Stephen King, Are you Listening? Mitsubishi Plans to Drop 1,000 MiEVs to Illinois Town

While some carmakers are trying to endorse pure-electric vehicles as being different and new, others like Mitsubishi are taking a different approach promoting them as the "new normal".

That's the name of Mitsubishi's latest marketing campaign, which will see the Japanese auto manufacturer flooding a quiet Midwest town called –wait for it- Normal with 1,000 MiEV electric cars.

In addition, Mitsubishi will help install a high-tech EV charging infrastructure comprising of 30 ultra-fast Level 3 quick charge "refueling" stations spread across the town.

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Mitsubishi Updates i-MiEV, Slashes Prices and Increases Autonomy

The electric car war rages on and the latest entrant is Mitsubishi’s new model year version of the i-MiEV that was revealed today in Japan. The most important changes that Mitsubishi made to its all-electric city car is the introduction of a new lower-cost base model and improvements to the standard version in order to extend its driving range.

The new budget model is called the ‘M’ and its price comes down to 2.6 million Yen (US$32,070 -€22,170) or 1,880,000 Yen (US$23,190 - €16,040) after Japanese government subsidies. It is powered by an electric motor producing 41-horses and has a reduced driving range of 120 kilometers (75 miles).

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Mitsubishi i EV Priced from $20,490 in the U.S., Close to $5,000 Less than Nissan’s Leaf

The main reason for which Mitsubishi will drop the Eclipse, Endeavor and Galant models from its U.S. range is to focus on developing zero-emissions vehicles like the Mitsubishi i (also known as the i-MiEV in Europe). The Japanese carmaker announced at the New York Auto Show that the plug-in EV will arrive in U.S. showrooms in November 2011, with prices starting from $20,490 (€14,100) for the standard ES model and $22,490 for the better-equipped ES version, government subsidies included. Read more »

Euro NCAP Conducts its First Ever Plug-in EV Crash Test with the i-MiEV and Gives it Four-Stars

The Mitsubishi i-MiEV is the first ever plug-in electric vehicle to be tested by Euro NCAP and marks the start of a series of EV crash-tests planned for this year. Besides the i-MiEV, the European safety institute also rated five conventional models: the BMW X1, Hyundai ix20, Dacia Duster, Mitsubishi ASX and Nissan Juke.

The EV obtained an overall four star rating, the same score being awarded to the i-MiEV's sister models, the Citroen C-Zero and Peugeot iOn, which have the same design and safety equipment. The result was judged as "creditable" by the Euro NCAP.

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LA Auto Show: Mitsubishi i gets westernized by fattening up, Priced from around $30,000

The North American i-MiEV is finally here to help rally the Mitsubishi troops in what has to be one of the company's final attempts to stay afloat here in the the States. The US i will be sold strictly as an electric vehicle and use Mitsubishi's innovative Electric Vehicle system (MiEV).

The company plans to roll out the "i" to West Coast dealers (specifically California, Oregon, Washington and Hawaii) in November 2011, with the Northeast getting access by March 2012, followed by nationwide availability by the end of 2012. According to Mitsubishi, the U.S.-spec model's MSRP is expected to be around $30,000, not including Federal and available state financial incentives. For the record, the larger Nissan Leaf EV has an MSRP of $32,780, again, not including any tax cuts.

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Bigger is Better: Mitsubishi's US-Spec Wide-Bodied i-MiEV Revealed Ahead of LA Show

These are the first official photos of the North American version of Mitsubishi's i-MiEV all-electric city, which will have its world premiere at the Los Angeles Auto Show, to be held from Wednesday, November 17 to Sunday November 28.

Even though big ideas can come in small packages, for most things in America, consumers believe that "bigger is better" and "better is bigger". And seeing what happened with Mercedes-Benz and its Smart Fortwo mini, Mitsubishi decided to "fatten-up" the North American version of the i-MiEV, and make it bigger than its Japanese- and European-spec counterparts.

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Mitsubishi to Test All-Electric i-MiEV in Iceland

Mitsubishi has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Iceland's Ministry of Industry, Energy and Tourism regarding the fleet testing of its all-electric i MiEV minicar. Proposed testing will begin in 2009. In Japan, the zero-emissions i MiEV is currently in fleet testing with seven electric power companies, and is getting for a 2009 market launch in Japan with Europe following in 2010. Based on Mitsubishi's "i" gasoline-powered minicar, the i MiEV adopts an electric motor developing 47kW and a 330-volt lithium-ion battery system located under the floor deck. According to Mitsubishi, a full charge delivers up to 100 miles or 160 km of electric driving.

Mitsubishi Raises Annual Production of the All-Electric i-MiEV to 10,000 Units

The huge positive response from the UK and other European markets for the i-MiEV has prompted Mitsubishi to raise its output target the all-electric city car that’s set to be introduced in the Japanese market in 2009 with Europe following in 2010, from 2,000 units per year to 10,000 units. To do so, Mitsubishi announced that its joint venture – Lithium Energy Japan – will build a separate plant in Kusatsu, Shiga Prefecture, to supply the additional anticipated demand.

The brand new plant is scheduled to be ready for next April’s start of production of the rear-wheel-drive i-MiEV all-electric city car. The plant will initially produce 1 million palm-size lithium-ion cells a year, which is enough to power 10,000 vehicles. An additional investment of more than 10 billion yen is planned by 2012 to add a second plant and doubling output to cope with demand. -Continued

According to the Japanese automaker, Mitsubishi Motors UK has requested that a proportion of the first 2,000 Right Hand Drive units be allocated to the British market to support a launch in London in 2009, something that is being seriously considered by the company.

"i MiEV" specifications

Base vehicle		"i" mini-car
Dimensions (L x W x H)		3395 x 1475 x 1600 mm
Vehicle weight		1080 kg
Seating capacity		4
Maximum speed		130 km/h
Cruising distance with a single charge (Driving pattern : 10-15 mode)		130 km / 160 km*
Charging time (80% capacity)	15 Amp/200 V (on-board charger)	5 hrs / 7 hrs*
	15 Amp/100 V (on-board charger)	11 hrs / 13 hrs*
	3-phase 50 kW/200 V (Quick charger)	20 min / 25 min*
Motor	Type	Permanent magnet synchronous motor
	Max. output	47 kW
	Max. torque	180 N-m
	Max. speed	8500 rpm
Battery	Type	Lithium-ion
	Total voltage	330 V
	Total energy	16 kWh / 20 kWh*
Controller		Inverter
Drive		Rear wheel drive