SA Road Tests

Welcome

This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. I drive South African cars, SUVs and LCVs under real-world South African conditions. Many of the vehicles driven are world cars as well, so what you read here possibly applies to the models you get where you live.

My most recent drive is on the home page. Archived reviews and opinion pieces are in the active list down the left side. Hover your cursor over a heading or manufacturer's name and search through the drop-down menu that appears.

Editor's note: SA Roadtests accepts multi-day vehicle loans from manufacturers in order to provide editorial reviews. All vehicle reviews are conducted on our turf and on our terms.

For out-of-province vehicle launch features however, travel costs are covered by the manufacturer concerned. This is common in the motor industry, as it's more economical to ship journalists to cars than to ship cars to journalists.

Judgments and opinions expressed on this site are our own. We do not accept paid editorial content or ads of any kind.


Expands with you: 2021 Mitsubishi Xpander 1.5 a/t

Bigger than some

Posted: August 26, 2021

 
The numbers:
Price: R319 995
Engine: Mitsubishi 4A91, 1499 cc, DOHC, 16-valve four-cylinder, naturally aspirated
Power: 77 kW at 6000 rpm
Torque: 141 Nm at 4000 rpm
*0-100 km/h: 13.8 seconds
*Top speed: 170 km/h
Car Magazine fuel index: 8.4 l/100 km
Tank: 45 litres
Turning circle: 10.4 metres
Ground clearance (a/t): 205 mm
*Luggage: Cabin baggage-495-1600 litres
Standard tyre size: 205/55R16
Warranty: Three years, 100 000 km
Roadside assistance: Five years, unlimited km
Service plan: Two years, 60 000 km   
*Tested in SE Asia                                  


This car comes from Indonesia, birth place of Daihatsu Xenia, better known here as Toyota Avanza. They come from different companies and there’s nothing you can shake a stick at but there’s an eery regional resemblance on the outside.

Son of EvolutionX - The  350 HP (261 kW), 556 Nm, AP4 rally car


But, moving on: It's manufactured in Cikarang, West Java, where a model with different front and rear panels is offered to the local market as the Generation-2 Nissan Livina. Assembly plants in Vietnam and Malaysia distribute the Mitsubishi version throughout SE Asia.

It’s bigger than some other MPVs, being 4475 mm long on a wheelbase of 2775 mm, 1750 mm wide and 1730 mm tall. Our local offerings come with a 1.5-litre, naturally aspirated petrol engine developing 77 kilowatts and 141 Newton-metres. Gearbox choices are five-speed manual or four-speed automatic.

The autobox appears remarkably similar to the unit in Suzuki’s Brezza and Toyota’s Urban Cruiser although nobody’s admitting a thing. Fourth gear is a switchable overdrive while positions marked 2 and L hold second and first for as long as you need them.

Top-ratio gearing is different, however. This one’s engine, different from the others’, turned over at 3000 revs for 120 km/h versus the ‘Cruiser’s 2800. An unfortunate side effect was that the box in our Xpander auto tended to hunt on long inclines. Quick fix: use the overdrive switch to hold third until you’re back on the level.

What’s inside? Impact-absorbing construction with side beams and bars, ABS brakes with EBD, two airbags, pedestrian protection, kiddie locks, baby-seat anchors with tethers, tilt-and-reach steering wheel with buttons, multifunctional display, Bluetooth with voice control, electric windows all around, manual air conditioning with controllable vents to the rear, three power plugs, one USB, seven seats and nicely-sized door bins.

Outside? Halogen head- and fog lamps, fold-away mirrors and 15- or 16-inch alloy wheels, depending on the gearbox chosen. It has a reversing camera but the guidance “box” remains static.

The third-row seats fold into the floor when no longer needed but, to be different, they split 50:50 rather than the usual 60:40. So that you’ll resist temptation, because they're so close together, only two head restraints and belts are provided. The registration disc states “7 persons” too.

Knee room back there is extremely tight for adults unless the second row is shifted forward a bit through its 10 cm of adjustment. Headspace is “enough”, thanks to rooftop indentations, although it becomes more generous as one gravitates toward the front of the vehicle.

Second -row seats are more livable with adjustable recline, the slide movement mentioned above, a fist-width of headroom and unusually good foot space. Passengers can share an armrest but no separate cup holders – juice in bottles, in the door bins, please. Three head restraints with full belts and panic handles complete the amenities.

Cargo loads at an easy 70 cm onto a flat floor that’s 43 cm long when the third row is deployed but stretches to 103 when it’s folded, and 104 cm wide. Additional wells, for holding small items, are provided each side. Owing to the extra seats, the full-size spare wheel is stored beneath the body.

The front seat area offers one visor mirror, simple HVAC and audio controls, an open tray above the generous main cubby, two cup holders for those who insist on them, generous side windows, an RHD handbrake with firm action, one of the power sockets mentioned earlier, and some storage ahead of the gear lever. The trip computer provides information about the current day's trip only, so I could not provide my usual Real Life Consumption number for its week on test.

How does she go? Adequate but not a racehorse, it accelerates well enough to keep up with traffic and the gearbox works well – with the hunting tendency always in mind, of course. Ride quality, over most surfaces, is pleasant thanks to a well located rear torsion beam axle and to fairly soft springs.

Why would you buy one? Four-star ASEAN NCAP rating for 2017, its year of original introduction overseas, bags of space, seven chairs when required, all the fancy kit you really need, city-friendly performance, ease of use and by today’s norms, it’s well priced.

Test unit from Mitsubishi SA press fleet

What We Do

This is a one-man show, which means that every car reviewed is given my personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.

Every test car goes through real world driving; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads or goat tracks as well. As a result, my test cars do occasionally get dirty. It's all part of the reviewing process.

I do my best to include relevant information like real life fuel economy or a close mathematical calculation, boot size or luggage space, whether the space is both usable and accessible, whether life-sized people can use the back seat (where that applies), basic specs of the vehicle and performance figures if they are published. In the case of clearly identified launch reports, fuel figures are of necessity the laboratory numbers provided with the release material.

If ever I place an article that doesn't cover most things, it's probably because I have dealt with a very similar vehicle already, so you will be able to find what you want in another report under the same manufacturer's heading in the menu on the left.

Hope you like what you see, because there are no commercial interests at work here. There are no advertisers and no “editorial policy” rules. I add bylines to acknowledge sponsored launch functions and the manufacturers or dealerships that provide the test vehicles.  And, as quite a few readers have found, I answer every serious enquiry from my home email address, with my phone numbers attached, so you can see I do actually exist.

Comments or questions?
Want to ask a question, comment or just tell me you completely disagree with what I say? If you want advice or have a genuine concern, I will be happy to hear from you. All I ask is that you write something in the subject line so I know which vehicle you're talking about.