Mitsubishi's i-MiEV roadshow begins

Yesterday was the opening shot in an uncertain future. The company pulling the trigger was Mitsubishi and the round fired was the i-MiEV electric vehicle.

Aussies have already seen the i-MiEV at the Melbourne International Motor Show and, incongruously, at the Clipsal 500 on the weekend. Mitsubishi is now embarked on a campaign to deliver a message concerning the viability of electric vehicles -- and that message is being delivered directly to political leaders and other shapers of public opinion.

The company has already demonstrated the car to South Australian Premier Mike Rann and his colleague, Jane Lomax-Smith. Ms Lomax-Smith wanted to buy the electric vehicle on the spot, according to Mitsubishi.

The importer's CEO and President, Rob McEniry, is relatively confident that the i-MiEV's target buyer will respond positively to the electric vehicle.

"Who's this vehicle aimed at?" he asked rhetorically. "Certainly the next generation buyers... Gen-Xers, Gen-Y, Z and whatever the next lot are... AAs? AAAs, they're even smaller... but people who won't be afraid, [people who] will accept EVs as a mode of transport and [for whom] recharging is not going to be an issue -- for a generation that takes their iPods and their laptops and their mobile phones home at night, charge them overnight as part of their lifestyle..."

Based on the Japanese market-only Mitsubishi i, the i-MiEV (Mitsubishi innovative Electric Vehicle), features 88 lithium-ion batteries in a pack producing an aggregate of 330 Volts, to power the electric motor which can run right up to a maximum speed of 8500rpm. The motor is mounted under the car's floor and drives through a reduction gear to the differential at the rear axle.

Battery charging is handled in a couple of different ways. There's three-phase 'fast charging', as outlined in our report on the Subaru Plug-in Stella (more here) -- although there's no 'fast-charge' infrastructure in Australia at the present -- or there's household recharging. In addition to the standard 10Amp power outlet that you might have in your garage, there's also the option to charge the car from a 20Amp power outlet for faster charging.

Mitsubishi is talking to 'stakeholders' interested in establishing fast-charge infrastructure locally. Australia is expected to adopt the European industry standard for fast-charging facilities, but North America's standard will be different again.

According to Mitsubishi's figures, the i-MiEV will cover 160km between charges and can attain a top speed of 130km/h, although the project engineer for Australian type approval, Ashley Sanders admitted to the Carsales Network that with some tweaking of software, it could be cranked up to a top speed of 160km/h.

Impressive enough as the i-MiEV's performance is, its true appeal lies in what electric vehicles can do to reduce global warming and prolong reserves of petroleum. Mitsubishi had on hand Doctor Peter Pudney of the University of South Australia to outline how the i-MiEV could reduce our reliance on fossil fuels and improve air quality -- a particularly important aim for Australia, the largest per capita emitter of CO2 in the world.

On a 'well-to-wheel' basis, he explained, the electric vehicle produces as little as 13g/km of CO2 if you live in Tasmania, where power generation is mostly hydro-electric. If you live in Victoria though, where brown-coal power generation reigns supreme, the i-MiEV's CO2 emissions are ten times that figure -- 131g/km.

In Australia's second most populous state, the i-MiEV is shaded by Toyota's Prius, but anywhere else in this country the Mitsubishi is the cleaner of the two. And even in Victoria, you, the electricity consumer, can elect to purchase 'green' power from wind farms. Plainly, the more consumers opt for wind power, the more wind farms can be built to meet that demand. There's also the consideration that by no means does every car in Victoria produce as few emissions as the Prius.

Pudney reckons that the foreseeable efficiency gains in internal combustion engine design will peak at around 2020. After that, to achieve the necessary CO2 emissions targets the automotive industry will have to come up with some new 'deus ex machina'.

As we reported a couple of months ago (more here), there's a possibility that peak oil will have struck by then too, so the need to think beyond internal combustion before then becomes imperative on two fronts.

Pudney also argues that there are financial reasons for going electric. The cost of even the more expensive 'green' power works out at four cents per kilometre in the i-MiEV, less than half the cost of petrol. That's based on running costs of course, and Mitsubishi is not ready to talk about a purchase price for the i-MiEV, but the company is already preparing people for the worst by drawing an analogy between electric vehicles and plasma televisions.

A 40-inch plasma cost roughly $20,000 six years ago, but can be purchased in 2009 for around $1700. Mitsubishi sees electric car pricing following the same trend. Early adopters will pay through the nose, with followers reaping the benefits of lower prices as economies of scale from increased production kick in. That being the case, it's likely to be government and certain fleet buyers who are there at the head of the queue for the i-MiEV -- assuming it goes on sale.

As reported in our earlier article here, Mitsubishi has secured full ADR type approval for the i-MiE, so market acceptance will be the make-or-break factor in the i-MiEV going on sale here.

The car driven yesterday by the Carsales Network (watch out for our 'first drive' report), will do the rounds of state capitals in coming months. That car will be joined by two or three more and Mitsubishi will expand its program of promoting the i-MiEV. The ultimate aim is to generate enough positive feedback from the community to justify introducing the production car to the local market.