Mitsubishi Partnering with California and Oregon to Bring Electric Cars to Market
After my test drive of the Mitsubishi i MiEV at the 2008 LA Auto Show yesterday, I walked away with the distinct feeling that Mistubishi has designed a sporty, relatively spacious, and well-thought-out winner of an electric car.
Mitsubishi is currently testing the i MiEV in California in collaboration with Southern California Edison. Additionally, according to Mitsubishi executive, David Patterson, the company is in negotiations to partner with Oregon after Nissan announced its new electric car partnership with the state on Wednesday. I guess everybody wants to get in on the Oregon action.
- » See also: Is the Renault-Nissan Alliance Going in Two Different Electric Car Directions?
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My feeling that the i MiEV — regardless of its awful name — is a winner, was heavily reinforced after comparing the it to the Mini E electric car in a different test drive later in the day. Of the two, it seems the engineers at Mitsubishi have a better grasp of what people will like in an electric car and took care to make sure consumers had the choices they’ll want..
For instance, the i MiEV has room for four adults (and some storage space in the back of the car to boot). It also has a way to switch between an economy mode, in which the driving range is extended and regenerative braking is used to it’s fullest, and a normal mode where the car behaves more like a conventional car when it comes to braking (see my post from yesterday about the Mini E to learn more about this issue).
The i MiEV has a top speed of 81 mph, making it highway legal, and can go up to 100 miles on a single charge. The car is based on Mitsubishi’s “i” gas-powered compact car already on sale in Japan. The 47 kW (63 hp) electric motor has improved handling and acceleration characteristics over the 64 hp gas engine in the “i” car, and is powered by a 330 volt lithium ion battery.
When I asked David Patterson about an expected on-sale date to the general public in the US, he said that there’ll probably be about a year and a half of testing the i MiEV in Southern California (and maybe Oregon) before they can start thinking about releasing it to the general public. So I’m guessing it’ll be at least 2010 before you’ll be able to purchase one in the US — and even then it might be restricted to certain geographic locations.
Sorry dude that is one funky looking car!
mitsubishi rocks
Already in California, Noel, only 2% of our electrons are generated by burning coal to make water boil to make steam turn the turbines that create electricity, because we have had Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS) legislation that requires utilities to buy an ever increasing percent of renewable electricity like wind etc.
Other states still have a higher percentage of coal in the mix, but that will change because:
1. 26 other states have now signed RPS legislation, so their coal use will decrease as a percent of electricity like here in CA.
2. And the Democrats tried to pass this RPS legislation 8 times since the Clinton/Gore era, but been filibustered. Now that they will have enough (2 or 3 Republicans support it) of a clean energy majority, (and Obama voted YEA each time they tried to pass it) next year we will likely get RPS passed nationwide.
Correction: in most states, Neighborhood Vehicles (Electric or otherwise) are limited to 25mph, not 45mph. In Illinois there are a lot of restrictions on when and where you can drive ‘em, and you must get permission from each local government agency that controlls the roads. All because of that 4th wheel (three is a magic number, as it’s a motorcycle).
For folks like ChuckL that think they need more range or more passenger room, most also don’t need a 2-5,000 pound vehicle to take them the 25 or so miles or less an Average American drives in a typical day (http://www.pluginamerica.com/images/driving_habits_graph.jpg) — this is from an 1990 study, but I haven’t found an updated graph based on newer information…
Infrastructure??? There are more places to charge up an EV than there are gas stations… as long as your EV is 110V, three-prong compatible (mine is). If it’s not, then it’s a failure on your manufacturer’s part.
Last year I put about 4,000 miles on a 1998 Twike Active (legally an electric trike motorcycle, but it’s covered so it’s all-weather), picking up the girls from school/daycare and going back and forth to work.
Yeah, I still have the gas car for long distance drives or when I need to haul the entire family BUT if I were single I’d just have Der Twike and rent a big gas car when I needed it.
It does require you to Think Different, but once you do you find that you drive slower, saner and stick to roads that are less likely to be driven on by the psychopaths that “slow down” to 35mph in a school zone (in Illinois that’s a 20mph zone)… and there are a lot of ‘em!
Unfortunately the way most of suburban America is designed, the NEV is not a feasible alternative. A top speed of 35mph is not sufficient for anyone that has to go on any state roads since the speed limit is 45mph. So for anyone that does not live in a major metro area these are just fancy golf carts. I really hope someone will make a decent sized, cost effective EV soon.
I for one love the i-MiEV and can’t wait for it to come to Canada. I don’t need expensive battery swapping or weird charging infrastructure, just sell me the car and I’ll make due with the 160km a day range. I can drive to work and back all week with out charging if I wanted to. I have been clocking my daily use of my Smart fortwo and avrage 15km on a work day and I at most use 70km/day once or twice a week. The only downside is I won’t be able to take her up to Mt. Washington without stopping for a charge along the way. I guess it’s time to make some friends with 240v outlets…haha.
Sorry dude that is one funky looking car!!
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