Mitsubishi Motors Malaysia (MMM) CEO Shinya Ikeda has revealed the company is considering introducing further variants of the Xpander with a hybrid powertrain or even the SUV-styled Cross in the future.
Shinya made the comments following today’s launch of the facelifted Xpander, which receives some styling and equipment changes but retains many familiar aspects as the pre-facelift model. This includes the powertrain that pairs a 4A91 1.5 litre naturally aspirated inline-four petrol engine with a four-speed automatic transmission driving the front wheels – MMM has said it is also considering a switch to a CVT to match neighbouring countries.
In Thailand, the Xpander is available with Mitsubishi’s e:Motion hybrid system that operates in a similar way to Honda’s e:HEV system. An electric motor rated at 116 PS (114 hp or 85 kW) and 255 Nm of torque does most of the work to get the vehicle to move, and is juiced by a lithium-ion battery.
Said battery is powered by a 4A92 1.6 litre NA inline-four petrol engine running on the Atkinson cycle and producing 95 PS (94 hp or 70 kW) and 134 Nm. In most cases, the car is driven by the electric motor and the engine only serves to generate electricity, but at higher speeds, the engine can clutch in to directly drive the wheels more efficiently.
The hybrid powertrain is available for both the regular Xpander and the Xpander Cross in Thailand, the latter being a more rugged version of the MPV that is also offered in Indonesia (NA only there) but not here. With the Xpander Cross, the MPV gets black body cladding, chunky front and rear skid plates as well as roof rails for a more “adventure-ready” look.
Unsurprisingly, the hybrid and Cross versions of the Xpander cost more in both Thailand and Indonesia. The new Xpander in Malaysia is offered in standard and Plus variants, which are priced at RM99,980 and RM109,800 on-the-road without insurance. Would you be willing to pay over RM110k for further variants of the Xpander? Lets us know your thoughts in the comments below.
GALLERY: Mitsubishi Xpander HEV at BIMS 2024
GALLERY: Mitsubishi Xpander Cross HEV at BIMS 2024
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LOL what a rip-off. Mitsubishi continuously ripping off Malaysia with shortchanged offerings ever since the day they tied up with Proton, and still continues to do so even on their own
What about that little suv that they have but acting stupid?
replace plus variant with hybrid, with same price, it should become nice bargain eventhough the lack of ADAS.