Mitsubishi Outlander is spacious, roomy and a luxury to own, ample 5 seater, which can be converted into 7 seater at the expense of the spacious boot. My eldest son has complained that the seats are not comfortable at all in long distance journeys (Cardiff to Newcastle and back), I have checked and realised they could have been a better quality seats. We tend to travel up North sporadically so this is a moot point compared to quite a long list of positives. Here are few positives.

My back troubles disappeared within a few days of owning this car, the seat is upright and aligns the spine correctly. It is a bit high up to get on, but that is how it is supposed to be.

The engine is very smooth and the car itself provides a smooth ride, the clutch, accelerator and brake pedals are sensitive to the touch, meaning you don't have to ram your foot down completely for the effects to begin, a slight touch is all you need, which provides again a luxurious feeling for a big car. The back doors comes with a child lock.

Our car is a 2.2L, on the motorway it gives you a sense of being in control with the fuel consumption, on average if you drive 60 miles at 55mph, the digital fuel gauge tells you that you have driven on a equivalent of 54.6 miles per gallon, which translates into 5.5 litres per 62 miles (approx £6.98 with 139.7 per litre). We filled up our tank that went to £73, we drove up North, went to a few places, returned back to Cardiff and had surplus fuel left. The longer distance you drive, the more effective the fuel savings is, I think this offers the best value in terms of fuel intake/output.

We had an opportunity to test out the 4WD and I have to say it surpassed all expectations and then some, we even 'rescued' a stuck car up in Brecon Beacon with a hard snow and we helped to tow a car into a service station, while pulling those cars, our car was able to cope without any pressure added on to it, it is very stable and very sturdy.

The leather seats are worth paying more for, it offers a comfortable seating for long distance without any stickiness or the seat fabric making your clothes stick to it like velcro. Children spilling their drinks onto it wasn't a problem, just needs to wipe it with dry cloth, when you get the chance at arriving your destination, just go over the area with a damp soapy cloth.

We had a DVD player added onto the roof of the car for the children, they were occupied with the film, however if anyone of them was sitting in the back seats, it was problematic to see the screen properly, it is not worth putting on the DVD in the daytime as the outdoor lights interfered with the ability to see the screen properly.

We also had the sat-nav added to the car in place where the radio is, it fits along the exterior nicely and it isn't garish or stands out. It looks like it has always been there and that it was made in the factory along with the car.

We went camping in Cornwall the summer before (2011) with 7 people in, two tents, various camping things, clothes and such, the car was packed to the limit yet again, it offered a smooth ride without any complaint.

The design inside and out is well thought out.I recommend this car very much, as we are on our second Mitsubishi Outlander, but not the 4WD, as we rarely used it and thought it wasn't really that worth paying out more for.