I think I bought it last week! If it was in Nelson with 50k on the clock, then it is the one!! I was impressed enough to trade in my BMW 320d with manual transmission, and the only problem I have had has been road noise, but I discovered that the tyres were all at 36 psi. Reducing psi to recommended 32 psi has made a lot of difference, and, although my experience with the car is limited to one week, I have no complaints. It appears to be a reliable small SUV, with plenty of room front and back, and AWD option for wintry conditions.

Not the same but this one has just under 50k on it. It's very hard to find info on this model. It was introduced late in 2017 I think and is supposedly the top of the range. What is like over rough paving while cornering? Our little grand vitara 2 door used to skitter in conditions like that while our mid sized latest grande vitara doesn’t.

The Mitsubishi ASX has had a history of problems, especially earlier models from electrical faults affecting the locking system, fuel management system, fuel seeping into the oil sump this can dilute the oil, fit and finish issues where things like sunroof leaking or lifting. The CVT models have experienced issues with the lazy gear shifting. I would suggest taking the one you are looking for an extended test drive and have it thoroughly examined by an independent auto mechanic.

Our work vehicle is a 2019 ASX and I like it well enough, except it's a turbo diesel and I hate the turbo on it.

You get surges of unexpected power which makes it exciting to drive and not in a fun way. Particularly disconcerting when corning on a windy road and the turbo decides you need more power. I've not driven many turbo vehicles but ours seems worse that the ones I have.

MikeB4:

 

The Mitsubishi ASX has had a history of problems, especially earlier models from electrical faults affecting the locking system, fuel management system, fuel seeping into the oil sump this can dilute the oil, fit and finish issues where things like sunroof leaking or lifting. The CVT models have experienced issues with the lazy gear shifting. I would suggest taking the one you are looking for an extended test drive and have it thoroughly examined by an independent auto mechanic.

 

Thanks Mike.

Found this article on those issues: https://www.drive.com.au/new-car-reviews/mitsubishi-asx-used-car-reviewed-118523

Will get the car checked out.

PS, our local council and one of the local road contractors here use the XLS diesel version as company cars. They seem reasonably well liked by the people driving them, not sure of the year of theirs. Think I will ask.

I've driven one - probably 2017 model - on a few open road trips.  I thought it was quite good, quite well appointed - very much nicer to drive than the larger Outlander. They have a conventional torque converter auto (unlike the petrol models with CVT) which is IMO a good thing.  Didn't seem to suffer much turbo lag around town, can't say I noticed any at all when overtaking etc.

Checking the link you posted - two of the negatives don't apply - as you can get an auto trans diesel, and it's not the CVT.

I thought the boot area was a bit small.  Didn't even realise until after I'd driven it a few times it had a sunroof (moon roof?) - not a feature I'd pay money for, but it's a bit novel and doesn't seem to cause issues with wind noise or anything.

They're not "sporty" - but neither am I.  If you like it and it checks out mechanically ok, then go for it.  They do have a DPF - that's an expensive thing to replace if it's been damaged (ie by constant around town and no highway use). I don't know how they'd check if the DPF was causing problems.  The trip computer told me that it was using more diesel than my DMax ute (3 litre) on the open road - which I thought was surprising.  Couldn't get better than 8.5l/100km - I've got no idea what fuel use around town is like - never checked, but that seems a bit thirsty for a small-ish SUV.

Dugimodo:

Our work vehicle is a 2019 ASX and I like it well enough, except it's a turbo diesel and I hate the turbo on it.

You get surges of unexpected power which makes it exciting to drive and not in a fun way. Particularly disconcerting when corning on a windy road and the turbo decides you need more power. I've not driven many turbo vehicles but ours seems worse that the ones I have.

Thanks for the excellent input Fred. I will be googling DPF. This one is the auto trans diesel. Agree on the small boot. Can’t see me throwing firewood in it when it ages like I do our Vitara. Unless we fold the back seats down. I don’t care for sun roofs, Never used ours once but the husband likes them. I am very not sporty. But I do want enough power and speed to get up a big hill on the highway or overtake if need be. This one comes with a tow hitch which we will be using a small trailer on for firewood, tip runs etc.

Batman:

Dugimodo:

 

Our work vehicle is a 2019 ASX and I like it well enough, except it's a turbo diesel and I hate the turbo on it.

 

 

 

You get surges of unexpected power which makes it exciting to drive and not in a fun way. Particularly disconcerting when corning on a windy road and the turbo decides you need more power. I've not driven many turbo vehicles but ours seems worse that the ones I have.

 

I love cars that give me more power than I ask for

A test drive around the hills is definitely in order. I will not be amused by sudden power surges!

40000 km on it, 2 months left on the factory warranty, NZ new, rides pretty good, took it on a washboard dirt road I almost daily drive on and it does better than my mid sized Vitara on it for smoothness. Grunty enough engine for passing and highway, can shift down to 5 with the paddle shifters to pass etc if you want to go manual but I'll let the car handle it. Pretty Road noisy inside probably one of the biggest drawbacks and gappy glove box lid just like the reviews say. No strange power surges. Lovely reverse camera, lots of other electronic whistles like pairing with your phone, auto sensing windshield wipers etc. Not a huge fan of the interior (It's the worst looking cockpit area we have ever had frankly, clearly this is where they sacrificed quality looks) but it's a functional object not a fashion statement so meh. The engine is supposed to be pretty good over the long term, just have to make sure it gets up to temp once a week with a drive longer than a couple blocks at least to clear out the gunk to avoid build up but that should be no problem...

So we bought it. :)

JayADee:

 

40000 km on it, 2 months left on the factory warranty, NZ new, rides pretty good, took it on a washboard dirt road I almost daily drive on and it does better than my mid sized Vitara on it for smoothness. Grunty enough engine for passing and highway, can shift down to 5 with the paddle shifters to pass etc if you want to go manual but I'll let the car handle it. Pretty Road noisy inside probably one of the biggest drawbacks and gappy glove box lid just like the reviews say. No strange power surges. Lovely reverse camera, lots of other electronic whistles like pairing with your phone, auto sensing windshield wipers etc. Not a huge fan of the interior (It's the worst looking cockpit area we have ever had frankly, clearly this is where they sacrificed quality looks) but it's a functional object not a fashion statement so meh. The engine is supposed to be pretty good over the long term, just have to make sure it gets up to temp once a week with a drive longer than a couple blocks at least to clear out the gunk to avoid build up but that should be no problem...

 

So we bought it. :)

 

i bet there were no unwelcome surges in power?

No, it was well behaved. Much noisier road noise than I am used to though.

I’m a historical and current Mitsubishi owner (Outlander and Pajero).

Mitsubishi are a “B” grade manufacturer - they make decent cars that are nowhere nearly as refined as marques with bigger R&D budgets. The upside is they tend to be fairly robust drivetrains, cheap and simple. They definitely aren’t as refined as Toyota or Hyundai but the price tag is different. I’d buy another Mitsubishi but just make sure you have appropriate expectations.

Update: loving this car so far.