Turbo engines certainly have
Turbo engines certainly have more opportunity to, or components that can, fail. Generally speaking, I would prefer to have a non aspirated engine as the hybrid power plant in my PHEV. That said, I’ve had zero issues with the 1.6L turbo in my Kia Sorento PHEV and it doesn’t have to work hard in hybrid mode unless I am really punching it to try and overtake on a steep hill or something like that. It is a smooth engine and I am impressed, for a vehicle of the Sorento’s size, that it works so well. The fact that the turbo usually doesn’t have to work that hard should help greatly in its longevity since heat is what kills turbos (well, and engine’s too) eventually. It would be interesting to me to know if Kia had left off the turbo and included a little more battery and more powerful electric motor, what the efficiency would be like. Worse, I suspect, but that’s just a guess. Otherwise, I would say this in response to your questions: both of these cars are worth looking at if you’re in the market for a PHEV SUV. They both have outstanding warranties (so that should help relieve some worry, at least), and the things that worry me (based on things I have read more than what I’ve experienced) are: Kia’s powertrain longevity (though I’ve read the 1.6L engine is one of their better/more reliable) and Mitsubishi’s battery longevity (previous generations had issues as I understand).