2018 Mitsubishi Outlander: owner complaints and recalls

Complaints about the 2018 Mitsubishi Outlander are still climbing years after launch. The last three full years account for 22 of the 55 filings on record, which usually means a defect that surfaces with mileage rather than a factory fault.

55
Complaints
6
Recalls
7
Crash reports
0
Fire reports
8
Injuries
167.3
Severity index

Severity index 167.3 - High. It weights crashes, fires, injuries and fatalities per 100 complaints, so a vehicle attracting serious reports scores above one attracting many trivial ones (how this is calculated).

Middle half of all tracked vehiclesThis vehicle: 167.3p25 35p75 96cleanestworst
Where the 2018 Mitsubishi Outlander sits against the quartiles of every vehicle we track.

Among the 121 2018 vehicles we track with at least 40 complaints on file, the 2018 Mitsubishi Outlander ranks 6 of 121 by severity, where 1 is the worst. Its severity is higher than 95% of its model-year peers. See the full 2018 ranking.

What actually fails

EngineEngine: 11 complaints (20.0%)11 20%Air BagsAir Bags: 10 complaints (18.2%)10 18%Electrical SystemElectrical System: 9 complaints (16.4%)9 16%StructureStructure: 7 complaints (12.7%)7 13%Unknown Or OtherUnknown Or Other: 7 complaints (12.7%)7 13%Service BrakesService Brakes: 6 complaints (10.9%)6 11%Exterior LightingExterior Lighting: 5 complaints (9.1%)5 9%SeatsSeats: 3 complaints (5.5%)3 5%
Systems named in complaints. One complaint can name several, so shares overlap.
ComponentComplaintsShare of complaints citing it
ENGINE1120.0%
AIR BAGS1018.2%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM916.4%
STRUCTURE712.7%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER712.7%
SERVICE BRAKES610.9%
EXTERIOR LIGHTING59.1%
SEATS35.5%

Complaints filed per year

0492018: 72019: 92020: 62021: 62022: 32023: 92024: 52025: 82026: 2 (partial year)1819920212223242526
Complaints filed per calendar year, not model year. The hatched bar is the current year and is still incomplete.
YearComplaints
20187
20199
20206
20216
20223
20239
20245
20258
2026 (year to date)2
Complaint volume is rising - the last three years carry 1.5x the filings of the three before them, which usually signals a wear-related defect surfacing with age.

Recall campaigns

CampaignReportedComponentSummary
18V59100005/09/2018EQUIPMENT:OTHER:LABELSMitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Mitsubishi Outlander vehicles equipped with 18-inch alloy wheels. The Certification Label lists an incorrect rear wheel rim size. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal
20V40300013/07/2020SEAT BELTS: REAR/OTHER:BUCKLE ASSEMBLYMitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) is recalling certain 2014-2019 Outlander and 2018-2019 Outlander PHEV vehicles. The second-row center seat belt buckle may interfere with the right-side seat belt buckle when the seat backs are folded down. The interference may cause
18V62000014/09/2018ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:SOFTWAREMitsubishi Motors North America (MMNA) is recalling certain 2018 Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV, Outlander Sport, 2018-2019 Eclipse Cross, and 2017-2018 Outlander vehicles equipped with a Forward Collision Mitigation (FCM) system that detects pedestrians. Due to incorrect software,
18V62100014/09/2018FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROLMitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) is recalling certain 2018 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport vehicles equipped with a Forward Collision Mitigation (FCM) system and 2018 Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV and Eclipse Cross vehicles and 2017-2018 Outlander vehicles equipped with an Ada
25V50700007/08/2025STRUCTURE:BODY:HATCHBACK/LIFTGATE:SUPPORT DEVICE/STRUTMitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) is recalling certain 2018-2022 Outlander PHEV and 2014-2020 Outlander vehicles sold and/or currently registered in Alaska, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massac
26V25200020/04/2026STRUCTURE:BODY:HATCHBACK/LIFTGATE:SUPPORT DEVICE/STRUTMitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) is recalling certain 2018-2022 Outlander PHEV and 2014-2020 Outlander vehicles. The liftgate gas spring cylinders may corrode and lose pressure, which can result in a gas spring cylinder rupture or the liftgate falling unexpectedly.
Source. US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration public complaint and recall APIs (api.nhtsa.gov), retrieved 2026-07-25. Complaints are unverified consumer reports; volume is influenced by how many units were sold and how long the vehicle has been on the road. Not affiliated with NHTSA or any manufacturer.