2003 Mitsubishi Outlander Review
Summary
What Edmunds.com says
All the basics, including comfort, confident handling and unique style, are in place, but the Outlander needs more power to keep up with its rivals.
Pros
Roomy and comfortable ride, peppy around town, solid handling.
Cons
Lacks punch for passing, distracting audio controls.
What's New for 2003
Mitsubishi jumps into the mini-SUV battle with the Outlander, which offers different styling but little else to separate it from the likes of the Subaru Forester or Honda CR-V.
Consumer Ratings & Reviews
Pleasantly surprised in Hawaii
Overall Rating
| Performance: | 9 | Fun-to-Drive: | 9 | Build Quality: | 10 |
| Comfort: | 9 | Interior Design: | 10 | Reliability: | 10 |
| Fuel Economy: | 9 | Exterior Design: | 10 | ||
Vehicle
2003 Mitsubishi Outlander LS Fwd 4dr SUV (2.4L 4cyl 4A)
Review
This car was not first choice but it has been dependable for 5+ years! When on the mainland, it's been to New Mexico, Las Vegas, & throughout California with no problems. Driven through rain, fog, & desert too. It's great to have for long drives & the MPG is comparable to other SUVs of its type/year. The interior is well spaced, especially for back seat passengers, & the stock sound system is surprisingly good. A/C is still running great too. Only complaint is the front seat headrests. I feel like my head is jutted out too forward. Had to just turn my headrest the other way. Also, maintenance at Mitsubishi dealers can get quite pricey, but it is the dealer after all. Great car!
Favorite Features
Stock stereo, interior space, fold down rear seats
Suggested Improvements
Change the headrests! They jut out too far forward.
It all fell apart!
Overall Rating
| Performance: | 5 | Fun-to-Drive: | 5 | Build Quality: | 5 |
| Comfort: | 5 | Interior Design: | 8 | Reliability: | 9 |
| Fuel Economy: | 3 | Exterior Design: | 8 | ||
Vehicle
2003 Mitsubishi Outlander LS AWD 4dr SUV (2.4L 4cyl 4A)
Review
I really liked my 2003 outlander when I bought in in 2004, but soon after that I found it had many problems. Every summer water fills inside my air conditioner and causes it to short out causing a new blower motor to be replaced. This wasn't all covered by warranty and they could never figure out why it would do this. Also my entire suspension has been changed and only a year later it's already squeaking. Also our temp dial doesn't rotate freely anymore, the cable designed badly and has been replaced once already. There are also numerous issues with this model and Mitsubishi won't do recalls on. Overall I would not purchase another one!
Favorite Features
I liked the gas mileage before it was $5 bucks a gallon.
Suggested Improvements
Stand behind what you make!
Lemon,Lemon---oh no
Overall Rating
| Performance: | 10 | Fun-to-Drive: | 10 | Build Quality: | 1 |
| Comfort: | 10 | Interior Design: | 9 | Reliability: | 3 |
| Fuel Economy: | 8 | Exterior Design: | 10 | ||
Vehicle
2003 Mitsubishi Outlander XLS AWD 4dr SUV (2.4L 4cyl 4A)
Review
My Outlander has been nothing but problems since I purchased it in 2004 BRAND NEW off the lot. Every year I had water rushing into the passenger side onto the floor. The shop attempted to fix it multiple times. Every time it would happen again until the my warranty ran out and they thought they could refuse to fix it! ha!! LEMON LAW!! Now I replaced the brakes on the front and guess what? I could not get the driver side brake to bleed!! Took it to a brake shop!! The master cylinder is out and I only have two brakes!! the part cost $374. My payment is $500/mo.
Favorite Features
Suggested Improvements
Great Ride
Overall Rating
| Performance: | 9 | Fun-to-Drive: | 10 | Build Quality: | 10 |
| Comfort: | 10 | Interior Design: | 9 | Reliability: | 10 |
| Fuel Economy: | 7 | Exterior Design: | 9 | ||
Vehicle
2003 Mitsubishi Outlander XLS Fwd 4dr SUV (2.4L 4cyl 4A)
Review
I bought the outlander thinking I was going to buy another car later. Yea right, I'm keeping this bad boy. I made some modifications but from 160 hp I'm up to 190 hp. I'm very happy. Also I put 18" chrome rims on it. And a cold air intake. Think about it. You can wonders with this vehicle. I love it.
Favorite Features
Auto driver window, back seats, and the height from street to vehicle
Suggested Improvements
Turbo unit, and they should have made standard tranny's for this vehicle.
The Most Reliable Vehicle I Ever Owned
Overall Rating
| Performance: | 8 | Fun-to-Drive: | 6 | Build Quality: | 10 |
| Comfort: | 3 | Interior Design: | 8 | Reliability: | 10 |
| Fuel Economy: | 6 | Exterior Design: | 8 | ||
Vehicle
2003 Mitsubishi Outlander LS Fwd 4dr SUV (2.4L 4cyl 4A)
Review
This is my fifteenth car in 20 years, so for this one to give me almost no trouble for 160,000 miles is truly remarkable. The AC went out at about 100K miles, just after doing a major overhaul as preventative maintenance (the timing belt was still good). The latch on the driver's side rear seat also went out at about 80K miles, but that was very minor. With gas prices soaring and me griping about only getting 24 MPG in this SUV, I did the unthinkable and tried to trade it in on a gas saving economy car. Well, I should thank the sales manager for giving me an insult of an offer for trade-in. I canceled the deal and kept this vehicle. If it works, don't fix it!
Favorite Features
Flat folding rear seats. Easy oil change, just crawl under it without jacking it up. Handles flooded streets almost as good as a Jeep Wrangler. Incredible reliability. Easy entry and exit for the physically challenged.
Suggested Improvements
The 2007 redesign was worse in my opinion, but the seats could use more padding.
1 out 1 people found this review helpful
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