The Mitsubishi Destinator is the Outlander We Should've Had

The Mitsubishi Destinator is the Outlander We Should've Had originally appeared on Autoblog.

Yet another great model we won't get

We showed you the new Mitsubishi Destinator 7-seater SUV a few days ago. Rather than being a fifth member of the rather small North American Mitsubishi lineup (Outlander, Outlander PHEV, Outlander Sport, Eclipse Cross), the Destinator will be sold in overseas markets but won’t make it to our shores, and that’s too bad. Most of the Mitsu lineup is getting long in the tooth. The Outlander Sport has been around unchanged since 2011, and the Eclipse Cross is now eight years into its first generation. That’s old. Only the Outlander and Outlander PHEV are relatively new, but no one takes its third row seriously because it’s just too damn small.

Limitations of the Mitsubishi Outlander

In its current form, the Outlander has great first and second-row seating. Especially in higher trims, the appointments look and feel premium. You can get all-wheel drive, heated and ventilated front seats, aluminum pedals, wireless Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, 12.3-inch infotainment and instrumentation, a 10.8-inch head-up display, panoramic sunroof, and diamond-stitched, high-grade leather seats.

It's a big step up from the last Outlander, but the third row is much smaller than the generation before it. Legroom in the 2025 Outlander is a measly 18.7 inches, making it virtually unusable by anyone other than kids, and that’s just for short trips. Even Mitsubishi says that the Outlander’s third row is meant for occasional use only. They're not kidding. I wouldn't stick my 8-year-old son back there for more than a 20-minute trip, and that's only if I was mad at him.

Even if the Outlander's third row is tiny, the Outlander and Outlander PHEV are the brand's best sellers, accounting for half of total brand sales. Sales were up 6.5 percent last year compared to 2023, and it’s outselling other SUVs like the Nissan Murano and the Acura RDX. Clearly, the Outlander isn't losing sales, but it's also not where it could be. Our guess is that the interior size limitations hamstring its potential. We think a Mitsubishi with a larger third row would fare even better.

What’s great about the Destinator

The Destinator is meant as a family-friendly people hauler rather than an off-road beast or a performance-focused SUV. The Destinator’s exterior isn’t bigger than the Outlander’s, but one dimension changes significantly. With a significantly longer wheelbase (110.8 inches) than the 3-row Outlander (106.5 inches), the Destinator promises to provide more legroom than the Outlander’s. Even if the Destinator gets just 3 more inches of legroom, that will help matters tremendously. The Destinator is designed to offer more third-row legroom compared to the Mitsubishi Outlander, and that’s what counts for American families.

Essentially, the Destinator is the production version of the 2024 Mitsubishi DST concept (photo above). Really, only the pillars, door handles, and side mirrors look different. It's a rather attractive SUV for not much money (around $19,000 USD). It’s attractive inside and out, with styling that’s rugged and modern. Frankly, we can't think of another SUV sold in America that looks this good for the same price. The Chevy Trax comes close, but that's a smaller two-row. The Outlander's daring front fascia, based on the Engelberg Tourer concept, is what draws customers in addition to its affordable $30k price tag, but we think the Destinator looks better. It has more modern headlights and DRLs, a more attractive grille, and a taller, more upright greenhouse.

The downside is that the Destinator is FWD only, so shoppers who want better foul-weather traction might balk at it. In terms of power, the Destinator has a single power source: a turbocharged 1.5-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine good for 161 horsepower and 184 lb-ft. of torque. The engine is mated to a continuously variable transmission (CVT). The Outlander has a 2.5-liter 4-cylinder engine, producing 181 horsepower and 181 lb-ft. of torque powering the front wheels via a CVT. All-wheel drive is optional. The Destinator's design is more about overall comfort for passengers, namely in rows two and three. It seems like Mitsubishi is making a deliberate effort to improve upon the Outlander's cramped third-row seating.

Final thoughts

We get that bringing the Destinator to America would probably cannibalize Outlander sales, and that wouldn't be good. The issue is that Americans need bigger third rows. Toyota built the Grand Highlander because customers thought the Highlander's third row wasn't big enough. The Mazda CX-90 replaced the CX-9 and its smaller third row. The VW Tiguan ditched its small-ish three-row setup. Even if the Destinator's third row legroom turns out to be just 21 or 22 inches, that's an upgrade from the Outlander's. The Destinator is the vehicle we should've gotten. More affordable, bigger, better looking, and probably more efficient... a recipe for success.

The Mitsubishi Destinator is the Outlander We Should've Had first appeared on Autoblog on Jul 31, 2025

This story was originally reported by Autoblog on Jul 31, 2025, where it first appeared.