Tilt-Shift-Eclipse
Mitsubishi is going through some very important transformations, and they are important ones. The sign of the times means that many brands have sped up their evolution.
Under the hood, its 1.5 litre turbocharged engine is mated to a Continuous Variable Transmission (CVT) with eight virtual gears, and drives the front wheels. With 163 horses on tap, and 250Nm from 1,800-4,500rpm, the Eclipse Cross takes 9.3 seconds to hit 100km/h. Like most cars with CVT transmissions, this crossover unfortunately, has not escaped the “stepping” of their transmission at gear “changes” to create 8 gears; but on the brighter side, while the revs drop at each gear “change” there are no heavy simulated jerks, meaning that the Eclipse Cross still delivers a smooth ride, and returns a decent combined 14.9km/l.
For those who have “Ralliart - Spirit Of Competition” sticker aspirations, the Eclipse Cross is not built to be driven in a spirited manner. Its CVT transmission lets off a characteristic whine under a heavy right foot, you will experience a bit of roll around the bends, while the electric power steering lacks in feel. But drive it in a relaxed manner, and you will be rewarded with very good ride comfort.
Little touches like the “top down” and reverse camera, which can also be called up with the press of a button on the steering wheel, not only makes parking the Eclipse Cross a little easier, but getting the 1,685mm tall car out of tight spots is easier too. Driver safety in the form of its Forward Collision Mitigation System (FCM) responds to other vehicles and pedestrians on the road, by utilising camera and laser radar detection, and prompts the driver to react, or even assists in braking the car. With 7 airbags, the Eclipse Cross also receives a five-star ASEAN NCAP rating.
The market is saturated with SUVs and Crossovers in this segment, and buyers are spoilt for choice. Unlike a decade back, where there were fewer players in this field, the Eclipse Cross now faces rather stiff competition from the likes of the popular Nissan Qashqai, and Toyota C-HR. More recently, Volkswagen-owned Czech manufacturer, Skoda also introduced their Karoq crossover.
But while competition is rather stiff, the Eclipse Cross does shine in versatility and a very comfortable drive.
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