 I purchased the Outlander for its supposedly great fuel economy and third row seats.  First of all, the good.  The vehicle in the SEL trim is luxurious and nicely put together.  The leather seats seem to be good quality and though the lumbar support is lacking they are reasonably comfortable.  Like most of today's vehicles, there is plenty of plastic on the inside but the fit and finish is nice, tight, and clean; a nice mix of chrome and leatherette.  The third row seat came in handy on more than one occasion.  You'll find other reviews stating that the third row is for emergencies only and those reviews are correct with regard to adults.  However, kids fit just fine and since kids are most likely to occupy a third row seat in any vehicle, I consider this a non-issue.  However, for infants and toddlers, though two car seats will fit in the third row and can be secured using the old fashioned seat belt technique (pull the seat belt all the way out until it starts clicking when you retract it), there aren't any car seat anchors or rear tethers and you aren't actually supposed to use the third row for car seats.  Handling is a little squishy and unlike my 2012 Chevy Equinox, seems tuned toward off-roading rather than sport.  Not a big deal to me.  Now on to the bad parts of this car.  First, the acceleration is sluggish.  You have to floor it if you want it to get up and go.  Not a huge problem since I drive like an old man and always choose fuel economy over horsepower.  Nevertheless, the slow acceleration is super-annoying when you are trying to merge in heavy traffic.  Next, the supposed fuel economy is no where close to reality.  Stated fuel economy is 23/29 for the AWD 4 cylinder.  Highway mileage has been about 29 mpg for me so I can't complain about that.  However, I average a disappointing 18 mpg in the city.  Since I do about 70% of my driving in the city, I find the 18 mpg to be a deal breaker.  Last but not least, resale value is TERRIBLE.  Just TERRIBLE.  I paid invoice for my SEL (a little less than $32,000 as I recall).  Eighteen months and only 11,600 miles later, two different dealerships offered me a measly $15,000 for my Outlander.  That's less than half of what I paid for it.  That's a $17,000 depreciation in LESS THAN two years.  I did take it to Carmax and was offered $18,000, but unless you're buying a car from them, you take the tax hit by not trading on your new car.  And that would still be a $14,000 loss in, again, LESS THAN two years.  In summary, if you're in the market for an 'OK' used car or just don't care about resale value, maybe the Outlander is for you.  Regardless, DO NOT buy it new and DO NOT buy it if you expect to get the stated fuel economy.