“He’s also a hybrid”
This is a frequently read sentence in emails from readers. This is primarily about the consumption values of the Outlander Plug-In Hybrid when commuting or on long journeys. And the astonishment at the everyday consumption values as soon as the Outlander PHEV is not charged at the socket before setting off. 1.8 liters per 100 kilometers. That's what it says in the brochure. And next to it there is a reference to the NEDC standard. The word should have gotten around by now that the NEDC values are “comparison values” and are rarely suitable for everyone. But it's not at least 1.8 liters either, because as our everyday life shows: As a family SUV, the Outlander PHEV easily comes in under the 1.0 liter mark per 100 kilometers.
PHEV = The GOT TO to the socket
The Outlander PHEV offers the big system advantage when you really use your battery. We have now emphasized this many times and reaffirmed it again and again. But what actually happens when you commute with the Outlander PHEV and can't plug it into the socket? How efficient is the Outlanders PHEV's drivetrain without fully charging the battery? We wanted to find out and drove the usual commuter routes as an example. But the same applies here: We may live in a completely different environment than you. And every change affects the consumption values.
Commuting from the Spessart to the Frankfurt region
We have set ourselves a commuter route that some of us in the region actually use every day. We drove this route three times, for this example the variant with the worst traffic jam, the largest proportion of Stop & Go, is to serve as an example.
Test Track: 94.7 km long and almost in equal parts consisting of country road, towns, highway and city. In addition, we set off early in the morning to take the overkill traffic jam on the highway. The return trip was planned so that we can drive the same route with less traffic jam - but not free. The battery was not pre-charged. The tank is half full. Departure 6:47, arrival at 8:37 - so we took the really unpleasant traffic jam variant. Overland, the journey consists of a hilly route topology. A very mixed proportion of the routes. All the more astonishing the result.
To assess the efficiency of the pure hybrid concept, the journey with the largest proportion of traffic jams is very suitable. Because stop & go (typical city traffic) is particularly demanding in terms of consumption values. The constant acceleration costs fuel, when braking a maximum energy return must take place. This is the only way to reduce consumption. With the Outlander PHEV, the integrated strategy of serial hybrid and parallel hybrid comes into play. The petrol engine can serve as a generator or directly drive the front axle. At Mitsubishi, however, the decision was made to only couple the petrol engine directly to the front axle from 64 km / h. This achieves a ratio that is similar to a 5th or 6th gear. Only using the gasoline engine in top gear is a clever trick to only operate the engine in the maximum efficiency range.
And the result for everyday life?
3x 94.7km easy route. 3x started without a charged battery. 2x started with a half-filled tank and 1x with a full tank.
With 7.7 liters On average, the Outlander Plug-In Hybrid completes the shuttle service. A more than impressive value. Keep in mind: all-wheel drive, SUV size and comfort for 5. In addition, in a black vehicle, as in our endurance tester, the air conditioning the whole time is very demanding.
Now these 7.7 liters are not the benchmark either. Anyone who is on the move with full throttle will easily increase consumption again. And if you don't have a chance to charge your PHEV again and again at the socket, you can refrain from doing so - but you miss the fun of pure electric driving - and that for up to 50 km in everyday life!