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w w w . o a kv ill eb ea ve r.c o m O A KV IL LE B EA V ER W e dn es da y, N ov em be r 1 0, 2 01 0 2 2 Mitsubishi joins in the compact SUV party Story and photos by Jim Robinson Metroland Newspapers Carguide Magazine LUNENBERG, N.S.: Time and financial meltdowns wait for no man (or woman). While Canada got off relatively lightly two years ago when the world seemed on the verge of a banking collapse, other countries, especially where cars are made, did not. Mitsubishi was just one Japanese manu- facturer that pulled in its horns, slowing down the new model pipeline and holding pat. But it may have had a silver lining. Take the Mitsubishi RVR compact CUV just now hitting Canadian showroom floors. If you look in the engine bay, youll see a 2.0-litre inline four-cylinder engine with a lot of space around it. Thats because this CUV was probably signed off three years ago when Mitsus 2.4- litre or even a V6 was planned. It gave Mitsubishi the breathing space to move to a smaller power plant. As it turns out, consumers are more than ever going for fuel efficiency that makes the RVR with a 2.0-litre an attractive proposi- tion. The 2.0-litre inline four-cylinder engine with variable valve timing produces 148 hp and 145 lb/ft of torque. It is available with front-wheel-drive (FWD) or Mitsubishis take on all-wheel-drive that they call All-Wheel- Control (AWC). In the U.S. the RVR will be sold as the Outlander Sport, but the Canadian arm thought that might be confusing so they went with the RVR name that is used in Japan. RVR, by the way, doesnt stand for any- thing. The rationale is it just sounds cool. The RVR will be sold in SE and GT mod- els and four trim levels. Pricing starts at $21,998 for the base SE FWD with five-speed manual transmission and $23,196 for the same model with a six-speed CVT. The AWC version with CVT starts at $24,998. Lastly the fully trimmed GT with panoramic glass roof and Sportronic CVT comes in at $28,498. With its 2.0-litre engine, the RVR has very competitive fuel economy numbers of 8.7/6.4/7.6L/100 km city/highway/combined for the FWD manual. With the CVT FWD or AWC, fuel consumption is the same at 8.4/6.6/7.6L/100 km. Note the combined fuel number is the same for all four trim levels. While all the exterior panels including recycled plastic fenders are different from the Outlander, underneath it is the same plat- form. The RVR is shorter at the rear than Outlander but it still has a large amount of passenger volume which is good. In terms of cargo, there are 1,402 litres (49.5 cu ft) behind the front seat and with the 60/40 split rear seat folded flat. That decreas- es slightly to 1,383 litres (40.8 cu ft) with the panoramic roof in place. Cargo space behind the back seat is 914 litres (21.7 cu ft) or, for a Lunenberg compar- ison, room for a lobster trap. The RVR is, like most Mitsubishi prod- ucts, stoutly built, which you feel in the chas- sis that is void of any torsional issues that I could feel. This happens sometimes when you built a CUV on a sedan platform with the added weight and higher centre of gravity leading to increased loads on the chassis members. Driving south of Halifax is the Lighthouse Route which is highly recommended to any- one regardless of the time of year. Winding up and down through spotless and vibrantly colorful towns like Bridgewater is a treat. Here the RVR benefitted from the six speeds of the CVT but the 2.0-litre still had its work cut out for it. I was driving the GT with the sequential manual mode Sportronic with paddle shifters. This was better on the short, sharp hill climbs. We did not do a lot of main highway driv- ing but the RVR acquitted itself well with passing not being an issue. Up around 100 km/h there was some wind noise that seemed to be coming from the very large windshield wipers. On the AWC models there is a very large rotary knob on the transmission tunnel to select drive mode including lock that locks up all four wheels for driving on poor sur- faces. Continued on page 23 Mitsubishi RVRCUV2011At A Glance: BODY STYLE:Compact CUVDRIVE METHOD:front-engine, front/all-wheel-drive.ENGINE:2.0-litre DOHC inline four- cylinder (145 hp, 142 lb/ft).FUEL ECONOMY:Five-speed man- ual, 8.7/6.4/7.6L/100 km city/high- way/combined, six-speed CVT 8.4/6.6/7.6L/100 km.PRICE:SE FWD manual, $21,998; SE FWD CVT $23,196; SE AWC CVT starts at $24,998; GT AWC CVT $28,498.WEB:www.mitsubuishi-motors.caThe 2011 Mitsubishi RVR is the newest entry into the red-hot Canadian compact CUV segment. It is in step with Canadian consumers who want the utility a CUV provides but with the best fuel econo- my possible. 345 Speers Rd. (at Dorval), Oakville 905-842-9299 Valid at all GTA locations. any oil change package $8OFF Expiry: Nov. 30, 2010 Code: 5724