Australian New Car Buyer – June 2019

AUSTRALIAN NEW CAR & SUV BUYER’S GUIDE | 111

Mitsubishi’s Lancer sedan
range uses a 113kW 2.0-litre
four with a standard fi ve-speed
manual as the base drivetrain.

Start money ($19,500) buys the

ES Sport. A CVT transmission

adds $1500. LS CVT is $23,500.

GSR sedan and Sportback, with

a 125kW 2.4-litre engine, are

both $22,500, with an extra

$1500 for CVT.

The Lancer’s cabin looks

15 years old but it’s spacious and

comfortable, if heavy on cheap

plastics. Everything is where

it should be, there’s plenty of

handy storage and it’s well

screwed together, free of chirps,

rattles and squeaks.

The steering wheel is height

adjustable but inexplicably there

is no reach adjustment provided.

The long travel driver’s seat is

comfortable, as is the back seat,

which has plenty of legroom.

The sedan’s big boot can be

extended with the 60/40 split-fold

rear seat back and has a space-

saver under the fl oor.

Boot space in the Sportback

is severely compromised by the

sloping rear roofl ine. There’s

no lip over which you have to lift

stuff, though, and the 60/40 seat

backs can be lowered.

The 2.0-litre is quite peaky in

its delivery but this is effectively

overcome by the CVT, which

keeps it pinned at 3000rpm-plus

when you put your foot down.

Mitsubishi has been

aggressive on Lancer pricing

with special editions also

offered at drive-away prices.

If you’re after quality,

affordable family transport, and

one of the biggest cabins in this

class, the ES Sport and LS are

still competitive.

However, the Lancer does feel

agricultural and tired. That’s

because it is one of the oldest

cars in the class.

Safety

ANCAP

Green Vehicle

Guide

Performance

Handling

Quality and

reliability

Comfort and

refi nement

Value for money



Overall



STARS

S MITSUBISHI LANCER FROM $19,500

THINGS WE LIKE

^ Cheap and well equipped

^ Long warranty

 Plenty of space

 2.0-litre/CVT delivers

reasonable performance

THINGS YOU MIGHT NOT LIKE

Drives like an old car. Because it is

Thirsty

Handles like a barge

Tight boot in Sportback

SPEX (ES Sport)

Made in Japan

2.0-litre, four-cylinder petrol/

fi ve-speed manual/CVT/front-

wheel drive

113kW of power at 6000rpm/198Nm

of torque at 4250rpm

0–100km/h in 9.5 seconds

Warranty: Five years/100,000km

6.4L/100km highway; 11.3L/100km

city; 91 octane. CO 2 emissions

are 196g/km

Standard: Seven airbags, stability

control,16-inch alloy wheels,

Bluetooth with audio streaming

and voice control, automatic air

Redbook future values: 3yr: 52%;

5yr: 39%

compare with ...

Kia Cerato, Holden Astra, Honda

Civic, Mazda3, Toyota Corolla

Mitsubishi’s ASX (it stands
for Active Smart Crossover)
base 2.0-litre petrol/fi ve-speed
manual front-wheel-drive ES
is $23,490. With a continuously

variable automatic (CVT)

transmission, it’s $25,490. The

LS, with CVT, is $27,990 and the

Exceed is $30,990.

Mitsubishi dropped the 2.2-litre

turbodiesel, and all-wheel

drivetrains, for 2019.

ASX is based on the Outlander.

However, its body is shorter and

interior space is tighter.

The ASX is light, but the

2.0-litre petrol/CVT drivetrain

is pretty dull and unrefi ned

compared with newer rivals.

The ASX can feel a touch

harsh and loose at times. Its

dynamics are not as composed

or as comfortable as a Honda

HRV, Toyota C-HR or Subaru XV.

The fi rm driver’s seat is small

and unsupportive for larger folk.

Rear-seat legroom is on par with

a similarly sized hatchback.

There’s not a lot of boot space

either, but the rear seat backs

fl ip down for an extended fl oor of

nearly 1.6 metres.

Base ES models include 18-

inch alloy wheels, seven-inch

touch screen audio, digital

radio, a reversing camera and

Bluetooth with voice control.

A safety pack, with collision

and lane departure warning and

auto highbeam adds $1500 to

ES CVT petrol and is standard

on Exceed, which also gets blind

spot monitoring, lane change

assist and rear cross traffi c alert,

but Honda’s HRV, Mazda’s CX3,

Toyota’s CH-R and Subaru’s XV

have more comprehensive safety

and are superior overall. Price is

what sells the ASX.

Safety

ANCAP

Green Vehicle

Guide

Performance

Handling

Quality and

reliability

Comfort and

refi nement

Value for money

Overall

STARS

Long warranty and bulletproof

reliability

Easy to drive and park in town

THINGS YOU MIGHT NOT LIKE

It’s pretty dull inside

Performance, refi nement and

dynamics are only average

Seats aren’t particularly

comfortable or supportive

Safety spec is off the pace

SPEX (ES CVT)

Made in Japan

2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol/CVT/

front-wheel drive

110kW of power at 6000rpm/197Nm

of torque at 4200rpm

0–100km/h: N/A

6.4L/100km highway; 9.5L/100km city;

91 octane regular; CO 2 emissions are

176g/km.

Warranty: Five years/100,000km

Standard: Seven airbags, stability

control, rear camera, cruise control,

automatic air, 7-inch touchscreen,

Bluetooth, digital radio

and 18-inch alloy wheels

Redbook future values: 3yr: 50%;

5yr: 37%

THINGS WE LIKE

Cheap drive away deals

Well equipped at the price too

Easy-to-use dash and control layout

compare with ...

Mazda CX3, Honda HRV, Nissan

Qashqai, Subaru XV, Toyota C HR

S MITSUBISHI ASX FROM $23,490