Mitsubishi’s recent local introduction of the Destinator can be seen as a very strategic move by the Japanese carmaker.
The brand is stuck between a rock and hard place as a somewhat forgotten brand, but with no intention of exiting Mzansi anytime soon. Not even in their hey days where Mitsubishi the biggest volume sellers, but survival means staying relevant and they needed some smart thinking to do just that.
As the medium crossover/SUV segments which have become a price warfare due to the quantity of Chinese products simply isn’t sustainable for a brand with a small local footprint, Mitsubishi has opted for the next best things. Entering a segment where the Chinese – and few other for that matter – have much of a presence.
Small crowd
The Destinator has therefore not replaced the ASX and Eclipse Cross as a like-for-like SUV in Mitsubishi’s portfolio, but rather as a seven-seater. It slots in below the bigger Outlander and the more basic Xpander, a multipurpose vehicle (MPV) aimed more at the commercial market.
Staring at R489 990, the Mitsubishi Destinator’s main seven-seater rivals in terms of size and pricing are the Jetour X70 Plus, the Hyundai Alcazar and the recently-introduced Kia Carens. Albeit Kia refers to the latter as a multi-utility vehicle (MUV) instead of an SUV or MPV.
The Citizen Motoring recently had the Destinator in flagship R569 990 Exceed guise as a house guest as a week to try and determine if the car can lead the brand revival Mitsubishi is hoping it can.
Mitsubishi Destinator looks good
We have to admit that the Destinator is a good-looking car. It is styled very similar to its Outlander Sport sibling and features the brand’s Dynamic Shield grille, T-shaped LED headlights with silver outer surrounds. It swops out the Outlander Sport’s body-coloured faux front skidplate for a silver one.
A silver skidplate also features at the rear, with 18-inch alloy wheels featuring along with different wheel arches and cladding.
The Exceed’s black imitation leather seats are complemented by leather door inserts with contrast stitching, brushed aluminium touches and plenty of piano black finishing. The use of hard plastics here and there does spoil the plush overall look and feel of the cabin.
Taking centre stage is a 12.3-inch infotainment system with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and wired to eight-speaker Yamaha sound system.
Old school charm
Compared to the endless Chinese cars on the market, the Mitsubishi’s interior feels a lot more like a traditional car than a faceless tech fest. While the instrument cluster is a fully digital eight-inch affair, it is still set in an old-school binnacle. And underneath the vents on the dashboard are plenty of physical buttons to operate the climate control.
Highlights on the Exceed’s spec sheet include rain-sense wipers, panoramic sunroof, wireless smartphone charger, ambient lighting and surround-view camera system. Advanced driver assist systems include adaptive cruise control, lane change assist and blind-spot monitoring.
Space in the sliding second row are plenty, with legroom in the third row – which is the norm in the segment – limited to smaller occupants. However, access to the third row is made easy by virtue of the second row tumbling forward.
When not in use, the third-row folds forward manually to ensure very generous boot space of 620 litres. With the third row up, there is around 120 litres of boot space left.
Peppy powertrain
The thing we probably enjoyed the most was the Mitsubishi Destinator’s 1.5-litre turbo petrol engine. The blown four-pot mill sends 120kW of power and 250Nm of torque the front wheels via CVT. A drive selector offers a choice of Normal, Tarmac, Gravel, Wet and Mud.
The generous outputs mean that the CVT is well-behaved with little droning usually associated with this transmission-type. Acceleration is surprisingly brisk with very little lag off the line.
The power delivery, along with the old-school feel of the cockpit, results in a very pleasant drive. This is something Chinese products are not particularly known for.
Mitsubishi Destinator’s timely arrival
Our fuel consumption of 9.8L/100km is far from the claimed 7.2L/100km. But with very little open road driving, it is probably as high as it will get, making it more acceptable.
Overall, the Mitsubishi Destinator Exceed enters a small segment as a good-looking and well-specced car. And nice to drive. It has all the potential to help the brand stay relevant in a flooded market.
It is sold standard with a five-year/unlimited km warranty and a five-year/75 000km service plan.
