And, just like the commercial, Mitsubishi hopes chiseled off-road looks will tempt buyers into the taller, longer, and wider second-generation Outlander. While the original version was more tall wagon that sport-ute, ver.2 aims to ape the styling — but not necessarily performance — of Mitsubishi’s all-conquering Dakar machines.

While the Outlander now offers two engines, the 168-horsepower four-banger of old only powers the base-model front-wheel drive ES through a CVT. The new SOHC 3.0-litre MIVEC V6 offers 220 hp and 204 lb-ft. of torque in either two-wheel or four-wheel-drive in LS and XLS. The sole transmission available with the V6 is a six-speed Sportronic automatic with (quite nice, actually) aluminum steering-wheel-mounted shift paddles.

The engine is smooth, but peak power doesn’t arrive until 6,250 rpm, only 250 rpm shy of the redline. Also, the torque figure doesn’t max out until 4,000 rpm, meaning you have to wind out the V6 to gain any real acceleration. And compared to its other V6-powered competition — Toyota RAV4, Hyundai Santa Fe — the Outlander comes up short.

For a 1,720 kg vehicle, the Outlander is fairly nimble, featuring MacPherson struts up front with a multi-link arrangement out back; the front and rear feature anti-roll bars as well, although the Mitsu is still a very soft soft-roader.

Our top-of-the-line XLS 4WD tester also featured seating for seven; the LS 2WD and 4WD can only carry five.

The interior is where Mitsubishi has made the most progress, with much-improved plastics and materials. Think modern Mazda and you’re about right; not class leading, but clean and comfortable nonetheless. Also, the XLS gets a 650-watt nine-speaker Rockford Fosgate sound system to blow your eardrums at will.

The most interesting feature was the optional 30GB hard-drive-based Navigation / Entertainment system, which allows you to store a bunch of your own music on the HD itself. However, the question of how to transfer that music is slightly annoying; rather than being able to directly copy music electronically via an input for your MP3 player, the CD drive will ‘rip’ your songs off CDs, then order them into playlists.

The exterior is where the Outlander will win big points. With 18-inch wheels, bright paint, squinty headlights and big fenders, the Mitsubishi is on the anime-aggressive side of the spectrum. It’ll win favour with the younger generation, much like the new Lancer — think of it as a blank canvas ready for bling.

The real downside to the Outlander’s increased size is the decrease in fuel economy. That V6 is relatively thirsty, especially in 4WD guise where it delivers 12.2 L/100 km city and 8.5 L/100 km highway. Also, the price on our tester was a shocking $36,998, although $4,000 of that was the Nav/Entertainment unit.

Mitsubishi does offer the longest warranty in Canada at five-years 100,000-km comprehensive, which should help offset some of the pre-purchase nerves.

While the Outlander shows that there’s still life in Mitsubishi, it still needs more tweaking before it’ll be ready to hit the mall parking lot, let alone the African sand dunes.