A lot of prospective buyers were wowed by Mitsubishi when it unveiled the Xforce. Its combination of looks, standard equipment, and pricing made it a strong contender in the crowded market segment it was competing in. And now, the Japanese carmaker has just added something that should make its latest crossover even harder to resist.

Enter the Xforce HEV. Apart from a few badges that hint at what’s under the hood, it isn’t externally different to the regular model. We’ve already covered the styling quite a bit, so we’ll go right over to what makes Mitsubishi’s newest offering tick.

The hybrid system consists of a 1.6-liter engine paired to an electric motor. While the combined power figure isn’t quoted, the latter half of the duo produces 85kW (114hp). That’s already a healthy number considering the regular gas-powered Xforce makes do with 103hp from its 1.5-liter mill. Fuel economy is a claimed 24.4km/L.

The rather clever bits of the Xforce HEV’s powertrain are its two-speed transaxle and seven drive modes. The former is reportedly specifically tuned for accelerating uphill—something that we felt the non-hybrid Xforce struggled with. As for the drive modes, two of them are EV-specific settings that can optimize the use of the battery. The rest make good use of Active Yaw Control and Active Stability Control for a wide range of road conditions.

As expected, the Xforce HEV gets a variety of high-tech toys starting from its 12.3-inch infotainment display. It’s compatible with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and it has configurable widgets just like a smartphone. Range-topping variants will more than likely be equipped with an eight-speaker audio system codeveloped with sound specialist Yamaha.

There is no word yet if and when the Xforce HEV will come to the Philippines. But if your excitement gets the better of you, book the next flight to Thailand now. The car will be on display at the 46th Bangkok International Motor Show until April 6.