Four years after the Japanese carmaker virtually disappeared from the Belgian market, Mitsubishi is back, as we wrote earlier. Test-driving on Spanish roads, the two latest additions to the lineup—the hybrid Grandis and the fully electric Eclipse Cross—there’s one thing that’s immediately apparent.
Driving electric is so much more fun. And it makes sense for both you and the car manufacturer. Pushing your clients into a mild or ‘full-hybrid’ first for a test drive, and then letting them drive a full electric, should be a mandatory measure to get the herd of sheep over the dam and make people love electric.
That’s not Mitsubishi’s achievement alone, but is already being demonstrated by its partner Renault, with whom it builds this Mitsubishi-remastered clone of the Scénic in Douai, France.
Built on Renault foundations
The Renault Group noted that 57% of Scénic E-Tech Electric buyers in Europe were new to the brand. For the core Renault brand, its electric-vehicle (EV) sales rose by 65.8% year-on-year over the first nine months, reaching 17.4% of its sales in that period (+6.1 points versus the year ago).
Mitsubishi’s European comeback is almost entirely built on Renault’s foundations. In Belgium, three of its core models are essentially redesigned and rebadged Renaults: the ASX, mirroring the Captur compact SUV; and the new Grandis, derived from the Symbioz crossover and built alongside it in Douai, France.
The first fully electric Mitsubishi after the pioneering i-MiEV, one of the earliest modern mass-production electric cars when it was launched in 2009/2010, is the Eclipse Cross EV.
That one shares the Scénic E-Tech’s electric architecture. The Colt, a twin of the Renault Clio V, won’t be sold in Belgium, unlike in the Netherlands, as the model will soon be discontinued.
Own design touches
In the Ampere partnership with Renault, Mitsubishi adds its own design touches and extends warranty coverage from five years (Renault) to eight if you keep your maintenance with your dealer, making this one of the main USPs (unique selling propositions). Mitsubishi takes responsibility for itself, mimicking the trust the carmaker has in this product.
These models mark a clear shift from Japanese engineering independence to a strategic alliance play, using Renault’s European platforms to regain visibility and viability on the continent.
Actually, the only ‘real’ Japanese-built Mitsubishi is the Outlander PHEV, which was a tremendous success in the Netherlands due to a generous government subsidy for electrified alternatives from 2013 to 2017.
Both the Mitsubishi Pajero and L200 pickup, regarded as 4×4 icons, have effectively disappeared. The Pajero was discontinued globally in 2021 after nearly four decades of service, and Mitsubishi has no plans to revive it for Europe yet. The L200, also known as the Triton elsewhere, ended official European sales in most markets by 2023, with only used or imported examples now available.
New ‘Grandis’ gets smaller
The original Grandis was a 7-seater family minivan; the new Grandis shifts to a C-segment crossover platform (4.41 m in length) and hybrid powertrains. So the vehicle role is changing, but it is still targeting families as a more popular SUV.
The new Grandis arrives as the dressed-up twin, with mild or full-hybrid options (MHEV 140 or HEV 158 hp), family-friendly flexibility, and starts at €27.490 for the mild-hybrid base version, just under the €28,250 list price of its Renault sibling, while the full-hybrid lists at €31,490.
It shouldn’t surprise that behind the wheel, the Renault Symbioz and its twin, the upcoming Mitsubishi Grandis, feel remarkably alike — smooth, efficient, and comfort-oriented rather than sporty.
Easy steering, relatively quiet hybrid operation, and excellent real-world fuel economy. The Grandis, sharing the same chassis and 158 hp hybrid setup, adds Mitsubishi’s own tuning and trim details, as a dedicated team within Ampere adds some Mitsubishi look and feel, like a smoother, trimmed suspension. Or is this pure perception?
Both favour calm efficiency and usability over driving excitement, two well-mannered siblings targeting the same everyday sweet spot.
Entirely different tune
Stepping into the Eclipse, this one plays an entirely different tune. The all-electric Eclipse packs roughly 218 hp and instant torque from its 87 kWh battery, promising smooth, effortless thrust and quiet confidence on winding or mountainous roads.
Its one-pedal driving and strong regenerative braking make descents calmer and more controlled, though the chassis remains tuned for comfort rather than sport. It helps you drive with fewer pedal transitions, gives better control downhill, and makes flowing through corners and changes of elevation smoother.
Crucially, as a pure EV, the Eclipse offers remarkably refined cabin acoustics — with near-total absence of engine vibration and only a subdued hum at speed — making it noticeably quieter and more serene than the Grandis HEV, even though the hybrid’s petrol engine operates almost silently.
For someone who enjoys spirited driving with sharp turn-in, lively handling, and strong acceleration, the Eclipse (like most EVs) will feel more dynamic thanks to its drivetrain and instant response.
Shared credentials
It won’t surprise you that most of the Eclipse’s credentials are shared with the Renault Scenic E-Tech Electric. That one, crowned European Car of the Year 2024, positions itself as a sustainable, family-friendly EV.
The Renault starts at €39.950 for the Comfort Range version with a 125 kW (171 hp) motor and a range of 430 km, and € 46.950 for the Long Range with a larger battery and a range of 632 km.
The Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross EV, to be launched first now at €47,990, is comparable with the Long Range, with the same 160 kW (220 hp) motor driving the front wheels and the same 87 kWh battery. An Eclipse Cross with a smaller battery, like the Renault Comfort Range, is expected mid-2026, presumably at around €40,000 too.
During actual driving on winding roads in Mallorca, we saw a very reasonable 17.8 kW of power consumption, despite a rather sporty driving style.
A myriad of physical buttons
Behind the wheel, the Eclipse Cross continues the Renault Scenic E-Tech’s style, featuring a 12.3-inch LCD instrument cluster, an impressive 12-inch vertical centre touchscreen, and a large number of physical buttons.
We counted no fewer than 23 of them, and four levers behind the steering wheel, intended “to improve tactile quality and perceived robustness”. That’s almost the complete opposite of most Chinese EVs today, where nearly all functions are grouped into the touchscreen and physical buttons are kept to an absolute minimum.
Physical buttons, switches, and knobs each require their own hardware: dedicated parts, wiring harnesses, mounting spots, and different moulded housings. That adds complexity, assembly time, and inventory management. If you wonder why the Chinese can build cheaper, this is one example.
Premium experience
In essence, where Renault sells the Scénic on sustainability and family practicality, Mitsubishi wraps the same technology in a more mature, confident SUV package aimed at buyers seeking a quieter, more reassuringly premium experience. It focuses on refinement and comfort, with thicker sound insulation and high-grade soft-touch materials.
Mitsubishi positions its version with a subtle but deliberate premium edge that helps justify its slightly higher Belgian price (€47,990 versus €46,950 for the Renault). It also adds an 8-year/160,000 km extended warranty and a “peace-of-mind” ownership pitch, enhancing its long-term value perception.
HEV or EV?
So, what to choose between the slightly bigger full-hybrid Grandis or the electric Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross? Based on calculations for its Renault siblings (the Symbioz and Scenic E-Tech), which are already available, you would pay about €86 per month more for going electric now, if you consider Total Cost of Ownership (TCO).
When you crunch the numbers over eight years and 160,000 km in Belgium, the Renault Scénic E-Tech Electric and its Symbioz HEV sibling come surprisingly close in overall cost. So basically, this would be the same for the Mitsubishi siblings.
But the balance shifts with trim and range. In its 430 km-range version (€39,950), the Scénic EV’s cheaper ‘fuel’ and lower maintenance make its TCO about €465 a month, narrowly undercutting the hybrid’s roughly €478 a month.
Yet step up to the Long Range Scénic (€46,990), and the higher purchase price tips the scales: total cost climbs to about €538 a month, versus €452 for the Symbioz.
In short, the EV pays off in running smoothness, silence, and refinement. However, unless you drive high mileage or charge cheaply at home, the hybrid still wins the spreadsheet.
The electric advantage remains as much about experience as economics. If the 430 km range and home charging suit you, waiting a few more months for the lower-priced Eclipse Cross instead of going for an HEV now will pay off. Economically and in driving fun.
