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Before the Test Drive: Mitsubishi ASX ZC-H

With a pending test drive on the new Mitsubishi ASX, here are my thoughts on the car before getting behind the wheel.

What is the Mitsubishi ASX all about?

Mitsubishi ASX

First of all, I think the most important thing to address here is the look. The ASX is a compact crossover, based on, you know it, the Lancer Evolution platform. Moreover, it’s a step for Mitsubishi into a market that’s already incredibly saturated, with many manufacturers competing for the crown.

Interestingly, the ASX isn’t a new car, per se; it was known as the RVR back then and, instead of a compact crossover, it was a compact MPV instead. The ASX stands for ‘Active Sport Crossover’, which states its purpose, and supposedly, being based on the Lancer Evolution, it boasts good handling characteristics.

Mitsubishi ASX

Other than all that, it features engines designed heavily around the whole tightening emissions control, with a range of 1.6-litre, 1.8-litre, and a 2.2-litre, the review car that we are testing has the ZC-H, 4WD 2.2-litre diesel powering an automatic gearbox, it puts out 147bhp, but thanks to diesel characteristics, it puts out 360Nm, putting out 152g/km of CO2, and rated at 48.7 combined MPG.

Expectations

Mitsubishi ASX

Going off-road is definitely not something that I expect the ASX to do very well, as they have the Shogun for that, but I can definitely see the 4WD come in handy when the weather goes full-on British. Basically, slippery and wet.

Despite being a tall-ish car, from what Mitsubishi states, the ASX should be able to stick to the road pretty well, although being a crossover, body roll is expected.

Mitsubishi ASX

Moving on from the handling is the interior, which is something that Mitsubishi has worked on in the ASX, even stating that the interior is designed with dynamism and simplicity in mind. One thing that they emphasize on a lot is equipment, as they do provide a lot even in the base ZC model.

From the photos, the interior looks to be a decent place to be in, it looks spacious, uncluttered and elegant. So I’ll say job done on Mitsubishi’s intentions. Even with our spec, which has absolutely everything we’ll ever need on the road, they manage to keep it rather clean. This is important, as it increases accessibility and decreases distraction while you’re driving.

Mitsubishi ASX

I also expect the storage capacity to be above par, as the ASX is also supposed to be a practical car. In fact, if purely transporting with the rear seats down, the ASX sports 1,193-litres of storage, which is pretty respectable to say the least.

With that, transporting cargo should be a breeze, however, despite being a transcendent of the MPV roots, the ASX has only 5-seating capacity, so I won’t be expecting it to haul 7 people like an MPV.

Mitsubishi ASX

We will test the Mitsubishi ASX and write a full review after spending some time with the car. Keep an eye on our features for the review.

Supplied by: Mitsubishi

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