Mitsubishi ASX (2010-2021) Review

If you’re just looking for a compact family SUV, and you want the most polished car you can get your hands on, then there probably isn’t much to recommend the ASX, because many rivals feel more sophisticated - both inside and on the road - than the Mitsubishi. However, the fact that it’s relatively unloved means that prices on the used car market are rather more tempting, and because it’s offered with four-wheel drive, it could make an affordable - and therefore, reasonably appealing - option for a used-car buyer looking for cheap all-weather ability.

Compact SUV rivals are not in short supply, it’s fair to say. They include diverse cars such as the Suzuki Vitara, Nissan Qashqai, Seat Ateca and Skoda Karoq, plus many more, so we’re looking at some very talented - not to mention very popular - competition. The Mitsubishi is a little different to most rivals, though, in that it’s available with four-wheel drive, and if you want your small SUV to deliver a little bit of genuine all-weather ability, it’s an appealingly affordable choice.

Even by the standards of the day, this is an area in which the ASX was disappointing. No sooner had you climbed into your seat than your eyeballs were met with brittle-looking, hard-edged plastics and a monotonously dreary colour scheme. And not only did it look drab, but further inspection from your fingertips only served to make matters worse. It all felt very hard-wearing and solidly put together, but there was virtually no concession to frivolity or tactility. As such, there are plenty of contemporary rivals that look and feel a good bit posher than the ASX.

The ASX came in three different trim levels, and each one had a different level of infotainment kit. However, do bear in mind that this car was released in 2010, meaning that it predates all the latest infotainment technology, so don’t go expecting things like Apple CarPlay or Amazon Alexa from any of them.

The system in the entry-level 2 car was very basic. There was an AM/FM radio (these were the days before DAB was widespread, although DAB was introduced to the range later on down the line) and a CD player, and four speakers, and that was largely it. If you made the step up to the 3-trimmed car, it earned you another two stereo speakers and - importantly at the time for safety on the move - a Bluetooth handsfree phone connection. Both stereo systems look very basic, with buttons and dials built into the fascia, along with a small LCD display: no touchscreens here.

The range-topping 3 model, meanwhile, came with an aftermarket Kenwood stereo system that did have touchscreen functionality, along with satellite navigation. As you can imagine given the age of this tech, the graphics now look very dated by modern standards, and the menu layout and screen sensitivity aren’t exactly cutting edge, either.

You'd expect the front seats of any car to have enough space for adults, and that’s the case in the ASX, but the rear seats aren’t quite so accommodating. Headroom is okay, but legroom is rather tight when compared with rivals, so taller adults might feel a bit hemmed in. Squeezing three across the rear row won’t be something you’ll want to do on a regular basis, either. The cabin is rather too narrow to comfortably fit three sets of shoulders in, and whoever ends up in the middle will sit on a hard seat with their feet either side of a bulky transmission tunnel.

The 442-litre boot is a decent size, although it’s nowhere near as big as you get in some rivals. There’s a bit of underfloor storage, though, and the rear seats, which are split 60/40, fold down to open up a bigger load area. They almost lie flat and flush, but not quite, leaving you with a gentle slope in your extended load floor.

Initially, the ASX was offered with two engines, a 1.6 petrol with 115PS and a 1.8-litre diesel with 116PS. The petrol came with front-wheel drive and a five-speed manual gearbox, while the diesel got a six-speed manual and a choice of either front- or four-wheel drive.

In truth, neither engine option was hugely appealing. The petrol felt really underpowered, especially with people and luggage on board and had to be flogged mercilessly for even moderate performance. The diesel felt much brawnier, pulling much more strongly from low revs, but although it didn’t need working anywhere near as hard as the petrol, it clattered and rattled away noisily, so it wasn’t the most civilised companion.

In 2013, a 2.2-litre diesel was added to the range. It had 150PS and came with a desirable six-speed torque converter automatic gearbox. We never got to try this version, but on paper, it was actually slower than the 1.8 diesel.

An update in 2016 saw the 1.8 diesel replaced by a new 1.6-litre unit with 114PS, and again, it was available with front-or four-wheel drive. This was a shade slower than the 1.8 diesel, and the 2.2 as well, but it was a lot cleaner. Again, we never got to try this variant.

Another update in 2019 saw the entire engine range canned in favour of a single 2.0-litre petrol engine with 142PS. It was offered with front-wheel drive and a manual gearbox, or four-wheel drive and an automatic. Again, we never got to try it.

This was one of the main problems with the ASX. As we’ve mentioned, the diesel engines we sampled were very noisy and clattery for too much of the time, with lots of vibrations transmitted through the main controls. While the 1.6 petrol engine was quieter and smoother, it was still quite rowdy just by virtue of how hard you had to work it to make half-decent progress. The manual gearshifts had a notchy and imprecise action, while the automatic gearboxes were slightly ponderous and occasionally jerky. Wind noise wasn’t too much of an issue at motorway speeds, but road noise was rather too prevalent.

The ASX earned the full-five star rating in Euro NCAP crash tests, but don’t read too much into that. Because the testing standards become more and more difficult each year, the body now decrees that ratings expire after five years because they’re no longer relevant or representative. And, since the ASX was tested way back in 2011, this rating is well past its sell-by-date.

Sure enough, the roster of safety kit that earned the car full marks looks rather sparse by today's standards: you do get seven airbags, which is more than some contemporary cars, but your active driver aids amount to little more than anti-lock brakes, stability control and hill start assist.

Mitsubishi has a very decent record in the reliability stakes, and that’s reflected in the firm’s performance in the latest HonestJohn.co.uk Satisfaction Index. The Japanese brand was rated as the 10th most reliable out of the 29 carmakers in the survey, indicating that trouble doesn’t happen too regularly, and when it does, it’s reasonably easy and affordable to fix. However, in the overall satisfaction rankings, the brand finished 27th of 29, so reliability aside, it must have suffered some pretty poor scores. It’s also worth remembering that used versions will no longer be covered by their original three-year warranty.

Every variant of every car gets placed in a particular insurance group by the ABI (Association of British Insurers), and this partly governs how much it will cost to cover. These groups range from group 1 at the cheapest end of the spectrum, to group 50 at the most expensive end. Groupings for the ASX range from 13 for the lowest-powered 1.6 petrol models, right up to group 25 for the most powerful 2.2 diesel with four-wheel drive and a high trim level. Most of the other variants sit between groups 18 and 20. That means premiums shouldn’t be too steep on most versions.

If the used Mitsubishi ASX you’re considering was registered on or after April 1st 2017, then it’ll be taxed according to the latest VED (Vehicle Excise Duty) regulations, which commands a flat rate of £180 for all petrol and diesel cars. Cars that cost more than £40,000 when new are subject to a hefty surcharge on top of that for a period of five years, but this doesn’t apply to any variant of the ASX.

Any car registered before that date, meanwhile, will be taxed according to the old regulations, in which the amount you pay is governed by the CO2 emissions of your car, and that results in some huge disparity. By coincidence, most of the petrol-powered versions pay the same £180 per year, as do many of the 1.8 diesels. Beware, though: while some of the two-wheel drive diesels are clean enough that you pay just £35 per year, some of the four-wheel drive variants can go as high as £200, while annual tax bills on some of the 2.2 diesels can reach as high as £240. When browsing used cars, it’s definitely worth a quick online check using the registration mark of any prospective purchase to be sure of what you’re looking at.

The ASX’s specifications may look a little basic by modern standards, but when you bear in mind the age of the car, they’re really not bad at all. The entry-level 2 version comes with remote locking, 16-inch alloy wheels, manual air-conditioning and all-round electric windows, and that’s on top of the infotainment and safety stuff we mentioned earlier. Upgrading to 3 trim adds smarter looks thanks to 17-inch alloys, privacy glass, front foglamps, and chrome trims for the grille and windowline, while you also get rear parking sensors, climate control, cruise control, heated front seats, keyless entry, leather coverings for the steering wheel and gear lever, plus automatic lights and wipers.

Initially, 4 trim was the range-topper and added leather upholstery and a reversing camera. Later on, a higher-grade 5 trim was introduced, which brought upgraded leather, LED ambient lighting and heated rear seats.

A variety of oddly-named special editions were available at various points of the car’s life, too, which offered elevated equipment levels for a knock-down price.

Later on in the car’s life, the range was trimmed down to just one model, called the Juro, and a Black Edition car was added a short time later. And during the 2019 facelift, trim levels were revised one again to include Dynamic and Exceed.