Mitsubishi readying performance Outlander Ralliart for 2024
Thursday, 23 February 2023
A new report from Japan is saying Mitsubishi is working to introduce a high-performance Outlander Ralliart model for 2024, which would be the most performance-oriented car Mitsubishi will have created since the Lancer Evolution X died in 2016.
According to Best Car, the Outlander PHEV has been selling well enough to encourage Mitsubishi’s higher-ups to greenlight a more powerful, more capable model. Details are scarce, but the Ralliart badge is all but confirmed. The report does say that the fast Outlander will get rejigged suspension, a more rigid chassis, better aero with different bodywork and, of course, more power.
The powertrain could be a new tri-motor setup, which has already been in testing. According to an interview between Which Car? and Hiroshi Masuoka, the back-to-back Dakar Rally winner for Mitsubishi now heading the Ralliart division, the prototype has two motors on the rear axle and one on the front, working with the 2.4-litre petrol engine.
He wouldn’t be drawn on total power output but What Car? reckons north of 285kW wouldn’t be too far out of the question, a healthy bump on the Outlander PHEV’s combined figure of 185kW. On the other hand, Best Car claims the faster Outlander will only make 210kW. Expect torque to also improve somewhat from the standard PHEV’s 450Nm.
**READ MORE:
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* Mitsubishi officially relaunches Ralliart
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“That DNA from Dakar flows into our Mitsubishi car products,” Masuoka told the publication. “If we were to develop the Ralliart complete car, our priority is going to be “The Almighty Model”, which can do everything with one car.”
Masuoka also hinted at the new suspension system being the air-powered kind. “With Outlander we can go offroad, or have on-road comfort, or even drive a snowy road without any concerns or worries - it gives us peace of mind. But for instance, to get the road clearance we would consider to have air suspension as one approach.”
Aesthetically, you could expect the fast Outlander to resemble the Vision Ralliart Concept from last year. That model featured a wider stance, 22-inch wheels with enlarged brakes, and a fresh design. There are new front and rear bumpers, larger fenders, a radiator shutter in the grille (which presumably opens when more air is needed) and a large rear diffuser.
Masuoka also mentioned the Baja Portalegre Outlander race car as a source of inspiration for the upcoming road-legal Ralliart model.
Price? Unconfirmed as yet. More than the current range-topping VRX PHEV, which starts at $75,990, but probably not too much more than $100,000. Masuoka doesn’t think the trio of motors and air suspension will make the model overly expensive, but we’ll have to wait and see. There’s a chance the 2.4-litre petrol engine and 20kWh battery pack will need to be upgraded as well, which would push price up more.
Competition at the 285kW-plus point would include the BMW X3 M40i, currently asking $140,000, as well as the new Lexus RX 500h at $142,900. The Lexus would probably be the closest competitor, considering the BMW isn’t a hybrid, but neither would offer the same levels of off-road performance as the Outlander Ralliart is promising.
Other upcoming Ralliart goodness could include a Triton ute to headline the next generation (which we should see sometime this year), and a second Ralliart “complete car”. No idea what it could be, but rumour has it Mitsubishi shareholders have been pushing for a return of the Lancer Evolution…