Compare the2023 Chevrolet BoltVS 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Bolt are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Outlander PHEV doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Chevrolet Bolt has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Outlander PHEV doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

The Bolt has standard OnStar®, which uses a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver and a cellular system to get turn-by-turn driving directions, remotely unlock your doors if you lock your keys in, help track down your vehicle if it’s stolen or send emergency personnel to the scene if any airbags deploy. The Outlander PHEV doesn’t offer a GPS response system, so if you’re involved in an accident and you’re incapacitated help may not come as quickly.

Both the Bolt and the Outlander PHEV have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available blind spot warning systems, around view monitors and rear cross-path warning.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety rates the general design of front seat head restraints for their ability to protect front seat occupants from whiplash injuries. The IIHS also performs a dynamic test on those seats with “good” or “acceptable” geometry. In these ratings, the Bolt is safer than the Outlander PHEV:

(Lower numerical results are better in all tests.)

There are almost 9 times as many Chevrolet dealers as there are Mitsubishi dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Bolt’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Chevrolet vehicles are better in initial quality than Mitsubishi vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Chevrolet third in initial quality, above the industry average. With 79 more problems per 100 vehicles, Mitsubishi is ranked 28th, below the industry average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Chevrolet vehicles are more reliable than Mitsubishi vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Chevrolet above average in long-term dependability. With 21 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Mitsubishi is rated lower.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Chevrolet vehicles are more reliable than Mitsubishi vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Chevrolet 3 places higher in reliability than Mitsubishi.

As tested in Motor Trend the Chevrolet Bolt is faster than the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV:

On the EPA test cycle the Bolt gets better mileage than the Outlander PHEV running on electricity (131 city/109 hwy vs. 77 city/71 hwy MPGe).

On the EPA test cycle the Bolt gets better mileage than the Outlander PHEV running its gasoline engine (131 city/109 hwy MPGe vs. 26 city/26 hwy).

The Bolt can travel with zero emissions on a full charge for 259 miles. The Outlander PHEV has to start its internal combustion engine after only 24 miles.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Chevrolet Bolt higher (10 out of 10) than the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV (7). This means the Bolt produces up to 11.8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Outlander PHEV every 15,000 miles.

The Bolt’s tires provide better handling because they have a lower 50 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Outlander PHEV’s standard 55 series tires.

The Bolt has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The Outlander PHEV doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

Having a flat tire is dangerous, inconvenient and expensive. The self-sealing tires standard on the Bolt can automatically seal most punctures up to 3/16 of an inch, effectively preventing most flat tires. The Outlander PHEV doesn’t offer self-sealing tires.

The Bolt has vehicle speed sensitive variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Outlander PHEV doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

The Bolt LT handles at .78 G’s, while the Outlander PHEV GT pulls only .76 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Bolt LT executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Outlander PHEV GT (27.4 seconds @ .63 average G’s vs. 28 seconds @ .59 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Bolt’s turning circle is .8 feet tighter than the Outlander PHEV’s (34.8 feet vs. 35.6 feet).

The Chevrolet Bolt may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 600 to 650 pounds less than the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV.

The Bolt is 1 foot, 9.6 inches shorter than the Outlander PHEV, making the Bolt easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The power windows standard on both the Bolt and the Outlander PHEV have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the Bolt is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The Outlander PHEV prevents the driver from operating the other windows just as it does the other passengers.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Bolt has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the Outlander PHEV only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Bolt has standard extendable sun visors. The Outlander PHEV doesn’t offer extendable visors.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Chevrolet Bolt offers an optional wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. The Outlander PHEV doesn’t offer wireless personal charging.

The Bolt was chosen as one of Car and Driver’s “Top Ten” in 2017. The Outlander PHEV has never been a Car and Driver “Top Ten” pick.

The Bolt was chosen as one of Automobile Magazine’s “All Stars” in 2017. The Outlander PHEV has never been an “All Star.”

A group of representative automotive journalists from North America selected the Bolt as the 2017 North American Car of the Year. The Outlander PHEV has never been chosen.

The Chevrolet Bolt outsold the Mitsubishi Outlander by 17% during the 2021 model year.