Mind you, the Outlander offers a clutchless manual shift mode with the adaptive shift-controlled four-speed automatic

When push came to shove, I liked most of the Outlander's attributes. (Photo: Alexandra Straub, Canadian Auto Press)

transmission, to assist acceleration. This feature is standard on the Limited trim. Unfortunately, like its Honda CR-V, Nissan X-Trail and Toyota RAV4 rivals, there's no optional V6 upgrade, unlike some of its other competitors such as the Mazda Tribute, Ford Escape, Hyundai Santa Fe and Jeep Liberty. With the addition of a V6, the Outlander would be the weapon of choice. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

When push came to shove, though, I liked most of the Outlander's attributes. All trim levels come with a heavy-duty list of features including air conditioning, power windows, locks, and mirrors, tubular roof rails, advanced front airbags, four-wheel disc brakes, a stainless steel exhaust system and heated sideview mirrors. That's not a bad combination of standard features considering the base Outlander with the five-speed manual transmission and FWD has an MSRP starting at $23,348.

The Limited AWD comes with a few more perks for a few extra dollars. Its MSRP is $33,046, which includes P215/55R17 tires on

All trim levels come with a heavy-duty list of interior features including air conditioning, power windows, locks, and mirrors and advanced front airbags. (Photo: Alexandra Straub, Canadian Auto Press)

17-inch alloy wheels, four-wheel disc brakes with ABS and electronic brakeforce distribution (EBD), a full-time all-wheel drive system with viscous coupling centre differential and auto proportional torque split, halogen fog lights, an auto-dimming rearview mirror with compass and temperature display, and a rockin' 210-watt, Mitsubishi/Infinity AM/FM/6-disc in-dash CD changer audio system with MP3 capabilities and six-speakers. It's always a treat to be warm and toasty in a leather-trimmed seat, listening to my favourite tunes on a premium sound system, but this said there are a couple of minor details which did not tickle my fancy.