Mitsubishi Xpander facelift seen in Malaysia – 7-seater rival to Honda BR-V, Perodua Aruz launching soon?
The Mitsubishi Xpander first made its debut in Indonesia way back in 2017, and it was reported at the time that the seven-seater would make its way to Malaysia in 2018. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen, but it looks like we are finally set to welcome the “crossover MPV,” as a unit has been sighted on Malaysian soil recently by reader Jamaan Abd Rahman.
Unlike the previous sighting back in 2019, the one you see here is the facelifted model, which has already been launched in Indonesia earlier this year. A dead giveaway is the tweaked Dynamic Shield grille, which sports two louvres instead of the previous three, leading into the slim daytime running lights.
We don’t have detailed specifications of the Malaysian-spec Xpander just yet, but in Indonesia, the model is equipped with a 4A91 1.5 litre naturally-aspirated four-cylinder petrol engine that makes 104 PS at 6,000 rpm and 141 Nm of torque at 4,000 rpm. The MIVEC powerplant is mated to either a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic, with drive going to the front wheels.
Available equipment for the Indonesian market includes 16-inch two-tone alloys, LED headlamps, a touchscreen head unit, manual air-conditioning, keyless engine start, a multi-info instrument cluster display, fabric seats and steering wheel audio controls. There’s also an Xpander Cross variant available there, which gets several aesthetic and suspension changes to make it more SUV-like.
When (and if) the Xpander is launched here, the model will compete against the popular Honda BR-V and Perodua Aruz. In terms of dimensions, the Mitsubishi model is 4,475 mm long and 1,750 mm wide, which is 18 mm longer and 15 mm wider than the BR-V, while its 2,775 mm wheelbase is 113 mm longer than the Honda’s. The Xpander also has larger dimensions compared to the Aruz, which measures 4,435 mm long, 1,695 mm wide and has a wheelbase spanning 2,685 mm.
Expanding the comparison to engines, the BR-V and Aruz both use 1.5 litre engines, but the former beats the rest with 120 PS and 145 Nm, while the Aruz serves up 102 PS and 133 Nm. Of the three, only the BR-V features a CVT, with the Xpander and Aruz being equipped with four-speed automatics.
Of course, pricing is important in this segment, and the BR-V range currently retails for RM86,726 (OTR without insurance) for the base 1.5 E, with the higher-spec 1.5 V going for RM93,420.27 – these prices factor in the SST exemption scheme that runs till the end of 2020.
The Aruz also comes in two variants, with the base 1.5 X priced at RM68,526 and the 1.5 Advance at RM73,226. As we don’t have official pricing for the Xpander yet, we can only extrapolate Indonesia’s figures, which range from 217.8 million rupiah (RM63,625) and peaks at 275.1 million rupiah (RM80,364).
We’ll have to wait for Mitsubishi Motors Malaysia to officially confirm if the Xpander will be launched here, but in the meantime, which of the three budget crossover MPVs do you fancy? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
GALLERY: 2020 Mitsubishi Xpander facelift (Indonesia market) 
The post Mitsubishi Xpander facelift seen in Malaysia – 7-seater rival to Honda BR-V, Perodua Aruz launching soon? appeared first on Paul Tan's Automotive News.
from Paul Tan's Automotive News
Read The Rest:paultan...
Post a Comment