The Australasian New Car Assessment Programme (ANCAP) has awarded a five-star safety rating to the new Mitsubishi Outlander mid-size SUV.
ANCAP says that all current 2.5 litre petrol variants of the Mitsubishi Outlander have achieved five-stars, meeting the required thresholds across all four key areas of assessment.
It says the Outlander performed well in adult occupant protection tests, with full marks awarded in the side impact and oblique pole tests. Protection offered in the frontal offset (MPDB) and full width tests showed mostly adequate to good results, with some marginal readings recorded.
The Outlander is fitted with a centre airbag, designed to reduce occupant to occupant injury in side impact crashes, however it did not meet ANCAP’s coverage requirements, and a penalty was applied.
But the Outlander performed well in the assessment area of Child Occupant Protection (COP), with the highest score (92%) awarded under ANCAP’s 2020-2022 protocols. Full points were awarded for the protection offered to child occupants in both dynamic tests, with high scores achieved in the other areas of this assessment.
“The new Outlander offers an excellent safety package and is a comprehensive offering,” ANCAP chief executive Carla Hoorweg says.
“Mitsubishi have clearly prioritised the safety of both vehicle occupants and other road users in the new Outlander, and should be applauded for this five-star result,” she says.
The independent safety body says the Outlander also scored well in its Vulnerable Road User assessment, with the highest score (81%) achieved to date in the Medium SUV category – equalling the second highest score across all vehicle categories. It is fitted with an autonomous emergency braking (AEB) system capable of reacting to both pedestrians and cyclists, with collisions avoided or mitigated in most scenarios.
Good scores were also achieved by the Outlander in ANCAP’s Safety Assist area of assessment, with the AEB system capable of reacting to other stationary, braking, and slowing vehicles, and testing of the Junction Assist system fitted showed the Outlander brakes to avoid crashes when turning across the path of an oncoming vehicle. Full points were awarded for tests of the Outlander’s lane support system (LSS), including emergency lane keeping and lane keep assist.
“ANCAP exists to encourage manufacturers to improve their products with every new model generation released. By providing consumers with the highest level of safety available at the time, manufacturers provide immediate safety benefits as well as sustained road safety benefits for future owners and other road users”, Hoorweg says.
