Once considered an inelegant poseur, the 2010 Mitsubishi Outlander crossover has undergone a fairly comprehensive facelift and now looks the part it was designed to play. An imposing new grille, LED tail lights, additional chrome styling accents, redesigned wheels, and a bit of stretching has provided more passenger and cargo room, as well as some much needed pizzazz for this four-door, five- to seven-passenger crossover. Available in four trim levels, the base ES, SE, XLS, and just-introduced GT, the Outlander offers 8.5-inches of ground clearance and 73 cubic feet of cargo area with the rear seats folded, and the three lower trims are available with full-time all-wheel drive (AWD). The GT trim, meanwhile, is offered only in the AWD configuration. Major competition for the Outlander is and probably always will be Toyota’s well-regarded RAV4, however, the 2010 Outlander is marginally less expensive and has an almost unheard of 100,000-mile powertrain warranty.

Two engines as well as a pair of transmissions are available to power the 2010 Outlander. The base drivetrain for the ES and SE trims is a variable-valve-timed (VVT) 2.4-liter inline four-cylinder (I4) that, along with the standard continuously variable transmission (CVT), throws down 168 hp and 167 lb-ft of torque. The I4 is touted to get some 21/27 mpg in front-wheel-drive (FWD) trims and 21/25 in AWD versions. Towing capacity is claimed to be 1,500 pounds when the available trailer towing package is selected. The upper-echelon XLS and the brand-new GT Outlander are each equipped with a standard 3.0-liter SOHC VVT V6 engine and a well-regarded six-speed auto-manual transmission. This combo delivers 230 hp and 204 lb-ft of torque, and gets an EPA-estimated 19/25 in the FWD configuration and 18/24 in AWD trims. Towing with the V6 is viable up to some 3,500 pounds in the AWD XLS and GT trim levels. Mitsubishi boasts about its All Wheel Control, which allows a bit of flexibility in locking the rear hubs in its AWD trims, with the GT offering Super All Wheel Control (S-AWC), with drivers able to configure the AWD system to changing weather and road conditions with the turn of a dial.

Appearance features and creature comforts have also been tweaked in the 2010 Mitsubishi Outlander, with the base SE offering standard 16-inch steel wheels, five-passenger seating, power windows, door locks, and mirrors, a fold-down passenger seat, folding rear seatbacks, air conditioning, cruise control, remote keyless entry, and a single-CD player with 140 watts of power and six speakers. The Outlander SE adds standard 18-inch alloy wheels, skid plates, and a roof rack, as well as signal-integrated side mirrors, a leather-wrapped steering wheel and shift knob, steering-wheel-mounted audio and cruise controls, magnesium paddle shifters, and Bluetooth pre-wiring for hands-free communications. Heated outside mirrors are also standard with AWD ES and SE trims.

The 2010 Outlander XLS features standard seven-passenger seating with a folding third-row bench seat, 18-inch, seven-spoke alloy wheels, installed Bluetooth communications technology, including a hands-free phone, keyless entry and ignition, and a 6-CD changer. The GT trim, meanwhile, adds a power sunroof, automatic climate control, and a 710-watt, nine-speaker Rockford-Fosgate premium audio system with three months of free satellite radio. Options for the entire Outlander lineup include a trailer hitch and wiring, DVD navigation, roof rails, remote start, and a rear-seat DVD entertainment system. The lower trims, of course, add the power sunroof, Bluetooth technology, and upgraded audio systems that are standard with the XLS and GT trims. Third-row seating, however, while optional for the SE, is unavailable for the ES trim level.

Safety-wise, the 2010 Outlander comes equipped with standard four-wheel ABS, traction and stability control, dual front side-mounted airbags, front and rear head airbags, active front headrests, a remote anti-theft alarm, and daytime running lights. Turn-signal-integrated mirrors and front fog/driving lights are optional for the ES trim and standard on all others, while Xenon HID self-leveling headlights are standard only with the GT trim.

Issues that owners have with the 2009 Mitsubishi Outlander include its small fuel capacity, some inferior cabin materials, seat comfort, including the unavailability of heated seats, and the lack of an optional third-row seat with the ES trim. Warranty coverage, V6 power, a higher stance, the highly touted six-speed auto-manual transmission, tight turning radius, and decent mileage figures, however, lead the vast majority of owners to laud the ’09 Outlander, with some even regretting their haste in not waiting for the improved 2010 edition.