Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaleditions.com/i/122153
alltorque There's very little that's disappointing about the Liberty X. The harshest criticism is probably its modest boot space, but don't let that stop you from considering it. This is a great car for the open road with the ability to take on rough conditions. It superbly handled everything I dished out. City-friendly SUV Clockwise from opposite: Subaru's new Liberty X; Subaru has clearly put in some design time with its flash new interiors; the Mitsubishi ASX. The Mitsubishi ASX. It's hard to get a handle on this car, either as an SUV or a city-bred motorised shopping trolley. ASX stands for Active Sports Crossover and the crossover part depends on whether you pick up the two-litre petrol unit or the 1.8-litre direct-injection turbo-diesel. Wheeling around country roads, the demo car I drove for a week was not unattractive, in a bookish sort of way. But when I asked her to let her hair down and go … well, she was reluctant. Her hill-climbing ability seemed just a little wanting – and that was with the 1.8-litre turbo-diesel. On the upside, while we buzzed around the countryside the car provided acceptable fuel economy at about six litres per 100 kilometres. Take the car onto unsealed roads and it performs well enough – although it's not exactly an eyebrow-raising performance. However, in the looks department the ASX is no slouch. The updated ASX has a smooth style about it with softer, sexier exterior lines that should give it broader appeal. It's not bad on the inside, either. Mitsubishi has put in some design time to deliver soft-touch contact points where your arms and hands are likely to meet the door and the dash, chrome accents on the air conditioning dials, and an updated steering wheel with more user-friendly controls. That said, cabin-wise it's still a little rough compared with the Subaru Liberty, Subaru XV and Volkswagen Tiguan. The ASX lets in more cabin noise than you might expect but it provides a roomier ride than many similar sized compact SUVs. In particular, it has the sort of headroom many rival SUVs would envy. On that score, it's worth considering as a second car, a family runabout. One small positive: Mitsubishi has marginally improved the ASX's towing capacity. However, you probably should shy away from towing anything bigger than a box-trailer – it doesn't quite have enough grunt for the camper trailer. Overall, the ASX has style and character but not quite the get-upand-go you'd hope for. Although the ASX drives well enough, it seems slightly lacking in spirit, but it remains a reasonable overall package for people looking to downsize from a large sedan. However, I'm not sure that it will stay competitive against Nissan, Subaru and Volkswagen. Only time will tell. 39