Mitsubishi Motors has the all-new Outlander to thank for a successful end of 2021 after a stressful year.

The Japanese automaker had announced an operating profit of 30.7 billion yen (NZ$226 million) in the fiscal third quarter ended December. 31, reversing an operating loss of 4.1 billion yen ($54m), Mitsubishi said.

Global retail sales climbed 12 percent to 245,000 vehicles in the quarter, driven by robust demand in North America and Southeast Asia, despite tepid deliveries in Japan and Europe.

In the October-December period, Outlander sales in the U.S. more than tripled to 13,209 vehicles, making the imported nameplate account for more than half of the brand's volume.

In New Zealand, Mitsubishi sold 14564 vehicles in 2021, with 6506 regisrations of the Outlander.

The Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV has been a popular vehicle for Kiwis with 616 sold last year but the all-new Eclipse Cross nabbed the top spot across the segment with 752 registrations.