2016 Mitsubushi Outlander: A Redesigned Crossover

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I was provided a two day loan of the 2016 Mitsubushi Outlander for review by Drive Shop. All opinions are my own and I will not receive further compensation. 

If you are in the market for a new car and don’t want a full size SUV the Mitsubishi Outlander is a stylish cross-over. Forget what you thought you knew about the Outlander, the 2016 has been redesigned and reengineered to stand out in the crossover market. Combine the new look with Mitsubishi’s reliability and safety standards and the 2016 Outlander is unmatched.

Last week I was in Orlando for work and I was able to drive the 2016 Outlander for two days thanks to Drive Shop. Let’s not forget ya’ll, I have a 2009 mini-van. When I get the chance to try a new car I am all about every detail.  One thing the Outlander has is plenty of detail. I like that in a car, as a Mom I feel that some days I live in my car.  The big thing that I noticed was how quiet our drive was. We had the navigation and the Sirus/XM radio on and we could still talk and hear the navigation. I didn’t hear much if any road noise. When you are driving a ton of kids around you really don’t want a noisy car as well.  This is because of the newly improved platform and drivetrain in the 2016 Outlander.

The 2016 Outlander has a brand new exterior design. My absolute favorite part of this redesign is the power-folding side mirrors. You are probably thinking mirrors, really Jenn? Yes, really. I cannot tell you how banged up my side mirrors are, or how many times I have hit my elbow on them. It is the small details in design that make me giddy. So yes, I screamed “the side mirrors fold in when you park”!

While the 2016 Outlander does have a new Navigation system I found it to be a bit touchy. It took me almost ten minutes anytime I wanted to add a new destination as it was very temperamental. Also, instead of taking me on the highway it took me back roads, and these weren’t to make it faster. I could not for the life of me figure out how to change the NAV system to highway.

Being a cross-over let’s talk about seating space.  The front seats are very comfortable, the ability to slide the second row seats forward and backward is fantastic and the newly designed ability to flip the seats forward and lay them flat easily is great. While the second row does offer more leg room than other cross over models the bench width is narrow. Forget putting any adults or teens in the third row, it’s small. While Mitsubishi claims the Outlander is the only car in its class with third row seating, I beg to ask the question who is meant to sit there?

Overall, the redesign improved the 2016 model and Mitsubishi is headed in the right direction. The 2016 Outlander would be great for a family just starting out as it has a good amount of trunk space with the third row folded down it can easily store a stroller and more. This is not the car for a family of teenagers as the seating for them is limited to the front seat and middle row. The starting price of the 2016 Outlander is $24,950 and while that may sound affordable you can buy a non-crossover for that price and get more trunk space without having to fold a third row.