The Mitsubishi Outlander
In my previous post, I wrote about compact SUVs receiving Top Safety picks from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). One of those top rated SUV when it comes to safety is the Mitsubishi Outlander.
The Mitsubishi Outlander is quite an interesting SUV, so here’s a brief background.
Created by one of the world’s car manufacturers, Mitsubishi Motors, The Outlander, a compact crossover SUV, originally known as the Mitsubishi Airtrek, was introduced in Japan in 2001. It was based on the Mitsubishi ASX concept vehicle exhibited at the 2001 North American International Auto Show.
The name Airtek came into the picture in order to “describe the vehicle’s ability to transport its passengers on adventure-packed journeys in a ‘free-as-a-bird’ manner”, and was “coined from Air and Trek to express the idea of footloose, adventure-filled motoring pleasure.” The Outlander nameplate which replaced it evoked a “feeling of journeying to distant, unexplored lands in search of adventure.”
In order to increase the overall length of the car when it was released in 2003, The Outlander was given a modified front grille and headlights.
In 2005, the second wave of the vehicle was introduced and most markets named it The Outlander. It was built on the company’s GS platform, and used various engines developed by Mitsubishi, Volkswagen and PSA Peugeot Citroën. PSA’s Citroën C-Crosser and Peugeot 4007, which are manufactured by Mitsubishi in Japan, are badge engineered versions of the Outlander.
Hopefully, this background helped frequent Autopartswarehouse readers as well as those who are contemplating about making The Mitsubishi Outlander their choice of car.
