GENEVA MOTOR SHOW: Mitsubishi upgrades Outlander PHEV

Mitsubishi has confirmed it will stage the world debut of a thoroughly upgraded Outlander PHEV at the Geneva motor show on March 6.

However, when it arrives Down Under in the second half of this year, Australians won't have access to the headline act of the improved MY19 Outlander PHEV -- a "next-generation" plug-in hybrid powertrain.

Among a host of updates, the upgraded mid-size SUV's 'PHEV 2.0' powertrain will bring a larger 2.4-litre Atkinson-cycle petrol engine to replace the existing model's regular Otto-cycle 2.0-litre four-cylinder.

For MY19, the plug-in Outlander's 4WD system also brings new SPORT and SNOW modes, in addition to the NORMAL and 4WD LOCK modes of previous models.

However, at this stage the upgraded PHEV system, which Mitsubishi claims delivers more torque, more efficiency and more refinement, will be offered only in Europe and Japan.

"Not all of the changes that were announced are available globally, but we are certainly considering some of them," said Mitsubishi Australia spokesman Karl Gehling.

"The car at Geneva is specific to Europe and Japan but not other markets at this stage, so we're not adopting all of those changes at the moment.

"At this stage the powertrain changes are not offered [to Australia] and we'd have to justify the significant extra cost."

While full details including power output and driving range are yet to be revealed, Mitsubishi says the MY19 PHEV's generator, rear motor and drive battery outputs are all increased by 10 per cent, and its lithium-ion drive battery capacity is increased by 15 per cent, to 13.8kWh.

Last upgraded in April 2017, the existing MY17 Outlander PHEV incorporates two electric motors (a 60kW/137Nm unit at the front and a 60kW/195Nm unit at the rear) and an 89kW/190Nm 2.0-litre petrol engine, and is claimed to average fuel consumption as low at 1.7L/100km.

Its lithium-ion battery pack is mounted under the floor, providing a nominal EV range of 54km. Mitsubishi says it can be fast-charged to 80 per cent of capacity within 25 minutes using a 15-amp outlet and, for the first time with the MY17 version, fully recharged via a standard 10-amp power outlet in 6.5 hours.

At this stage it's unclear how these numbers will change for the upgraded Outlander PHEV powertrain or when it will be available in Australia, but Gehling told motoring.com.au that our MY19 model will likely bring most of the other changes announced today.

These include "sharper dynamics, a more refined interior, and a subtle design evolution", including subtle new 'tech-look' LED headlights, rectangular front foglight bezels, a bolder 'dynamic shield' grille, front centre cover skid plate, more elaborate multi-spoke two-tone 18-inch alloy wheels and a larger rear spoiler.

Inside, there are new front seats, new quilted leather upholstery, a new instrument panel, revised switchgear, new trims, new rear air-conditioning outlets and one-touch power windows all round.

There are no details of the chassis upgrades but we understand that, in addition to the design and equipment improvements listed above, Australia's MY19 Outlander PHEV is likely to bring tweaked suspension and lower NVH (noise, vibration and harshness) levels, potentially similar to what we saw being tested in Norway last March.

Mitsubishi has sold more than 140,000 Outlander PHEVs globally since 2013, including about 100,000 in Europe and more than 2000 in Australia, where the MY17 version is priced from $50,490.