REVIEW: Mitsubishi Xpander 1.5L auto
Pretoria - It’s wonderful to let your imagination run wild when you’re in the market for new wheels, with visions of zipping around in a sporty SUV or sedan or going up rocky mountain passes in a burly 4x4.
That’s until reality kicks in and you find yourself scouring the internet for something that’s a bit more sedate and, ultimately, affordable. One that may not shoot the lights out but, to use an old cliché, ticks all the right boxes.
Such an option is the Mitsubishi Xpander which pretty much does that.
You’re not going to be part of the cool guys’ Sunday breakfast run but you will have peace of mind that you made a sensible decision, albeit you’re not going to get to your destination very quickly.
In every decision there will be compromises, especially if you have a young and growing family and you want something that can carry the kids with their schoolbags, tog bags, hockey sticks and cricket bats and, occasionally, play taxi to their friends.
Space is very much what the Mitsubishi Xpander is about, as well as a third row of seats which are fine for city driving. When you fold them down, there’s 781 litres of space, while folding down the second row gives 1 609 litres, perfect for carrying a student’s belongings to their new digs.
Sporting the company’s Dynamic Shield Design, it’s also not the ugliest MPV out there.
The transformer-like black front end has T-shaped halogen headlamps, fog lamps and LED daytime running lights. The rear is well in proportion to the rest of the vehicle and has LED lights and a high-mounted stop light and position lamp.
The automatic Xpander on test stands on attractive 17-inch alloys, with a decent tyre profile providing ground clearance of 225mm, ideal for those middle mannetjies when you’re driving two-spoor tracks in some of the game parks and taking care of our potholed road infrastructure.
The interior feels solid and well put together to take the daily bump and grind. The front and rear electric windows, separate overhead ventilation vents and fan dial, audio controls on the steering wheel, touch-screen infotainment system, with Apple CarPlay and Android auto, cover almost all the basics you would need.
That’s the mostly good stuff and then there’s what’s hidden under the bonnet.
The Mitsubishi Xpander is powered by a normally aspirated 1.5-litre petrol engine producing 77kW and 141Nm, which, up here in Joburg, means you’ll be using the middle lane on the highway for passing and the left lane for cruising.
Mitsubishi says it’s “a spirited powerplant featuring Mitsubishi’s Intelligent Innovative Valve Timing Lift Electronically Control (MIVEC) system and Electronically Controlled Injection (ECI) multipoint fuel injection”.
It may have all the intelligence and electronics but spirited it is not.
Push the accelerator with gusto going uphill and the engine noise levels increase, but not so much the speedometer, and that was with three of us in the car. Loading the kids and all their paraphernalia or passing occasional slower traffic on a holiday trip, especially on two lane roads, will need careful planning.
There is a manual offering which would allow you to keep the gears longer but it is unlikely to provide a much more spirited drive.
After a week of highway and suburban driving, we returned consumption figures of 8.5l/100km.
Overall, ride quality was good though but keep in mind that Mitsubishi gave us the Pajero as well as the Evo, so it knows about engines, but this one lets an otherwise decent package down.
It comes with a three-year/100 000km warranty and a two-year/30 000km service plan,as well as a five-year/unlimited mileage roadside assistance.
Mitsubishi Xpander Pricing (May 2023)
1.5L manual: R329 995
1.5L auto: R349 995