Mitsubishi Motors is recalling more than 108,000 Outlander SUVs in the United States because the rear liftgate can drop without warning, posing a risk of head and body injuries. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration published the recall on April 24, 2026, under campaign number 26V252000, covering 2022 through 2025 model-year Outlanders.
The problem centers on the gas struts that hold the liftgate open. When those pressurized cylinders lose their charge, the heavy rear hatch can swing down on anyone standing beneath it, whether they are loading cargo, adjusting a child’s car seat, or reaching into the back of the vehicle. According to the NHTSA filing, the falling liftgate could strike a person’s head.
Which vehicles are affected
The recall covers 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025 Mitsubishi Outlanders sold or registered in the United States. That range spans the current-generation Outlander, which launched for the 2022 model year on a platform shared with the Nissan Rogue. Owners can confirm whether their specific vehicle is included by entering their 17-character VIN into the NHTSA recall lookup tool. The VIN is printed on the driver-side dashboard, the driver’s door jamb, and the vehicle registration card.
A Reuters report published the same day confirmed the 108,000-unit scope and identified the liftgate strut failure as the sole basis for the campaign.
What Mitsubishi must do
Under federal law, Mitsubishi is required to fix every affected Outlander at no cost to the owner, regardless of whether the vehicle is still under its original factory warranty. The expected remedy is a replacement of the faulty gas struts, though the automaker has not yet published a detailed repair procedure or a parts-availability timeline. Notification letters to registered owners are required by law and typically arrive within 60 days of the recall’s filing date.
Owners who already paid out of pocket to replace failing liftgate struts before the recall was announced may be eligible for reimbursement. Federal recall regulations under 49 U.S.C. § 30120 allow for that, but Mitsubishi has not yet outlined the specific claims process. Keeping repair receipts and dealer invoices is the best step owners can take in the meantime.
No injuries reported so far
Neither the NHTSA filing nor Mitsubishi has attributed any injuries or crashes to the defect as of late April 2026. That is worth noting, but it comes with a caveat: initial recall notices do not always include a full count of complaints. Supplemental filings sometimes reveal incidents that were logged before the recall but not captured in the first public document.
Mitsubishi has not issued a public statement from a named executive about the root cause of the strut failures or whether a production-line fix has already been applied to newer vehicles. Company statements in recall situations often follow within days of the NHTSA announcement.
What owners should do right now
Until the repair is completed, a few precautions can reduce the risk. Stand to the side rather than directly under the liftgate when opening it, and keep children away from the open hatch. If the liftgate drifts downward on its own, makes unusual sounds, or will not stay fully raised, stop using it and contact a Mitsubishi dealership to schedule the free repair.
Liftgate strut recalls are not unique to Mitsubishi. Similar campaigns have affected models from other automakers in recent years, a reminder that gas struts are wear items that can degrade faster than expected due to seal failure, internal corrosion, or manufacturing variation. What sets this recall apart is its scale: 108,000 units across four model years of a single nameplate signals a systemic issue rather than an isolated production batch.
Owners who want to stay ahead of future recalls on any vehicle they own can sign up for free email alerts through NHTSA’s notification system by entering their VIN. It is the fastest way to learn about new safety campaigns before a letter arrives in the mail.
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*This article was researched with the help of AI, with human editors creating the final content.
