Larry H. Miller Subaru Mitsubishi Boise

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• Summary

Walk Around

The Outlander is a four-door SUV capable of seating five or seven. Up front is an understated, traditionally shaped grille opening with the three-diamond Mitsubishi trademark floating on thin, horizontal bars. The lower portion of the front bumper opens into a large air intake above a skid plate-looking under-panel. Headlight covers blend cleanly into the surrounding fascia and fenders.

The side view shows a sleek, rounded shape with deeply creased fender blisters that outline circular wheel wells, which are better filled by the 18-inch wheels than by the 16-inchers. The side glass tapers toward the back end, playing to the wedge look and ending in a substantial, sharply angular D-pillar. Front and rear bumpers flow seamlessly into their respective quarter panels. Easy-to-grip door handles sit atop full-round indents.

The rear has a unified look. The liftgate reaches all the way down to the top of the bumper, which functions also as a small, fold-down tailgate designed to support up to 440 pounds -- so no worries sitting on it at tailgate parties. A nice feature of the little tailgate is that it forms a small barrier at the back of the cargo bay, so that when you open the main liftgate your cantaloupe doesn't coming rolling out onto the ground, which has happened to us with other SUVs.

The sides of the Outlander bend inward toward the top, adding a distinctively aero-look to an otherwise mostly boxy shape when viewed from behind. Many of the seams and lines draw the eye to the Mitsubishi trademark centered in the lift gate. The spoiler topping the backlight extends directly from the roof.

Interior

2009 Mitsubishi Outlander

Inside, the Outlander looks and feels upscale, quiet, and mature, with tasteful metallic trim and tighter integration of controls and fixtures. The front seats have deep bottom cushions that give good thigh support. Side bolsters do their job without being overly confining. Lumbar and height adjustment offer sufficient range to accommodate almost every body shape and dimension. The Outlander competes with the Chevrolet Equinox, Ford Escape, Honda CR-V, Mazda CX-7, and Toyota RAV4. Compared with those vehicles, the front seats of the Outlander offer headroom that's firmly in the upper half of the class and comparable legroom, though hip room is relatively tight.

The second-row seats are contoured more like bench seats than buckets. Second-row legroom is among the best in the class. The XLS offers reclining rear seatbacks and the second row slides 3.2 inches fore-and-aft. Headroom and hip room for second-row passengers is below average for the class. The second-row seats are split 60/40 for versatility with cargo and passengers.

Access to the third-row seat is surprisingly easy for a sport utility of this size. The second-row seat folds flat and then rocks forward against the back of the front seat, opening an expansive path to the rearmost seat; there's even a small courtesy light on the second-row seat bottom that illuminates the floor when the seat bottom is released. Once back there, though, the third-row seats are not comfortable for adults. The seat bottom and seat back are mere inches in thickness, and the seat sits so close to the floor that adult occupants' knees come to about shoulder height. The Outlander's third-row seat comes up short against the RAV4 by a couple of inches in every direction. And the RAV4 seat is really a seat, with cushions instead of pads.

Collapsing the third-row seat into the cargo floor is relatively easy, requiring little more than pulling a couple straps and pushing where noted. Not so retrieving it. Even with the short tailgate, getting to a couple of the requisite straps and then leveraging the seat up out of the floor and locking it into place makes for some awkward stretches and strains. Still, for kids or short jaunts, the Outlander fulfills its purpose as a seven-passenger vehicle.

In cargo room, the Outlander bests all the competition save the CR-V and RAV4, and it loses to those two only slightly. Outlander's short tailgate incorporates a feature we've noticed only on high-end SUVs, a flap that folds down when the gate is open to bridge the gap over the gate's hinges. Thus, not only is there a short tailgate that eases loading and unloading cargo, but also it's a lot easier sliding awkward and heavy boxes into and out of the back. This adds to the Outlander's practicality when moving stuff around.

Cubby storage is respectable. A bi-level glove box fills the top and bottom of the right side of the dash. All four doors have bottle holders, the front ones sharing space with maps and the like. The front console has four cup holders, the second-row fold-down center another two. Even the third-row seat has cubbies on the side. Atop the storage compartment in the center console is a padded cover that adjusts fore and aft a couple inches.

Sight lines from the driver's seat are good most ways around. The front corners are in view, easing parking and maneuvers in close quarters. The robust D-pillars restrict the over-the-shoulder view, however. The dropped-down screen obscures the rearward view when the kids are using the rear-seat entertainment system, but this is common with most of these systems.

The fabric upholstery that comes standard feels durable, the optional leather in the XLS is pliant. The fit and finish in the cabin impressed us. Easy-to-use knobs and buttons manage temperature and other functions. Buttons stacked along the sides of the LCD monitor provide basic access to the navigation system. A major plus with the navigation system is that it and the sound system have separate on/off buttons. Many such systems in other vehicles do not. The tachometer and speedometer are appreciably large with clear markings, but are so deeply recessed that reading them with a glance is difficult unless you're precisely aligned with their surrounding tunnels.

The stereo that comes standard delivers better-than-average sounds. The speed-compensated volume and equalization help mask the low-level road noise and wind rustle from around the outside mirrors. The up-level, Rockford-Fosgate stereo, with 650 watts and eight speakers and a 10-inch subwoofer, converts the Outlander into a rolling boom box, but with more clarity in the treble notes than is common in such systems.

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