Mitsubishi i MiEV: Compact
Electric Vehicle
Motoring Channel Staff - 30/January/2009
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Mitsubishi i MiEV
The EV Race
Begins
EV's or electric vehicles will
inundate major markets such as Britain, Japan, North America, and
Australia beginning this year with the i MiEV in Japan.
Mitsubishi looks as though it'll be the first major car
manufacturer to offer a mass-produced electric vehicle in its domestic
market, and if testing goes well in Australia this year, it could also
be the first EV Down Under.
With Australia's own electric
car network due to be up and running by 2012,
extending the range of EVs like this one from Mitsubishi, it will be
interesting to see which car maker is first to market an electric
vehicle. At this stage, Mitsubishi appears to be in pole position and
could launch the i MiEV in Australia in 2010.
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Feann Torr, Editor
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Plug it in, charge it up, and the i MiEV is ready to roll
Mitsubishi's i MiEV undergoing testing in the States
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Tokyo, Japan
– The race to have the world's first
zero emissions electric vehicle appears to have been won.
Mitsubishi is claiming to be have
the world's first mass-produced plug-in electric car with the
Japanese-made i MiEV, which goes on sale in Japan later in 2009.
And it's coming to Australia in February this year
- albeit in very limited numbers.
There are already test fleets of the new i MiEV
vehicle in North America, and with today's announcement that the
vehicle is coming to Australia as a 'study' vehicle to
evaluate its possible release in this country, Mitsubishi has
reached a monumental milestone.
Mitsubishi released a media statement saying the i
MiEV has "become the world's first truly viable, fully featured, zero
drive-time emission, city commuter vehicle to go into volume production
and be available for sale in Japan".
It
could be on sale as early as 2010 here in Australia, and rumours of
a $30,000 price tag would almost guarantee its success.
"Car companies are delivering on the dream of
electric vehicles, and it is happening sooner than many people think,"
says Mitsubishi.
"The Mitsubishi i MiEV is the first of what will
become, in the next five years or so, an avalanche of electric vehicles
from all manufacturers."
The Car
The Mitsubishi i MiEV is coming to Australia, but
what exactly is it?
MiEV stands for "innovative Mitsubishi electric
vehicle" and the
It's a compact car about the size of a Toyota
Yaris or Mitsubishi Colt, and uses a large-capacity lithium-ion battery
system to power a compact, high-output
47kW electric motor in place of the traditional gasoline power train.
It's cruising range is around 160 kilometres per
full charge: it can be recharged via a wall socket with its
plug-in functionality.
Mitsubishi says that the i MiEV's batteries take
about 8 hours to be fully recharged via normal power points, but high
voltage power outlets (which are expected to be deployed in Australian
late in 2011) will do the same thing in 20 minutes.
Australia's First Electric Car?
Mitsubishi has confirmed that it is conducting
market research and test programs in several countries
outside Japan that are "designed to test the viability of the
technology in a
variety of markets".
Because the Japanese-made cars are right-hand
drive vehicles, Australia would be an ideal export market for the car
as only minor modifications for ADR certification will need to be made.
Hot weather testing is also likely to be conducted
in Australia.
Furthermore, the Japanese car maker has
stated that, "Commencing in February this year, Mitsubishi Motors
Corporation (MMC) is bringing the i MiEV to Australia so key
stakeholders and decision makers can experience the reality of an
electric car for the first time.
"The technology is ripe. The product is
ready,"boasts Mitsubishi.
"Our question to Australia; “Is the
nation ready to leverage the environmental benefits of this
technology?”
"Do we have sufficient sources of renewable energy
to re-charge these cars in growing numbers? Do we have the
infrastructure in place to enable full utilisation of electric
vehicles? Are the incentives in place to encourage the early adoption
of this cutting edge technology?" asks Mitsubishi.
"These are the sort of issues that need to be
addressed now, in order to create the market and the rationale to bring
these cars to sale in this country," reads the statement.
Mitsubishi will show the i MiEV at the Melbourne
International Motor Show in late February, after which it will deploy
its electric vehicle fleet around the capital cities of
Australia, being shown in public demonstrations, during specialist
briefings and for individual drive experiences for key government
officials, fleet managers, environmental opinion leaders and the media.
The Japanese car maker is pushing ahead with its
electric vehicle program and has promised to build on this
initial exposure program later in 2009 with a diverse range of long
term i MiEV trials in government and private fleets across the nation.
With this i MiEV program, Mitsubishi Motors
Australia Limited (MMAL) will be seeking to prove to key stakeholders
the true viability of this cutting-edge technology, and in doing so lay
the foundations for the proposed sale of the vehicle in the Australian
market.
Related Links:
- Opel
Ampera Concept (2011)
- Australian
Electric Car Network (2012)
- Chevrolet
Volt (2011)
- Lexus
HS 250h (2010)
- Electric
Cars: Detroit Goes Green (2009)
- Toyota
Prius Hybrid (2009)
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