MITSUBISHI’S first production-ready electric vehicle, the i MiEV, has started a nation-wide feasibility test.
The i MiEV, which stands for ‘Mitsubishi innovative Electric Vehicle,’ is set to become one of the world’s first viable zero drive-time emission city commuters in volume production when it is released in Japan later this year.
The test vehicles are covering special events, public demonstrations, specialist briefings and drives for key government officials, fleet managers, environmental opinion leaders, the media and some members of the public.
But it won’t come to Perth just yet.
The program has already started in Adelaide, then goes to Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne before returning to Mitsubishi’s head office in Adelaide.
“This is the first time a production-ready electric vehicle has ever been accredited to tour Australian roads in this way,” company CEO Robert McEniry said.
“Electric cars are no longer just a futuristic dream – they’re right here, right now.”
Similar feasibility studies are also under way in the US, Europe, the UK, New Zealand, Iceland and Canada.
The i MiEV uses a large-capacity lithium-ion battery system and a compact high-output electric motor in place of a traditional petrol power train.
The motor is smaller, produces more torque and is quieter than a turbocharged petrol engine. It is also cleaner, producing no drive-time CO2 emissions.
The car has a top speed of 130km/h and needs to be recharged from a domestic power outlet for about seven hours.