Say hello to the Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross PHEV. It's a sleek plug-in hybrid SUV with
a clever powertrain that can run as a pure EV all time, theoretically.
The petrol-electric SUV Office offers a 55-km EV range, has relatively short charge times and
bi-directional charging, so you can power your home with it in a blackout. But Aussies aren't
too fond of plug-in hybrid EVs despite their best of both worlds functionality,
so is Mitsubishi's latest PHEV special enough to change that? Let's find out.
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Competing against the slightly cheaper MG HS PHEV and Mitsubishi's original plug-in hybrid
electric vehicle, the long-standing Outlander, the Eclipse Cross Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle
has a tough job convincing buyers to sign up, especially when you're paying a $12,000 premium
for the electrified powertrain over regular versions. Toyota charges a fraction of that for
its plug-less hybrid systems, which charge only while you drive and offer a shorter EV range.
Today, we're testing the mid-spec Aspire version of the Eclipse Cross PHEV, priced at around 50K.
Leveraging the same hybrid electric powertrain is it's bigger brother, the Outlander. You get
a 2.4L petrol engine driving the front wheels and two electric motors, one on the front axle and one
on the rear axle. The e-motors draw energy from a 13.8kWh lithium-ion battery for a claimed EV
range of 55 kilometres. There are both AC and DC charge ports, so you can charge it at home with a
Wallbox or via a public fast charger. It even comes with a two-directional charging system,
so you can charge up another vehicle and appliance or even your house, say, in a power outage, but
there's one issue. The system isn't yet compatible with Aussie households, but it will be soon.
Like many EVs, it features a single-speed planetary gearbox with the e-motors delivering
all-wheel drive. The cabin has some nice touches, like these lovely seats, this novel gearshifter
and EV-specific buttons but things like these low quality plastics and the tiny screen make it feel
dated. The instrument cluster is new but is solely lacking digital eye candy. The 8-inch touch screen
is okay but given the $50,000 asking price, you'd expect a bigger screen or at least a wide screen.
The standard menu system is basic but easy to use, but there's also Apple CarPlay and
Android Auto which makes things a lot easier. Oh, and there's even a smartphone app to
remotely check the battery charge. Storage solutions are so-so with two cup holders,
a medium-sized central bin with sunglasses holder and a small tray for coins, but not much else.
The door pockets are big but there's only two USB ports in this SUV and no wireless phone charger,
but I do like the digital dual-zone climate controls. There's a decent rear-view camera with
360-degree Bird's Eye View, and the car's 4545 millimetre length means it's pretty easy to park.
The seats are really comfortable and this fake leather and suede upholstery feels really good,
but only the driver's chair has power operation and no lumbar adjust at that. It's got seven
air bags but the Eclipse Cross lags behind new arrivals with no camera-based road sign
recognition or active lane centering system. Back seat room and comfort is pretty good. These
seats aren't too bad, it's a little flat, but legroom and headroom for this size of vehicle
is not bad. I wouldn't be upset to spend a bit of time here. However, amenity, not so good.
You get a 12-volt socket, a fold-out armrest with cup holders, only one seat back pocket but no USB
ports or air vents. Two ISOFIX and three top tether anchorages are included for child seats.
Because of the electric powertrain and battery pack, boot space is down by around 11% compared to
regular models but look, the boot is still a very usable space. However, I kind of wish the charging
cable box had some Velcro on the bottom because when you're cornering, it just moves around a lot
in there. One of the best features about the boot is this cargo blind. Yeah, it's a bit flimsy but
when you're not using it, you can chuck it into these little grooves in here and she won't rattle
around. It's quite effective. There are four tie-down anchorages, one shopping bag hook and a
little light, but not much else back here. The DC charge cable lives under here but there's no spare
tire. Just a compressor kit and a can of goop. There is no power tailgate either and the whole
interior is a little bit underwhelming, so let's hope she likes to dance. Cue the upbeat music.
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Having three motors in your car is pretty cool, but don't expect supercar response when you nail
the throttle. That's because, A, the car is geared to be efficient and B, she's a chubby girl. The
hybrid extras add around 300 kilograms of weight to the vehicle. Hit this button and you'll engage
pure EV mode, which gives you around 45 kilometres of real world electric driving on a full battery
charge, but as I've discovered out here on country roads and freeways, it's more like 30,
35 kilometres. But I reckon you might go close to the 55-kilometer claim if you drove it gingerly.
And look, if you've got range anxiety about driving an EV, a plug-in hybrid like this would
be a great alternative, because it simply switches to petrol mode when the battery is fully depleted.
In terms of driving dynamics, this PHEV version gets a different suspension churn to deal with
the extra mass, and I've gotta say, it's pretty good. It corners nicely with a
flat and predictable attitude and has a solid and sporty feel, thanks to it's all-wheel drive setup.
Ride comfort is very good, too. The suspension is smoothing out bumpy sections of road easily.
Interestingly, this model has significantly more ground clearance than regular Eclipse Cross SUVs,
so you get improved rough road compliance and bit of visibility.
In EV mode and even when the petrol engine's running, this Japanese SUV
is whisper quiet. There's not much tire noise, a little bit of wind noise from the mirrors, but
it ensures this premium driving experience. If only the cabin didn't feel so low-rent.
I drove the car like I normally would, so there was plenty of heavy acceleration thrown in there
and overall fuel consumption is 6.2L per 100 kilometres which is much,
much higher than the frugal claimed average of just 1.9L per 100 kilometres.
Along with pure EV mode, there are a handful of different hybrid modes, including a battery
save mode and a battery charge mode. Annoyingly though, the EV mode drops out when you initiate
cruise control or simply push too hard on the accelerator. The petrol engine chimes in,
and boom, there goes your fuel efficiency. The light steering makes it easy to drive
and park. And while I was expecting the regenerative breaks to be a little touchy,
they're actually really well-modulated and overall, this is a very pleasant vehicle to drive.
Many countries offer tax incentives to buy cars like this, but some Australian states
are introducing an EV tax that would slug owners of a PHEV like this two cents a kilometer. So if
you are driving 50,000 km a year, that's an extra $1000 you're gonna be hit with.
Pretty harsh, I reckon. While the Mitsubishi doesn't push the tech boundaries in many ways,
it is backed by a class leading 10-year warranty and 10-year capped price service program.
The EV drive battery has an eight-year 160,000 kilometer warranty but average annual service
costs are quite high compared to regular SUVs. If you want to reduce your reliance on petrol
and lower your CO2 footprint, this Mitsubishi is an effective way to do it. While it's not
perfect, the car offers zero emissions driving capability for most city and suburban commutes,
provided you charge it first, along with the petrol cruising range of a conventional small SUV.
But at the end of the day, I don't think this vehicle is special enough
or affordable enough to convince a legion of small SUV buyers
to jump on the plug-in hybrid EV bandwagon. If it was me, I'd just buy an EV instead.