The 2021 Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross has been officially revealed, with a sleeker appearance and a new plug-in hybrid variant.
The petrol-powered Eclipse Cross will arrive locally in November, with the PHEV following next year.
Detailed technical specifications and pricing will be announced next month.
Up front, there’s a revised Dynamic Shield grille plus a new front bumper and refreshed headlights.
The changes are more dramatic at the rear, where the split rear-window has been banished in favour of a smoother, more conventional look.
The interior has received a few updates, with a larger 8.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system – one inch larger than before – that’s been moved closer to the front-seat occupants.
Mitsubishi has added volume and tuning knobs, though it’s banished the touchpad controller.
There’s also a new black interior option with silver accents and light grey leather seats.
The PHEV features the a variation of the dual-motor all-wheel drive plug-in hybrid system as the Outlander PHEV, though Mitsubishi says it’s made modifications “specific to the size and weight of the Eclipse Cross chassis”.
Mitsubishi says the battery can also be used as an emergency generator, supplying up to 1500 watts of power from two on-board outlets. If the vehicle is fully charged and fuelled, it can also supply power to a general household for up to 10 days via the Vehicle-to-Home system.
The current Outlander PHEV uses a naturally-aspirated 2.4-litre four-cylinder engine with 94kW of power and 199Nm of torque, a 13.8kWh lithium-ion battery, a single-speed planetary gearbox, and electric motors on the front and rear axles with 60kW/137Nm and 70kW/195Nm, respectively. Mitsubishi Motors Australia doesn’t specify the total system output.
Mitsubishi has confirmed the petrol powertrain will be carried over with the updated model.
It’s a turbocharged 1.5-litre four-cylinder engine producing 110kW of power and 250Nm of torque, mated to a continuously-variable transmission. The Eclipse Cross is available with either front- or all-wheel drive.
The changes should give the Eclipse Cross a boost in the booming small SUV segment.
The reigning sales champion is Mitsubishi’s own ASX, with 9716 sales year-to-date. It has a considerably lower base price though which, at $23,990 before on-road costs, is $6000 less than the entry-level Eclipse Cross.
The Eclipse Cross is priced against more premium offerings like the Mazda CX-30 and Toyota C-HR, both of which are outselling it. Toyota has sold 5847 C-HRs this year and Mazda 5951 CX-30s, while Mitsubishi has sold only 3186 examples of its Eclipse Cross.
