front fog lights and rain-sensing wipers.

The Outlander LS comes with two ISOFIX and three child seat top tethers fitted to the second-row seats.

A 9.0-inch touch-screen mounted high on the dashboard of the 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander LS is at the heart of its infotainment system.

Via the screen you can access wired and wireless Apple CarPlay and wired Android Auto, Bluetooth smartphone streaming, embedded sat-nav, a six-speaker Bose audio system and AM/FM and digital radio frequencies.

The volume control dial is on the far-side of the screen from the driver, but you can also make adjustments on the steering wheel.

There are two USB inputs in rows one and two, and two 12V outlets in the cabin: one up front and one in the boot.

The Outlander LS comes fitted with an orthodox two-dial analogue instrument panel with a seven-inch digital information screen in its centre. This include a digital speedo readout.

Reflecting the alliance with Nissan and Renault that kicked off in 2016, the 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander LS is powered by the Nissan PR25DD 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine and drives the front wheels via a CVT automatic transmission.

A double overhead camshaft design with 16 valves, this engine has an aluminium head and block and comes with a timing chain rather than a belt. It makes a claimed 135kW at 6000rpm and 245Nm at 3600rpm.

The Outlander’s CVT comes with eight pre-programmed gear steps that can be manipulated manually only via paddle shifters on the steering wheel.

The powertrain can be manipulated via a dial near the shifter through five modes to suit different driving styles that include Eco, Normal, Tarmac, Gravel and Snow.

The 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander’s claimed ADR fuel consumption rate is 7.7L/100km, which is highly competitive against its rivals.

In the real world during our testing that translated to around 8.6L/100km. That’s in the ballpark.

The Outlander’s engine runs on 91RON regular unleaded and it has a 55-litre fuel tank.

The 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander LS rolls on an alliance architecture dubbed CMF-CD that is also used by the Nissan X-TRAIL and Renault Koleos. The brand-new Nissan X-TRAIL due in Australia this year evolves to a newer version of the platform.

The Outlander LS measures up at 4710mm long, 1862mm wide, 1748mm high (including shark fin radio antenna) and has a 2706mm wheelbase. It weighs in at 1645kg and has a maximum braked towing capacity of 1600kg.

Under the skin there is passive MacPherson strut front and multi-link rear suspension, electric-assist rack and pinion steering and disc braking all-round.

There’s been no local tuning of the new Outlander’s chassis, and to be frank it shows in the driving.

Mitsubishi has clearly set itself the goal of making the new Outlander sportier than its predecessor and in that it has succeeded. The steering is more responsive and accurate and the body less prone to rock and roll.

But it has achieved this by tightening up the ride. On rough Australian roads, more compliance would be appreciated.

Having said that, it’s better in the LS than more expensive Outlanders with lower-profile rubber and bigger wheels. It’s not as good as the Kia Sportage, which is locally tuned and rides like it.

Where the Outlander and Sportage are more in alignment is slow-poke engines. That’s if you go for the naturally aspirated 2.0-litre engine in the Kia.

Look, the Outlander’s 2.5 is fine for trundling around, commuting and cruising. But it is obviously making an effort when you load it up and demand response from standstill, expect it to maintain speed up a hill or go for a quick overtake.

With its eight steps the CVT does its best to behave like an orthodox torque-converter auto and manage this effort. But there’s no avoiding the monotone hum that sometimes still makes itself heard.

When the revs do rise plenty of sound deadening keeps the din in the cabin under control.

To back up its family-oriented intent, the Outlander’s light-ish steering, 10.6m turning circle and big windows make it a good vehicle for urban work.

The 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander is a gravel roader not an off-roader. For that you need to add the modestly-named Super-All Wheel Control.

The Outlander has a 210mm ground clearance to help it over moderate obstacles.

Like the drive experience, the interior of the 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander LS is a fair step up from what came before.

Mitsubishi uses the gaudy top-spec models to emphasise this in their advertising and brochures (naturally), but the LS is still nicely put together and presented.

It’s a subtler, more orthodox look, although the piano black is going to smear up quickly.

The presentation downer is the dreary home page on the touch-screen. It encourages a swap to CarPlay or Android Auto as quickly as possible.

More importantly, the driver has all the necessary adjustments available to get comfortable, including a reach and rake steering column that moves through a generous range.

Second-row passengers can slide the base to be scrunched up against the front seats or back enough to have adequate legroom – it never gets really generous.

Headroom is good and elbow-room fine for two adults. The middle seat is the short straw, being high and hard. The floor is pretty flat for a non-EV.

However you set up row two, it’s tight in row three and a challenge to access. So kids-only back there.

Setting up and stowing the third row is made more painful by the need to instal and remove head restraints each time. On the positive side, flexibility is aided because you can choose to set up one or two of the individual seats.

As we’ve already mentioned, there are storage opportunities front and rear. There are nice touches like the multiple pockets on the front seatbacks.

Luggage capacity is 163 litres with all three rows in place, 478 litres with row two folded (which can be done via levers in the boot as well as at the seat) and 1473 litres with only the front buckets upright.

The headrests and security blind can be tucked under the floor when not in use.

The 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander LS is the model in the range that makes the most fuss-free sense. It’s got enough performance and driving civility to suit most people most of the time.

Equipment-wise it’s got most key stuff covered, except for heads in row three. For some, that’s going to be a deal-breaker.

And, of course, it’s a weird-looking sucker – from the front anyway.

So should you buy one? Well, it definitely makes more sense than the more expensive models in the Outlander range, unless you really need leather, tri-zone climate control and so on.

The tougher challenge is recommending the Outlander over the best mid-size SUVs on sale in Australia today. There are better vehicles out there.

2022 Mitsubishi Outlander LS 2WD at a glance:
Price: $39,490 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Engine: 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol
Output: 135kW/245Nm
Transmission: Eight-speed continuously variable automatic
Fuel: 7.7L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 174g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Five-star (ANCAP 2022)