The i-MiEV, Mitsubishi’s entry into the electric vehicle industry is scheduled to be available in the US market “before 2012” as Mitsubishi officials put it. Latest update has it that the UK will be the first recipient of 50 of the all electric, zero emission cars by November and an additional 150 units are scheduled for delivery in the first half of 2010. MSRP of the i-MiEV in the UK will be in somewhere in the range of $30,000-$50,000-batteries included. Reports also have it that Mitsubishi will be supplying the PSA/Puegot-Citroen Group with the cars as early as next year and possibly as many as 10,000 units by 2011. But this has yet to be officially confirmed.
What has been confirmed is Mitsubishi’s intention of increasing production of the i-MiEV to 20,000 units a year. Aside the above announcement was Mitsubishi’s partnering with both the State of Oregon and Portland General Electric, its primary supplier of power, to develop an infrastructure of charging station for the i-MiEV and other electric cars electric cars.
Powered by lithium-ion batteries specifically built for automobiles, the i-MiEV has a top speed of 81mph and can travel 81 miles on a single charge. Produced through a joint venture among GS Yuasa, Mitsubishi Corporation, Lithium Energy Japan, and Mitsubishi Motors, the batteries could be the determining factor as to how many cars Mitsubishi can actually produce. John Koenig, Mitsubishi’s North American Vice President for Operations said “Right now, GS Yuasa is our source of batteries, through the joint venture we’ve done with them. I think 10, – or 12,000 is the maximum volume at the beginning. We’re working on figuring out a way to get greater battery production, but that’s going to mean an investment in a plant somewhere to produce more. We haven’t made a decision on where that plant would be located, whether that be in Japan or North America or Europe. That’s the biggest decision right now.” Find out the latest at your San Antonio Mitsubishi Dealer