The centerpiece of Mitsubishi’s stand at next week's New York Auto Show will be the Outlander GT Prototype, a preview of the facelifted model due to go on sale later in the year. Mitsubishi has released two new teaser images of the upcoming show car, revealing a design similar to the Lancer sedan and compact Colt hatchback will be applied to the midsize crossover.

The new Outlander GT Prototype isn’t only about exterior design. The vehicle will also showcase a host of new technologies, such as Idle ‘Neutral Logic’ that automatically shifts the transmission into neutral during vehicle standstill, improved performance and fuel economy from its newly developed 3.0L MIVEC V6 engine, and an updated Super-All-Wheel-Control AWD system.

Otherwise, the Outlander should remain fairly stock standard, which means it will still feature Mitsubishi's Sport Shift Transmission (SST) dual-clutch transmission and a Hill Start Assist function that momentarily holds the brake until the accelerator is pressed when the vehicle detects it is pointed uphill.

2009 Mitsubishi Outlander GT Prototype