Mitsubishi Outlander Sport vs Kia Seltos: which is more reliable?
The Mitsubishi Outlander Sport and the Kia Seltos are level on the federal record — 76/100 against 76/100 across the years we score. Which one to buy is decided by the model year, not the badge.
The record, side by side
Mitsubishi Outlander Sport
- 15 model years scored
- 872 owner complaints on record
- about 6 complaints per year on the road
- 55 recall campaigns, 14 safety-critical
- best year 2024 (93/100) · worst 2015 (34/100)
Kia Seltos
- 5 model years scored
- 534 owner complaints on record
- about 28 complaints per year on the road
- 7 recall campaigns, 1 safety-critical
- best year 2025 (88/100) · worst 2021 (45/100)
Mean score is the average across model years from 2013 on, where both records are comparable. How the score works.
Year by year: Outlander Sport against Seltos
The comparison that decides the purchase. A nameplate is not one car — a redesign can move the record sixty points inside two years, and the two nameplates rarely move together.
What owners actually complain about
Mitsubishi Outlander Sport
- Power Train — 290 complaints
- Engine — 144 complaints
- Electrical System — 119 complaints
Kia Seltos
- Engine — 278 complaints
- Unknown Or Other — 89 complaints
- Electrical System — 88 complaints
They do not fail the same way: the Outlander Sport's complaints concentrate in Power Train, the Seltos's in Engine. That difference matters more to a buyer than the score gap, because it says which repair bill you are taking on.
Years to avoid on each
Mitsubishi Outlander Sport — avoid: 2015, 2016.
Kia Seltos — avoid: 2021.
A year scores below 45 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. Every car’s years to avoid.
What each costs today
A recent used Mitsubishi Outlander Sport prices at about $30,500 and a Kia Seltos at about $30,500 — they price within $1 of each other, which at this level is the same money, and they return 26.0 against 29.0 MPG combined.
Class-level estimates re-priced to your country, not a valuation of one car. Method.
FAQ
Is the Mitsubishi Outlander Sport or the Kia Seltos more reliable?
On the NHTSA record the Mitsubishi Outlander Sport scores 76/100 against the Kia Seltos's 76/100, averaged across every model year we hold. The gap is small enough that the model year matters more than the badge.
Which Mitsubishi Outlander Sport and Kia Seltos years should I avoid?
Mitsubishi Outlander Sport: 2015, 2016. Kia Seltos: 2021. Each of those scores under 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns.
What goes wrong on the Mitsubishi Outlander Sport and the Kia Seltos?
The largest complaint group on the Mitsubishi Outlander Sport is Power Train (290 complaints); on the Kia Seltos it is Engine (278).
Is the Mitsubishi Outlander Sport or the Kia Seltos cheaper to own?
A recent used Mitsubishi Outlander Sport prices at about $30,500 and a Kia Seltos at about $30,500, before insurance and the maintenance band. Both pages carry the five-year running-cost figure.