By Jim Meachen and Ted Biederman

Mitsubishi has become a company of crossover SUVs and the strategy has brought it back from the brink of extinction in the U.S. and into some semblance of prominence riding on the back of the Outback and the Outback Sport.

Mitsubishi's newest vehicle, the Eclipse Cross — a more stylish compact crossover — shares a platform with the Outlander and Outlander Sport and has been a mild success without stealing sales from its crossover cousins. Through the first six months of 2019, the Eclipse Cross sold 12,591 copies. At the same time, the Outlander increased sales year-over-year (26,837 vs. 25,462) and the Outlander Sport was down only slightly. With its starting price of $24,690 the Eclipse Cross slots between the $22,040 Outlander Sport and the $25,790 Outlander.

The Eclipse offers a rather shapely, intriguing design much like most of its modern competition. While Mitsubishi has checked off most of the boxes that draw the hordes to the compact CUV ranks, it prioritizes on-road comfort over responsive handling and cargo carrying capacity. We found it comfy; the front bucket seats are well bolstered for bigger bodies and have comfortable cushions. Rear-seat passengers are also pampered with decent legroom and a 60/40 split bench seat that slides fore and aft with a reclining seatback.

But its 22.6-cubic-foot cargo capacity falls short of such rivals as the Jeep Compass (27.2 cubic feet), the Honda HR-V (24.3 cubic feet), and the Kia Sportage (30.7 cubic feet). With only two people onboard and the rear seats folded, cargo space increases to 48.9 cubic feet.

All trim levels come with a rather modest 1.5-liter turbocharged four cylinder engine making 152 horsepower at 5,500 rpm and 184 pound-feet of torque at 2,000 rpm routed through a continuously variable transmission (CVT) with a manual shift mode. While the engine proved relatively peppy in around-town driving because of the available torque at low rpm, it required pedal-to-the-medal prompting in tight passing situations and for merging in fast-moving traffic. For comparison purposes, the Eclipse can accomplish a 0-to-60 run in around 9 seconds (about average for the segment).

At the same time, gas mileage is OK, but offers no bagging rights EPA-rated at 26 city, 29 highway and 27 combined in front-wheel drive and 25/26/25 with AWD on regular gas.

Mitsubishi’s interior design uses above average materials — there is a fair amount of plastic, but it's tastefully presented — including nice-looking padded faux leather on the armrests and piano-black plastic trim in several areas creating an upscale appearance. All but the base model come with a 7-inch free-standing thin-display touchscreen infotainment system controlled by a touch pad.

Unfortunately, navigation is not offered, but Android Auto and Apple CarPlay make it relatively easy to use phone app navigation. We didn't like the absence of simple tuning and volume control knobs, which is still the most convenient way to control the radio while hurdling down the road. Our test car did, however, come with redundant steering wheel controls. Another gripe — we don't like the piece of transparent plastic that rises up in front of the driver for the head-up display. Why can't head-up information be projected onto the windshield?

The vehicle's overall handling and cornering traits are okay. But the Eclipse Cross is not happy on roads such as our rural backroad "test track" that is endowed with numerous twists and turns — not unlike a winding mountain road — exhibiting excessive body roll at speeds we usually have no problem accomplishing in most SUVs. And the steering is too quick at highway speed making it difficult to keep the vehicle tracking in a straight line.

The Eclipse Cross comes in four trim levels — ES, LE, SE, and SEL. To Mitsubishi's credit it has endowed all but the base vehicle with standard all-wheel drive. And it can be added to the base model for a relatively inexpensive $600.

Perhaps the best bet for people looking for a well-equipped vehicle at a reasonable price is the SE, which starts at $28,265. Standard equipment in addition to AWD includes push-button start and entry, blindspot monitoring with cross-traffic alert, heated front seats, dual-zone climate control, two USB ports and the aforementioned Android Auto and Apple CarPlay.

Our test car was the SEL with a bottom line of $32,610 including destination charge and a couple of options. The most expensive was a Touring Package for $2,500 that includes dual-pane sunroof, forward collision mitigation, adaptive cruise control and a 9-speaker Rockford Fosgate premium audio system.

Noteworthy is a new 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty and 5-year/60,000-mile bumper-to-bumper warranty.

Essentials
Base price: $24,690; as driven, $32,610
Engine: 1.5-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder
Horsepower: 152 @ 5,500 rpm
Torque: 184 foot-pounds @ 2,000 rpm
Transmission: continuously variable
Drive: all-wheel
Seating: 2/3
Wheelbase: 105.1 inches
Length: 173.4 inches
Curb weight: 3,516 pounds
Turning circle: 34.8 feet
Luggage capacity: 22.6 cubic feet
Cargo capacity: 48.9 cubic feet
Towing capacity: 1,500 pounds
Fuel capacity: 15.8 gallons (regular)
EPA rating: 25 city, 26 highway, 25 combined (AWD)
Also consider: Honda HR-V, Kia Sportage, Mazda CX-5

The Good
• Peppy acceleration at lower speeds
• Comfortable for four people
• Lot of features for the money
• AWD standard expect on base model

The Bad
• Cargo space on small side

The Ugly
• Unremarkable fuel economy