Mitsubishi i-MiEV Electric Car At 2011 Electric Vehicle Festival
Mitsubishi i-MiEV at 2011 Canberra International Electric Vehicle Festival
Mitsubishi i-MiEV Electric Cars made a strong presence at the 2011 Canberra International Electric Vehicle Festival. Mitsubishi Motors made an official presence which was great to see factory support at the event. Other companies like Better Place and NRMA were present with their i-MiEV so that boosted numbers. I’m not sure how many there were, but I would guess that there must have been 5 to 10 of these cute little cars. These cars were available for public rides on the day.
In Australia, they are now officially available for the public to buy and start of at $48,000 Australian dollars. The Electric Vehicle Festival was a good opportunity for the i-MiEV to raise its profile. When I saw them drive around, it was fantastic. Upon closer inspection of the car, the build quality appeared to be great and it seemed to exude clean lines, simplicity and looked durable. In the past, I have been critical of the price tag of this car and although I like this car, I believe the price tag of this car to be a bit of stumbling block, particularly, when the Tesla Model S (when released) will retail from around $80,000 Australian dollars onwards. I realize Mitsubishi have put a lot of effort into this car and no one is in business to go broke, but with Tesla and Nissan making electric cars, the price of the i-MiEV could be a stumbling block for many. Not only is there competition from Tesla and Nissan, but there are other companies doing Electric Car Conversions and there are many DIY Electric Car Conversions being done. These other conversions are competitors to the i-MiEV. In my opinion, a big company like Mitsubishi can leverage on economies of scale and experience in manufacturing processes which they can use as their competitive advantage. They just need to ramp up production so they can produce and sell more of these cars at cheaper prices.
Mitsubishi i-MiEV Specifications
Driving
Top speed: 130km/h
Quoted range: 160km
Motor
Power: 47kW which is around 63 hp
Torque: 180Nm which is around 133 ft lbs (more than many gasoline powered cars in its class, which means fantastic acceleration)
Location: Between the rear wheels
Driving wheels: Rear wheel drive.
Interior
Seats: 4 people
Power windows: Standard
My Opinion About the Mitsubishi i-MiEV
In my opinion, the Mitsubishi i-MiEV is a great looking electric car. It looks like a quality car which is cute. When I see one drive, it actually puts a smile to my face. I could imagine myself driving one, but the major sticking point for me is the price tag. In my opinion, I believe this price tag will prevent many people from buying the i-MiEV and they might buy their petrol equivalents instead. I would be keen to see a Ralliart version of this car and I’m off the belief that Mitsubishi would not have to do much more to increase the performance of this car. With electric drive, the instant torque is phenomenal so a hotted up version should not be too hard to do. It would be great to see if they had a sun roof option and also make available a wild looking body kit. If a Ralliart version does appear, please don’t charge over $60,000.
Conclusion
From my perspective, the Mitsubishi i-MiEV is a great little car which would be well suited for the city. It was great to see them in action at the Electric Vehicle Festival and I’ve been given the impression that Mitsubishi are keen to have a bigger presence at the 2012 Canberra International Electric Vehicle Festival.
This is Crazy Al signing out
The power of this Mitsubishi i-MiEV is identical to the petrol car, at 63bhp, but the torque is up to from 85Nm to 180Nm. Not bad for an electric car. It has also a good ac condenser.