Driven|2014 Mitsubishi Outlander SE with Touring
Best Cars Guide Ranks the 2014 Mitsubishi Outlander SE S-AWC with Touring (1 = worst; 5 = best)
Our hopes that the Outlander SE would disprove our recent theory that Mitsubishi’s heyday is long gone have not come to fruition. The Outlander, while nicer than the Sport model, still lacks refinement and the realization that it’s the 21st century. The doors feel tinny, and the interior is like a permanent #TBT (throwback Thursday).
The Mitsubishi Outlander SE would be a fantastic SUV with state-of-the art features and technology – if it were 1997.
Basically, we couldn’t have said it better than Justin Cupler over at TopSpeed.com.
Overall Ranking: 3
Value: 3.5 – It comes a little cheaper than the competition (Kia Sorento, Toyota RAV-4, Hyundai Santa Fe). But then again, it comes cheaper than the competition. The nearly $32,000 price tag of this Mitsubishi isn’t enough of a value to outweigh the SUV’s shortcomings.
Fuel economy: 4 – The fuel economy is great, but the driver will sacrifice his ability to easily get into traffic with the strained 2.4 SOHC inline four (packed with CVT of course) Mitsubishi has paired with the Outlander SE. The lack of power – when living in a metro area like DC at least – is borderline dangerous. Flooring it neither does much to save gas nor does much to help the driver merge in with already-at-speed traffic. If we had to nickname the Outlander, it would be the ‘Struggle Bus’.
Style: 2 – We’ll give a 2 for effort. The headlights are nice and taillights aren’t too bad. The wheels have a nice design and almost sparkly finish. But the Outlander SE is void of any personality at all, really. In a competitive car market, the car has to catch the consumer’s eye to pique their interest. Echoing Cupler’s feelings, the design feels a bit like the guy who wears a short-sleeved button up dress shirt with a tie to work when everyone else is in Hugo Boss suits.
Creature comforts: 4 – Thanks to the $6,100 Touring package, the Outlander SE comes with most of the creature comforts a buyer would be looking for – although, we’d argue if they were worth pushing the price tag above $30,000 for. The best feature of the SUV are its comfortable front seats. The controls are also easy to access for the driver, including a 7-inch Rockford Fosgate display. Passengers in the third row, however, are SOL as we say. Not only will they be packed in like sardines and forced to deal with those awkward headrests, but one will be seated directly next to the 10-inch Rockford Fosgate subwoofer. Hope your driver tunes into the easy listening station!
Technology: 3 – Three words – Lane Departure Warning. This system, while meant to be helpful, automatically engages at each drive. This wouldn’t be problematic except it’s not smart enough to detect when the driver intends to change lanes or go over the line a bit without using the turn signal. The LDW system serves more as training wheels to novice or elderly drivers with its obnoxious beeping.
