Outlander named Car of the Year - Company Vehicle Magazine

12 December, 2022

Company Vehicle Magazine Car of the Year is the Mitsubshi Next Generation Outlander

In order to be recognised as the Overall Winner for the Company Vehicle Car of the Year awards, a vehicle must meet a robust judging criterion of 10 points in 10 categories. But that’s just the beginning.

After this there is a raft of Company Vehicle specific qualifiers to refine and distil the vehicle, we think is most appropriate for our readers.

Although all our category winners have the potential to become our overall awardee this year’s winner surprised the judges as it was first driven very early in the piece and there was plenty of opportunity for the vehicle to be pipped at the post.

It is a reflection of the vehicle’s excellence that it held its ground for the entirety of the judging period and the fact that the market segment our winner is part of is such a hotly contested one.

To repeat: the Mitsubishi Outlander is the face of the new era for Mitsubishi. There have been vehicles leading up to this, the Crown Jewel of the range and their inputs have all come together in a masterclass of automotive art that is the new generation Outlander.

As well as looking good – which yes, is a subjective consideration but is a widely held one in this instance – the Outlander won its award for its incredible overall cohesion of power and drivetrains, sophisticated safety technology, the improved capabilities of the PHEV system and the integration of proprietary features like Mitsubishi’s proven Super All Wheel Control and AWD systems.

The new generation Outlander also introduced something new for the model with a meaningful change to the well -proven engine.

The improvement came in the form of a minor displacement upgrade, but it was still a risky gamble along the lines of, ‘it’s not broken, but we’ll fix it anyway’. It’s a gamble which paid off handsomely.   

And for the first time, our Company Vehicle Car of the Year winner receives accolades not only for the vehicle, but for the marketing which goes around it.

This has been well considered, memorable and on point, presenting the complexity of the new model in an endearing and simplistic way, thus helping establish the Outlander’s presence as a mainstream player in the New Zealand landscape.      

With its high levels of occupant comfort in all seating positions (seven at maximum), the Company Vehicle Overall winning awardee – the Mitsubishi Outlander – talks the talk and walks the walk. All things considered, this year’s winner is more than just well deserved, it’s our honour to award it.  

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Press Article from Company Vehicle Magazine www.companyvehicle.co.nz

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Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV won Clean Car PHEV of the year in AA’s Car of the year

This will be the fourth year the AA partners with NZME’s DRIVEN to name the country’s top cars.

AA Motoring Services General Manager Jonathan Sergel says that “We take a good hard look at everything a vehicle has to offer, and how it stacks up against what else is on the market.” wit Car of the Year “There’s a lot to think about when deciding on a car and our goal is to weigh up the pros and cons of the vehicle available, to make it easier for our Members and the wider New Zealand public to find the car that’s right for them.”

Any car on sale and the vehicles that the AA and DRIVEN judges have had the chance to drive are eligible for the AA DRIVEN New Zealand Car of the Year.

So proud of the Outlander PHEV winning this category.

The Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV has been one of the most important plug-in vehicles in New Zealand for a decade; it’s arguably the model that was first to bring electric vehicle technology into the Kiwi mainstream, proving that zero-emissions urban driving didn’t have to come at the expense of SUV practicality and even off-tarmac ability, thanks to a clever dual-motor AWD system.

Ten years on and the Outlander is no longer alone in the market. But the new model has raised the bar significantly in terms of size, quality, technology and  – especially in the context of this award – EV range.

It’s one of a select few PHEVs that offers 80km-plus of pure-electric driving (most of the others are premium-brand models), meaning you can drive it as an EV most of time – yet retain long-haul driving capability in hybrid mode.

Another winning stroke for the new Outlander PHEV: Mitsubishi has managed to incorporate a seven-seat cabin in this model (not available in the previous version), which is a massive selling point for eco-minded family SUV buyers.

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Information released by AA New Zealand and NZME DRIVEN

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