2023 Mitsubishi Outlander Review

You're looking at the best vehicle Mitsubishi sells in the U.S. The 2023 Mitsubishi Outlander is a three-row compact crossover SUV with a genuine sense of style, modern technology and competitive power. If that praise sounds like the Outlander simply meets the basic requirements to compete in the segment, you're correct. But when you consider the rest of Mitsubishi's U.S. lineup, it's a miracle.

It helps that the 2023 Outlander is based on the same platform and component set as the Nissan Rogue. However, the Outlander looks much different, comes with an exclusive third-row seat, and is tuned to deliver a unique driving character. Plus, the Outlander uses a 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine, while the Rogue has a new turbocharged 1.5-liter three-cylinder under its hood. The Mitsubishi also has a more generous warranty.

The big confirmed news for the 2023 Outlander models is the arrival of a redesigned plug-in hybrid. We review the Outlander PHEV separately, but the TL;DR is that it looks just like the appealing gas-only version, has three rows of seats, and comes with a more powerful drivetrain with greater electric-only range. Otherwise, the standard Outlander adds new trim levels for 2023 to give buyers more variety and a wider range of pricing options.

While the PHEV sounds promising, we like the standard Outlander well enough, perhaps in part because it is such a massive improvement over the one it replaced. Be sure to check out our full Expert Rating to get all of the details.

The 2023 Mitsubishi Outlander is a rarity in the compact SUV class because it comes standard with a small third-row seat, bumping passenger capacity to seven. There are eight available trim levels: ES, SE Special Edition, SE, SE Black Edition, SE Ralliart, SEL, SEL Black Edition and SEL 40th Anniversary. All Outlanders use a 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine (181 horsepower, 181 lb-ft of torque) and a continuously variable transmission (CVT), and front-wheel drive is standard. Most trims offer Mitsubishi's Super-All Wheel Control (S-AWC) as the optional all-wheel-drive system, though it's standard on the SE Ralliart and SEL 40th Anniversary. Feature highlights for each trim include: