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The Mitsubishi Outlander Sport comes with several subtle updates for the 2022 model year, but can it still compete in the SUV segment?

The 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport is a compact crossover SUV on sale in the United States market since the year 2017. Part of the second generation avatar, this 2022 iteration takes forward all the quirks and qualities of the 2021 model while coming up with a few subtle upgrades to make it a more enticing proposition owing to the fierce competition. Launched at a base MSRP of $21,795, this Mitsubishi is also one of the cheapest offerings in the segment.

The 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport comes in five trim configurations and the higher trims come loaded with all the bells and whistles in terms of interior, exterior, infotainment, and driver-assistance features. There are a few customization options on offer, and the masculine styling helps it to stand out well. Competing with the likes of Mazda CX-30, Hyundai Kona, and Volkswagen Taos, here are 10 things you need to know before buying the 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport.

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The exterior design sees no upgrades from the outgoing 2021 model even though the Black Edition has been discontinued for 2022. The same quirky front-end design with chrome accents, blacked-out elements, and well-integrated LED headlights with LED DRLs remains onboard. The impressive height and width give the ride a proper stance too.

The side profile is highlighted with sharp character lines, side mirrors with integrated LED turn signals, black roof rails, and subtle fender flares. The top-of-the-line GT trim gets 18" alloy wheels as well. The rear end retains the beautifully crafted LED taillights, faux vents, and black skid plates. The funky color palettes and optional exterior packages are offered too.

One thing that makes the 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport stand out from the rivals such as the Volkswagen Taos and Mazda CX-30 is when it comes warranty coverage. Unlike most of the rivals barring the Korean twins, the 2022 Outlander Sport comes with a limited warranty of 5 years or 60,000 miles and a powertrain warranty of 10 years or 100,000 miles.

This makes the warranty coverage of the Outlander Sport similar to the Hyundai Kona and Kia Soul. When it comes to JD Power rating, the 2022 Outlander Sport received a superb overall rating of 82 out of 100. There were no customer complaints reported by the NHTSA as well. However, it received a recall for an engine stalling issue.

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Step into the cabin of the 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport and you are most likely to be disappointed with the bland looks and mediocre material quality. The entire dashboard and door cards are made out of hard-touch plastics and feel nowhere as premium as the Mazda CX-30.

The full-black interior color combination makes the cabin look a bit drab in comparison to the lighter shades used in the segment rivals and the gloss black elements on the center console are a fingerprint magnet. However, the red contrast stitching on the seats and the large infotainment screen does make it a bit more elegant.

Similar to the outgoing model years, the 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport comes loaded with most of the driver-assistance techs as standard. This includes forward collision warning, automated emergency braking, lane departure warning, and automatic high beams.

However, you would need to get the optional packages for the features such as blind-spot monitoring and a rear cross-traffic alert system. In terms of the crash safety rating, the 2022 Outlander Sport received an overall crash safety rating of 4-stars in the NHTSA crash test and good ratings in most of the subsections of the IIHS crash test.

The base S trim gets a smaller 7" touchscreen infotainment system and all the other trim configurations received a bigger 8" unit. However, both the infotainments come packed with most of the features such as Android Auto, Apple CarPlay, Bluetooth, voice recognition, and AUX connectivity.

The bigger 8" unit gets SiriusXM radio as standard too. However, the interface feels a few years behind the rivals. It also misses out on the customizability options offered by the more impressive head units of the rivals. The audio is handled by a 6-speaker audio system.

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Even though the interior looks and feels mediocre at best, the same cannot be said about the space. Both the front and rear row seats offer more than enough headroom and legroom, making it a comfortable five-seater SUV.

Getting in and out is fairly easy and the wheelbase and length are one of the best in the segment too. Open the trunk, and you are met with 21.7 cu ft of cargo capacity. The rear seats can be folded down in a 60/40 split method, and you would be greeted with an even better space of 49.5 cu ft.

The 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport doesn't redeem itself as the most fuel-efficient offering of the subcompact crossover SUV segment. The base 2.0-liter inline-4 with FWD drivetrain punched out 24 MPG in the city and 30 MPG on the highways. With a 16.6-gallon fuel tank capacity, it can do close to 498 miles on the highways with a full tank of gas.

If you get the AWD variant with the 2.0-liter engine, the fuel efficiency does see a slight dip to 23 MPG in the city and 29 MPG on the highways. However, the 2.4-liter inline-4 is the least fuel-efficient of the lot as it can do a combined gas mileage of only 25 MPG. In comparison, both the Honda HR-V and Subaru Crosstrek offered a combined gas mileage of 30 MPG.

The 2.0-liter naturally aspirated inline-4 engine comes as standard with all the trims except the top-spec GT trim and manages to put out a mediocre 148 hp and 145 lb-ft of torque. This engine comes mated to a CVT automatic transmission and the Outlander Sport can be had with either FWD or AWD drivetrains.

In comparison, the rivals such as the Buick Encore, Mazda CX-30, and Subaru Crosstrek punched out better horsepower and torque figures than the 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport. The 0-60 MPH time of 8.5 seconds and the quarter-mile time of 16.2 seconds made the Outlander Sport one of the slowest of the segment too.

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If you want the Outlander Sport to be a bit more enthusiastic in terms of acceleration, you can opt for the 2.4-liter naturally aspirated direct injection inline-4 engine with the GT trim. Coming with an AWD drivetrain only, this engine manages to punch out a lower 0-60 MPH time of 8 seconds.

Even then, the acceleration cannot be termed as exciting as the rivals still turned out to be better in terms of flat-out and in-gear acceleration. The Mazda CX-30 managed to do the 0-60 MPH run in 7.6 seconds, topping the chart.

The 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport retains the same braking hardware of the older model years and hence the braking performance also remains very similar. This compact crossover SUV gave out a 70-0 MPH braking distance of 163 feet, and that puts it right in the middle of the segment.

The 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport gets a 4-wheel disc brake setup with 11.6" front rotors and 11.9" rear rotors. All the other braking features such as ventilated rotors, ABS with EBD, automated emergency braking, forward collision monitoring, brake assist, and hill hold control are standard across the trims too.

Mohith is our in-house motorcycle mechanic and automotive geek. He loves riding and driving at the limits, and you would frequently notice him on racetracks at the weekends. Mohith is someone who would redline anything that comes with a motor - even our office lawnmower. He often does cross-country road trips in his trusted 300ZX and you could find him riding his CB750 quite often through the streets of Pasadena as well as on the Moore Motorsports racetrack.