Mitsubishi Outlander - Another Choice in a Crowded Marketplace

Experts predict around 16 million car sales this year. Many of those will be crossover SUVs; that category includes Mitsubishi's thoroughly redesigned Outlander.

The Outlander follows a pattern in the industry of offering a smaller "sport" model and a larger "regular" model. So the new Outlander follows the Outlander Sport into the world as a new '14 model.

It certainly looks different from the old car. New styling is softer than some of the more sharply angled designs out today. The shoulder line reminded me of older BMWs, and that may be intentional. The front eschews the gaping mouth of earlier Mitsubishi crossovers and now offers a flush non-functional "grille" at the top and a working portal for air below. The goal, besides distinguishing itself in the showroom, is to improve aerodynamics for better fuel economy. The car boasts a 7 percent improvement in its cd (coefficiency of drag) down to a remarkable .33.

The package stands well in traffic and your favorite parking place or driveway. My tester arrived in a handsome shade called Copper that glowed like the conductor metal itself. Interesting to me was the presence of the triple-diamond logo and the word "Mitsubishi" on the tidily styled rear. Is the company worried, after all these years in America, that folks won't recognize its famous logo?

It's true that Mitsubishi has had some hard times. While many savor the performance of the Lancer-based Evolution hot sedan, the latest Galant was a hard sell, and the sporty Eclipse went away. The quirky i-MiEV is not a volume seller. A tiny new Mirage is coming, which may bring some bodies into the showroom, but the real models worth considering today are the Outlander Sport and this new Outlander.

Inside, materials are hugely upgraded. The hard, flat bucket seat, nicely leather-wrapped, sits up high, so you can actually see the top of the hood. The wipers are hidden, so looking out, you see a clean line at the rear hood edge, and closer in, a straightforward black and silver instrument panel and dash that wouldn't look out of place in a Volkswagen. Piano black trim gleams while "woodgrain" upgrades the doors.

All controls are mounted high and are easily accessible. The instrument panel greets you when you push the start button, and says "See You," when you turn the car off. Friendly. I wasn't happy that the visors don't slide along the side to block sun during significant trips south in the morning and north in the late afternoon. The air conditioning is a little too energetic in its work, and the car felt cold a lot, but overall, it's a happy place to be in the driver's seat.

It's very quiet inside the car, thanks to increased insulation throughout. It's easy to enjoy the music system--in the case of my car, an optional 710-watt Rockford-Fosgate system with nine speakers, including a 10-inch subwoofer living in the rear compartment behind the third-row seat.

Speaking of those seats, they all fold flat, but the middle row took some consultation with the owner's manual to figure out how to get then to do it. The control that's visible only folds the seat partly forward and slides it to make room for third-row access. Lift the lower cushion and you'll find a button to allow the seat to fold flat.

There are two engine choices, and they're tied to model level. The base ES and mid-level SE models get a 2.4-liter inline four-cylinder that puts out 166 horsepower and 162 lb.-ft. of torque. It offers the MIVEC system (Mitsubishi Innovative Valve-timing Electric Control). That means it adjusts to run more efficiently, which is what all of these midsize crossovers are trying to do to make themselves desirable devices for increasingly green-minded families. A continuously-variable automatic transmission comes with the four-cylinder.

The Outlander GT, like my tester, employs a larger 3.0-liter V6, which ups the horsepower to 224 horsepower and 215 lb.-ft. of torque. While hardly burning rubber during acceleration, this engine has enough guts to make the Outlander fun to drive anywhere. Fuel economy numbers, officially, are 20 City, 28 Highway and 23 Combined. I averaged 18.9 mpg, and premium fuel is recommended, so this is not the car for the highly environmentally conscious.

The GT offers a six-speed automatic with a new sixth gear for better fuel economy. The EPA gives numbers of 6 for both Smog and Greenhouse gas, so the Outlander is a bit better than average. 

The GT or SE comes with either two-wheel drive or Super All-Wheel Control four-wheel drive system. Mitsubishi claims (rightly, I'd think) that all their experience winning numerous titles in the World Rally Championship, including several outright wins at the Dakar rally, a legendary tough race. The S-AWC system offers four driving modes - the fuel-efficient AWC ECO, the standard NORMAL setting, enhanced tractability in slippery conditions with SNOW and the maximum traction LOCK.

My GT had the GT Touring Package, which added a lot of stuff, including a usable Navigation system with a 7-inch touch screen; a lane departure warning system that helps keep you awake, adaptive cruise control that syncs to the car in front; a power glass sunroof, leather seats, and that super sound system. As the top dog, it starts at $27,795, but ended up at $34,720. The base ES starts at $23,820, including shipping.

Mitsubishi has done their homework and come up with a nice vehicle. Combined with the Outlander Sport, it has a one-two punch. But will people look and love it in large enough quantities to make it a sales success? It's always hard to say for sure, but the two Outlanders seem to be making a good name for themselves. If only people take the time to shop around, some will go for this all-new vehicle.

Hyundai Santa Fe - New, and Now, Two

In the car business, part of what makes you successful is good product. The other part is good marketing.

In Hyundai's case, they seem to be doing well at both. The 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe is a major update of an important model--in a significant segment. But their marketing is what will help move more metal.

There are now two Santa Fe's -- the midsize crossover SUV is now called the Santa Fe Sport. It has two rows of seating and uses four-cylinder engines. The longer model with three-row seating now sold as just "Santa Fe" used to be called the Veracruz. Remember it? Didn't think so. Hyundai is leveraging brand recognition for it's more popular model, which, like the compact Tucson crossover, is named after a Southwestern city and is helping the company to sales growth year after year.

The Santa Fe is handsome, wearing the Fluidic Sculpture design that has been so successful in its sedans. It has a prominent, chrome grille up front, as today's vehicles must possess. The lines and folds along the side appeal to the eye and give the body the solid appearance of an iron bar, not an inflated balloon. The 19-inch alloy wheels added road presence.

Hyundai vehicles, when they first came to America, were obviously not on the level of Toyotas and Hondas, and were certainly not in the ballpark with European luxury vehicles. Today, many Hyundais are built in the U.S. (although this Santa Fe was imported from Korea) and have a look and feel that equals, or even surpasses, those brands. While Honda was cost-cutting a couple of years ago, Hyundai was offering nicer and nicer interiors. Now, the appealing materials, high build quality and sophisticated design are part of what you get when you slide into any Hyundai vehicle. Even the subcompact Accent is a well-turned-out car.

Like SUVS have been for decades, the Santa Fe stands tall, but it's a crossover. That means it's built on a car platform and has a long, slanting windshield, so the driving experience is more like a tall car than driving a pickup truck with room for 7, as the original Ford Explorer was, for example. This is the norm today.

My Circuit Gray tester was the upper level Limited model. The GLS is the regular grade. Many of these crossovers today are only front-wheel-drive, since so few actually go offroad. My car was one of them, although you can certainly order one with power that  flows to all four wheels if you live in areas where it would be a benefit in the wintertime. In Northern California, it's not an issue. The Hyundai all-wheel-drive system is called Active Cornering AWD, which distributes the torque through a computer program to keep you safely on the road.

Hyundais have offered lots of features for the money over the years, and features like Driver-Selectable Steering Mode give a nod to Mercedes-Benz and Land Rover. A button on the steering wheel lets you select Comfort, Normal and Sport modes. It changes your driving experience. Comfort might be handy when driving around in town or parking. Normal is fine in all cases, especially on the highway. Sport tightens up everything for more fun on country roads.

While the lighter Santa Fe Sport does just fine with a 2.4-liter or 2.0-liter turbo four-cylinder engine, the Santa Fe gets a 3.3-liter V6, which puts out a generous 290 horsepower and 252 lb.-ft. of torque through a six-speed automatic. That's comparable horsepower with other midsize crossovers, which tend to offer slightly larger displacement, such as 3.5-liters. The Santa Fe is a little bit lighter than its rivals, and this helps to get it EPA ratings of 18 City, 25 Highway (21 Combined). My actual mileage was 22.7 mpg. The EPA's green scores are a 5 for Smog and Greenhouse Gas - dead center.

The two-ton Santa Fe, more than 300 pounds lighter than its Veracruz predecessor, moves with alacrity on the highway and gets around town just fine. There's a place in my neighborhood where you have to turn onto a street that immediately climbs up sharply, with a right and left turn, and the Santa Fe felt happy there, not swaying back and forth, with plenty of energy to make the climb without downshifting. Perhaps its Vehicle Stability Management helps in that feeling in control in those circumstances.

My tester sweetened the deal with the Technology Package ($2,900). That added an enormous panoramic sunroof, with glass along nearly the entire roof, with the front half sliding open. It also included a navigation system--something almost essential these days. It also provided me with an Infinity Logic 7 550-watt Surround Sound audio system that was entertaining during my commute drudgery. A heated steering wheel was there, too, but it being September at the time of my test, it went unused.

Choices are simple--GLS or Limited and front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive. Or, opt for the Santa Fe Sport for lower cost and better fuel economy, if you won't need that third row seat, the extra 10 cubic feet of cargo capacity, or the Santa Fe's 5,000 pound towing ability (it's 3,500 lb. with the Sport--and both require trailer brakes).

The GLS starts at $29,455 and the Limited at $34,205 (both including shipping). My tester, with the technology package, came to $36,980. So don't think "Hyundai" and "cheap" in the same sentence any more. That's competitive pricing, but not lower than rival vehicles. Today, Hyundai competes as an equal, so you have to decide if you like the look, feel, performance, features, and, that great warranty.

See my video review here.

Nissan Pathfinder - On a New Track

As an answer to Ford's Explorer, the original Nissan Pathfinder, based on Nissan's successful pickup truck, moved people with sport and utility.

Now, more than 25 years later, the fourth generation of 2013 moves from that truck platform to a unibody--becoming, essentially, a crossover. That's what the market is doing, too, so the timing is right. The unibody, along with other thoughtful decisions, drops weight by around 500 pounds from the old vehicle--so it is more efficient, especially with its 3.5-liter V6. It has only six fewer horsepower than the '12's larger, heavier 4.0-liter V6, adding to the fuel efficiency--or posted fuel efficiency.

As it turns out, the EPA ratings are 19 City, 25 Highway, and 21 Combined for the four-wheel-drive model (add 1 mpg for the two-wheel-drive version). I got 17.4 mpg in my week of travels. The EPA's environmental ratings are 5 for Greenhouse Gas, and a 5 for Smog, too.

To me, the Pathfinder feels large--certainly bigger than the original model. Nissan's new styling departs from the angularity of truck-based SUVs and delivers some of the molded and finessed lines of the Altima and Maxima sedans. This is a period of greater styling enthusiasm throughout the industry, so there are no more plain cars to buy. Up front is a wide, shiny chrome grille--a little retro--and the roof wears a handy rack. My Arctic Blue Metallic tester had the optional cross bars, so the rack would actually be useful for transporting luggage and not to look jaunty.

My tester, at 4,471 pounds, moved smoothly with the 3.5-liter V6. Nissan installed an XTRONIC continuously variable  automatic transmission, and with that, the car's computer can calculate exactly which ratio will work best for cruising, climbing, accelerating, or wherever the car takes you.

If you have any plans of actually using the Pathfinder offroad, there's a handy dial on the console for the 4X4i intuitive four-wheel-drive system. You can pick two-wheel drive for the most efficient travel under normal conditions. Set it to Auto mode and let the computer decide if four-wheel traction is needed, or, under real climbing or snowy/muddy/icy conditions, lock it into full-time four-wheel drive. It's easy.

What this car will do very well is carry families around. Crossover SUVs are the station wagons of today (you have to be of a certain age to even remember those big, full-size Chevy, Ford, Chrysler, Dodge, Rambler and other wagons that carried people in the 1950's to 1970's. Today, of course, you can take your videos with you, and my tester--the top-of-the-line Platinum model--had the Platinum Premium Package ($2,300), so the front-seat headrests contained screens for the second- and third-row folks to view videos. You get two pairs of wireless headsets and a wireless remote to give those back seat riders all the comforts of home.

The Pathfinder offers three-row seating. I never rode anywhere but the driver's seat, but my full-grown, six-foot-tall son told me that the second row accommodations had plenty of legroom, but that the lower cushion felt too low, and that his knees rode too high. The third row, however, is easy to access, because the middle row folds and slides out of the way, thanks to Nissan's EZ Flex Seating System.

My tester, loaded with everything imaginable, had Nissan's AroundView Monitor, which displays what's behind you when you're backing up, but beside it is an image of your car--from above! You can see the cars parked next to you and anything else--including children, Big Wheels, pets, boxes, planter boxes. It's almost impossible to run over something in this car.

I commuted in the Pathfinder, and that's where I got familiar with the interior. There are good sight lines, a pleasant, light-filled Almond space with soft-looking dash and doors (made of hard plastic), and jaunty angled door handles. The chrome-in-silver settings were posh. It sounds like a bad stereotype, but this new Pathfinder feels more feminine. It's a good chance that the driver will be female--a mom or just an adventurous woman with lots of friends--but there's nothing left that's truckish here.

Pathfinders come in four ascending levels: S, SV, SL, and Platinum. No car leaves the factory these days "stripped," but I know that my Platinum model was the big cheese here. If your interests are about moving people and gear, you don't need more than the S. It has a urethane wheel--the other models get leather. There's no Bluetooth. The seats are cloth in the S and SV--not leather. No satellite radio in the S. It doesn't get much in the way of option packages. But the Platinum is loaded--from it's 20-inch alloy wheels up.

Maybe "stripped" has taken on a new meaning. Every car has air conditioning, power windows, locks and mirrors and some kind of audio system these days. I'm guessing that they don't sell that many S models, with so many other modern conveniences like Bluetooth missing, but the price is surely a factor--both for affordability and for advertising. It starts at only $28,650. All four models offer two- or four-wheel drive, so the top model is the four-wheel-drive Platinum, like my test car--at $41,150. My tester came to $44,395 with its extra package and shipping.

That puts the Pathfinder in plenty of company. Built in Smyrna, Tennessee, it's big, comfy, attractive and wears the latest styling. Nissan has every reason to expect further success. I just wish it could get more than 20 miles per gallon.

Kia Sorento - Clever Crossover Edges Closer to Audi

I recently spent a week with the heavily updated Kia Sorento crossover. Kia, one of the automotive success stories in the last several years, has given its five-passenger people and cargo hauler a thorough update.

The side body panels of the tall hauler look about the same as before, but the front and rear are updated. Kia is taking full advantage of the fact that its leader, Peter Schreyer, is the former head of Audi design. These cars, which not long ago looked like weak copies of mainstream Toyotas and Hondas, now have their own sophisticated look and feel. Up front, the tiger-nose grille (squeezed in the middle) has taken on a new smilier appearance as part of a sweep that includes the light pods. The lower panel shows another air intake and vertical fog lamps (if so equipped). The taillamps use LEDs so they glow prettily at night.

The interior is reshaped to accommodate a large eight-inch (diagonal) information screen. It displays a wealth of information, as expected in today's information-rich mobile environment. Kia calls it UVO, a "new generation of infotainment and telematics." Yes, you can talk to it and connect your devices at will.

Materials look substantial, despite some implausible wood trim. The convex curves on the dash give it a substantial feel, and the matte surfaces and satin silver trim convey poshness. There is subtle illumination along the door trim that is a surprise.

As before, there are three ascending levels -- LX, EX and SX -- names that sound the same as those for many other brands. The new SX Limited model is just coming out. It offers upscale amenities hardly imaginable in Kias of yore--such things as 19-inch chrome alloy wheels with jaunty red brake calipers outside and Nappa leather seats and a wood-trimmed steering wheel inside. Unlike Toyota, Nissan or Honda, Kia (and sister brand Hyundai) are not creating a a separate upscale brand, but are giving buyers a chance to acquire a super-fully-loaded version of an existing vehicle.

My Wave Blue test car was a mid-range EX model, with all-wheel drive. This system, like most on the market, is not for offroading but for safer on-roading, and works completely automatically. In the warm, dry week of my test it was not called to duty, as far as I could tell.

You can select two engines, depending on model, for the Sorento. There's a 2.4-liter. 191-horsepower inline four-cylinder or a new 3.3-liter direct injection V6. My tester had the V6, and with 290 horsepower and 252 lb.-ft. of torque on tap, it propelled the Sorento along seemingly effortlessly. The new electrically-powered steering is lighter and more efficient than the old hydraulic unit, and provides plenty of road feel.

Of course, when you boost engine size and power you step away a bit from fuel economy. My tester was rated at 20 mpg combined by the EPA (18 City, 24 Highway). I averaged 21.5 mpg on my commute traffic-heavy week of driving. The environmental ratings are 5 for Greenhouse Gas and Smog--dead center.

This Korean vehicle is manufactured in West Point, Georgia, alongside the Optima sedan. It's got 50 percent American parts, and the plant and its suppliers supply about 10,000 jobs. This continues to blur the line between American and "foreign" companies.

Having tested many Kias, including three recently, I continue to be amazed at the quality and driving enjoyment they provide, regardless of whether it's the compact Rio sedan or this five-passenger shuttle. The four colleagues I took to lunch in the Sorento had no complaints, and the road feel, steering response, and supple suspension made driving the car alone a very satisfying experience.

Kias are not cheap anymore. This one had a base price of $31,700, and on top of that, the $4,000 Touring Package added a host of desirable features, including a huge panoramic sunnroof, navigation system, Infinity audio system, blind-spot detection, power folding mirrors and liftgate. They even enhanced the driver's seat with ventilation in addition to the heat. Bottom line: $36,550. These cars are becoming Audis in more than just their design!

Ford Explorer Sport Moves Forward--Quickly

The Ford Explorer is widely credited with starting the sport utility vehicle frenzy of the 1990s. Today's rising star is the crossover vehicle, and the Explorer is now a member of that group.

Crossovers have unibody car platforms rather than mounting the body on a separate frame, like trucks do. When the Explorer debuted it was using the truck technology of the day. Today's model is much more comfortable on the road, and that makes sense. Most buyers do not take their cars off the road anyway, even when they have four-wheel drive.

The latest generation Explorer arrived for the 2011 model year. My tester this time was the new, high-performance 2013 Explorer Sport, which lives at the top of the model line. It boasts a twin-turbocharged Ecoboost V6 that puts out 365 horsepower and 350 lb.-ft. of torque from just 3.5 liters of displacement (the lesser models make do with 290 horsepower).

That's what Ford is doing with Ecoboost--giving the power of the next engine size up. So, a V6 provides V8 power, and a 1.6-liter four-cylinder moves a car such as the Fusion sedan with V6 enthusiasm. Fuel economy improves with this downsizing. If you want a V8, well, sorry.

The latest Explorer is not much like the original two-box design. It wears the swoops and curves of the latest Taurus sedan. Although Ford is already moving in a new styling direction with its freshest vehicles, such as the Focus and Escape, the Explorer is still very modern and up-to-date.

My Sport distinguished itself with a glowing Ruby Red Metallic paint job ($395 extra). It also wore stunning 20-inch alloy wheels and its face got a grille with a low-gloss sterling gray mesh and contrasting shiny ebony bars. No flashy chrome here!

I noted the name "Explorer" boldly drawn across the leading edge of the hood. With the new Flex wearing its model name proudly too, there seems to be a de-emphasis on the Ford brand and a highlighting of the model name--but we'll have to see.

With the name Sport added to its tailgate, the car offer something beyond the "normal" Explorer--on top of the stronger engine. The Sport gets a stiffer chassis, sport-tuned electric power-assisted steering, larger brakes and a paddle-shift six-speed SelectShift automatic transmission. As you'd expect, it's sporty, but no manual transmission is offered (or likely, requested).

As a four-wheel-drive vehicle, the Sport has a dial on the console where you can select your terrain and the car's electronic system supplies the appropriate ride. This "terrain management system" includes Normal - where it stayed with me - as well as sand, snow, mud, and hill descent. Someday, I'll have to take one of these out in the wild and play with that dial.

Driving the Explorer, I can understand the longstanding appeal of this kind of car. Despite weighing nearly two and a half tons, it moves quickly and quietly, and feels stable and secure. Even though fuel economy isn't that fabulous, the car just feels right on the road. EPA numbers are 16 City, 22 Highway, 18 Average; I got 19 mpg. The EPA's Air Pollution number is 5 and the Greenhouse Gas is 4, so it's no environmental paragon, but it'll carry seven people.

The black leather seats in my tester were supportive and felt like those from a sport sedan. With 10-way power adjustment it was easy to set mine up just right. The perforated chairs offered three levels of heat and cool and wore attractive white stitching.

There are three rows of seats. The third row disappears into a flat floor that worked out nicely for bass carrying. I was able to drop just the slim right second-row seat to do the job, leaving lots of room for folks. Grocery carrying was easy with the third row seatbacks folded forward and the cargo net holding everything in place.

I recently drove a new Ford Fusion, and the Explorer is not quite as "styled" inside. The doors and dash flow smoothly, the trim is a matte gray and the design is calm and relaxed. The Fusion feels frenetic by comparison.

Ford has introduced its Sync and MyFordTouch systems into its vehicles over the last few years. That means you can touch the screen at the center of the dash to make changes in your climate, audio and navigation systems--or talk to the system. Voice commands often work fine, but touching is more reliable.

With MyFordTouch, You can use steering-wheel-mounted buttons to customize the left and right sides of the electronic instrument panel to view what interests you at the moment. I like to look at fuel economy, and you can see it on the left - in bright blue - with current and accumulated figures available. The right side offers navigation, entertainment and vehicle data. I enjoyed watching the three-dimensional compass ball, which rolled around gently as I changed direction.

The Explorer, built in Chicago, comes in a range of models, including the base car, XLT, Limited and Sport. You can even order up one with the 2.0-liter four-cylinder Ecoboost engine--which puts out an unexpected 240 horsepower. Prices begin at $29,955 and top out at $41,545 for the Sport. Add a few packages and you get my tester, at $46,640.

The Explorer, designed, built and enjoyed in America, is a great way to drive a big car and do big things. With smaller, but more powerful engines, it is becoming a touch more environmentally sensitive. If you need a smaller SUV, Ford has other options for you, but this is still the original.

Mitsubishi Outlander Sport - Upgraded in Midcycle

Mitsubishi has gone through some changes over the last few years. Some of the old favorites, such as the rugged Montero Sport Ute and the sporty (built in America) Eclipse have gone away, along with the unlamented Galant midsized sedan. Now, the compact Outlander Sport crossover is the brand's biggest seller. Of course, there are lot of folks angling for buyers in the increasingly crowded segment.

I first drove this pleasant little model almost exactly two years ago, when it was introduced. Since then, it's picked up a Top Safety Pick award from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and has moved the metal at Mitsubishi dealers. With its RISE (Reinforced Impact Safety Evolution) body design technology, it protects occupants and shields against damage to the fuel system in a rear collision.

Its looks have worn well, to where the 2013 version isn't heavily changed. Yeah, there's a pretty good looking revision to the bold, Lancer-inspired big-mouthed face, with new grille and fog lamps. New side sills integrate nicely with the revised rear bumper. Every Outlander Sport now comes with 18-inch alloy wheels--no cheap steels. There are two new colors. This is what you do when a car enters its third year to keep it fresh.

Inside, it's now quieter because of better insulation, and the seat fabrics are upgraded. From a health standpoint, the interior materials are lower in volatile organic compounds.

You can pick from ES or higher level SE models. Do you think they have one barrel of chrome S's and one of E's in the factory and just switch them depending on which model is coming down the line? At least the name "Outlander" sounds like something you'd take on an adventure. 

Remaining the same is the durable, proven 148-horsepower 2.0-liter four-cylinder. The EPA thinks fairly highly of this one, with an average of 27 miles per gallon (24 City, 31 Highway). That's not going to impress any Prius owners, but it is better than the old SUVs of yore. I earned 24.2 mpg, but a lot of my driving is in commute traffic, so your mileage could be significantly better.

There's a manual five-speed transmission available in the ES model, but you can order up an upgraded continuously variable automatic. The SE comes only with the automatic, with an artificial six-speed sport setting. 

With its crossover SUV configuration, the Outlander Sport hauls stuff easily but still feels contained and taut in town. It sits up nice and high for seeing over sedan-driving folks in the daily commute. You can take the thing off road if you want, but you'll probably want to order up four-wheel drive. My Rally Red tester had only two-wheel drive, which is great for most drivers.

Every Outlander Sport is pretty well stocked with stuff when it arrives. Inside, there's a 140-watt stereo system and a leather-wrapped shift knob and steering wheel. Every car these days has things like power windows, locks and mirrors, but the Outlander Sport also provides a full USB connection for your music and Bluetooth for your phone--and the FUSE hands-free link system. Interesting that this is the first car in which I've added my phone to the Bluetooth using only voice commands.

The SE has more stuff than the ES, including standard SiriusXM Satellite Radio, two more speakers to hear it with, high-intensity-discharge (HID) headlamps, automatic climate control, keyless entry, rain-sensing wipers (a luxury car feature), and more.

My SE tester featured two nice options. For one, it seemed like the entire roof was one huge panoramic moonroof. It doesn't open, but it does expose everyone to lots of sunlight, and it has cool lights around the edges that are a date-pleasing novelty at night. The 710-watt Rockford Fosgate audio system, with subwoofer, added significantly better sound, although the speakers didn't seem that impressive.

The Outlander Sport saves Mitsubishi a lot of taxes by being built in the good old U.S.A., but local content is only 20 percent. The engine and transmission are Japanese. Assembly quality felt fine to me, and I certainly had no issues during the car's brief stay.  

There's nothing that remarkable about the way it drives--it's smooth and quiet where it needs to be, even though continuously variable transmissions don't make a sporty gear change sound. 148 horsepower is decent but not exhilarating with 3,120 pounds to move, but it's no slug either.

The Outlander Sport starts out pretty inexpensive, to compete against a variety of models from Hyundai Tucsons to Honda CR-Vs to Toyota RAV4s. The ES begins at $19,995, including shipping. My SE, with two-wheel drive but the fancy roof and powerful audio system, came to $27,170, but without the packages would be just $23,000.

Who is buying the new Outlander Sport? Folks who know a good value, I'd say.

Kia Sportage Re-imagined

The Toyota RAV4 and Honda CR-V are widely celebrated for being the first small crossovers in the U.S. market, but the Kia Sportage actually came out first--in 1993. I knew someone who drove one and loved it, but this was the early days of Kia, and sales were small in the U.S.

After a short hiatus, the second generation car arrived in 2005 and, with Kia and fellow Korean manufacturer Hyundai under one roof, it was a companion of the Hyundai Tucson.

But it's the third generation that concerns us here, and what a different set of wheels it is. Debuting in 2011, it introduced a whole new look and feel to Kia crossovers, based on the Kue concept car. You can thank the team at Kia's U.S.-based design center in Irvine, California, for the transformation. Presumably they were inspired by Kia Chief Design Officer Peter Schreyer, formerly of Audi's design team.

The first two Sportages had the two-box look set by the landmark Ford Explorer SUV in 1990. As these (sometimes) four-wheel-drive models have morphed more and more into tall cars with lots of cargo capacity, there's no reason to stick to this rigid design template.

The upswept nose is very much part of other Kias, with the now recognizable tab grille and grinning slivers of headlamp cluster, it's a smiling face but it avoids the Joker-like grin of recent Mazdas. The side shaping, high window sill line and blocky rear pillar are new and exciting developments.

Inside, my tester was pretty much all gray, and many of the surfaces were hard, as befits a truck. The armrests and center console bin were padded, at least. There are enough black panels and silver and chrome accents to keep the passenger space from feeling low budget, but this is no Mercedes-Benz, either.

The twin grab handles on the console reminded me of those in the first Audi TT--not a big surprise. A surprising forward-jutting section atop the instrument panel, in front of the driver, added some flair but no additional function. The windshield pillars are shockingly thick, but this is part of making the newest Sportage crashworthy. It also helped the new model gain recognition as a 2011 "Top Safety Pick" by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

You can get your Sportage in four levels, starting with the base model and moving up through LX, EX and SX models. The LX upsizes the base car's 16-inch alloys to 17-inchers, places LED turn signals on the outside mirrors, adds keyless entry with folding key and most significantly, a six-speed electronically controlled Sportmatic™ automatic transmission, along with solar and privacy glass.

The EX, like my Signal Red test car, bumps the wheels to 18-inch alloys, slips in high performance dampers, LED daytime running lights, roof rails, a rear spoiler, fog lamps and chrome body trim and door handles. The top-of-the-line SX keeps the 18-inch wheels but makes them special, but puts a powerful yet fuel-efficient 2.0-liter turbocharged GDI engine producing 260 horsepower under the hood. This rates dual exhausts, and stands out with sculpted side sill moldings and a unique grille.

The standard engine in every level but SX is a 2.4-liter DOHC 16-valve four-cylinder engine with Continuously Variable Valve Timing. It provides 176 horsepower and has been tuned to deliver a one mpg improvement on the highway over last year's model.

The EPA's Green Vehicle Guide gives the car with the 2.4-liter engine a 6 for Air Pollution and a 6 for Greenhouse Gas; there is one model listed with a 9 for Air Pollution. It's likely sold in California and other smog-legislated states. Both get SmartWay designation.

The base car, which comes only with a manual transmission and two-wheel drive, starts at $19,300. My two-wheel-drive tester came to $28,800. It's possible to get over $30,000 with option packages. These prices include $800 for shipping. 

So, the new car looks good, drives well, and fits right in with the complete repositioning of Kia in the marketplace. What's not to like?