Mitsubishi Outlander Recall — The liftgate gas spring cylinders may corrode internally and

A loaded Mitsubishi Outlander liftgate weighs about 35 pounds. When the gas springs that hold it open lose pressure on a corroded car, the door drops on whatever is below it. Sometimes that is groceries. Sometimes that is a head.

Mitsubishi Motors North America has filed two related recalls covering 108,046 vehicles for exactly that failure. Recall 26V252, filed April 20, 2026, expands a previous salt-belt-only recall (25V507, July 2025) into a nationwide remedy. Both campaigns trace back to the same defect: liftgate gas spring cylinders that can corrode internally, lose pressure, and either rupture under load or release the door without warning.

The Issue

The gas springs are sealed cylinders mounted on either side of the liftgate opening. Each contains pressurized nitrogen and oil that resist compression, holding the door open against gravity once it is raised. The defect lives in the dust cap at the rod end of each cylinder. Saltwater can penetrate that cap, pool inside, and eat through the cylinder wall.

Once corrosion breaches the cylinder, two failure modes are possible. The cylinder can rupture under the static load of holding the door open, releasing pressurized fluid and metal fragments. Or the cylinder can simply lose pressure, at which point the door slowly stops resisting gravity and falls.

The remedy is replacement of both gas springs as a pair. Replacing only one leaves the other to fail.

Affected Models

Vehicle	Model Years	Estimated Units
Mitsubishi Outlander	2014-2020	102,815
Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV	2018-2022	5,231
Total	2014-2022	108,046

The recalled 2022 Outlander PHEV is the third-generation body, built on the platform that ran from the 2014 model year through the 2022 PHEV's last year of production. The fourth-generation Outlander, which launched for the 2022 model year on a redesigned 2024 body, is not part of either campaign.

Chronology and Investigation

Recall 25V507 came first, filed July 8, 2025. That campaign covered the same vehicles, but only those sold or registered in 28 salt-belt states and the District of Columbia. The geography reflects what mechanics already know about gas-spring corrosion: it is a road-salt problem, not a rust-belt problem in the traditional sheet-metal sense, and it accelerates wherever calcium chloride or magnesium chloride reaches the chassis.

Owner notification letters for the original recall went out October 6, 2025, with Mitsubishi's recall number SR-25-002. Mitsubishi monitored field reports and warranty claims through the winter of 2025-2026.

By April 2026, the data argued for expansion. Failures were turning up outside the original 28-state footprint. NHTSA recall 26V252, filed April 20, 2026, extends the remedy to all 50 states and folds the original campaign into a unified nationwide effort under Mitsubishi's new recall number SR-26-001. Owners covered under the original 25V507 do not need separate action; their dealers are already authorized to perform the repair.

What Owners Should Do

Three dates matter. The searchable VIN list goes live at NHTSA.gov on June 3, 2026, so owners can confirm their car is included before they call a dealer. Owner notification letters from Mitsubishi are scheduled to be mailed June 17, 2026. Repair work can begin once dealers receive the parts and procedure documents that accompany the second campaign.

Owners who do not want to wait can contact Mitsubishi customer service directly at 1-888-648-7820 and reference recall number SR-26-001. The repair is free, including parts and labor.

If you owned the car under the original 25V507 campaign and never had the gas springs replaced, do that now rather than waiting for the new letter. Same defect, same fix, same dealer.

Symptoms to Watch For Before the Liftgate Fails

Gas-spring corrosion announces itself before it kills the strut. Owners should pay attention to four signs:

The door will not stay open at the top of its travel. A healthy gas spring resists compression even when the door is fully raised. A weakened spring will let the door drift back down on its own, or hold for a few minutes and then sag.

The door is unusually heavy to lift. Springs that have lost some pressure require more force to raise the door past the halfway point. A door that used to swing up with one hand and now needs two is showing the symptom.

Visible fluid on the springs or the surrounding sheet metal. A leaking cylinder can weep oil down the rod and onto the body. Look at both springs the next time the door is open.

A hiss, pop, or bang from the rear of the car. Cylinder rupture sometimes happens during normal door operation. If you hear it and the door becomes hard to raise or fails to stay open afterward, do not load the cargo area until the strut is replaced.

If any of these signs are present, treat the liftgate as a hazard until the springs are replaced. Do not let children, pets, or anyone of small stature stand under it.

How Long Will the Recall Repair Take?

Liftgate gas spring replacement is a routine job. Two springs, four bolts, no electrical disconnects, no software updates. A trained technician can complete the work in 30 to 45 minutes. Mitsubishi has not published an official labor estimate, but based on comparable liftgate-strut campaigns from other automakers (the Ford Edge, Honda Pilot, and Toyota Highlander have all run similar recalls in the past five years), parts availability is the more likely delay.

Salt-belt dealers had 25V507 inventory through fall 2025, so those locations should already be stocked. Dealers in the new states added under 26V252 may need a parts ordering cycle of a week or two before repairs start in volume.

Bottom Line

This is a real risk, but a manageable one. A 35-pound door dropping on a head can cause a serious injury, especially if it lands on a child or while an adult is leaning into the cargo area. The defect is age- and exposure-driven, so the oldest cars in the affected range (a 2014 Outlander now passing through its eleventh winter) are at higher risk than a 2022 PHEV.

Until the gas springs are replaced, support the liftgate when loading. A telescoping prop rod or even a sturdy broomstick will hold the door open if the springs are weak. After June 3, 2026, run your VIN through NHTSA.gov; if the car is included, schedule the appointment and stop relying on the failing strut.

Find your Mitsubishi Outlander recall information: https://www.mitsubishicars.com/owners/recalls

Recall 26V252 (April 2026) expands the original 25V507 (July 2025), which had limited the remedy to 28 salt-belt states. The expansion brings 80,000+ additional vehicles into scope.

Liftgate gas-spring recalls are recurring across the industry. Ford issued similar campaigns on Edge and Explorer; Honda has run them on Pilot and Odyssey; Toyota on Highlander. Most trace to the same dust-cap corrosion mechanism.