If Mitsubishi is serious around its electrification efforts, it has to offer more than the pint-sized all-electric i in the States. That’s where the Concept PX-MiEV II comes in.
What you’re looking at is the plug-in hybrid version of the 2013 Mitsubishi Outlander, something Mitsubishi confirms is set to go on sale sometime in 2012.
A traditional 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine is mounted up front, but each rear axle has an electric motor that’s fed power by a lithium-ion battery pack spanning the floor. Mitsubishi claims the MX-MiEV II can run up to 31 miles on electric power alone, and if you mash the gas the system switches to parallel hybrid mode by engaging the engine. All told, you should be capable to make it up to 500 miles on a single tank, but if you’re commute is less than 15 miles, you could go gas-free for months.
With the Tokyo Motor Show coming up around the bend, Japan’s automakers are preparing to roll out their best. And Mitsubishi isn’t around to sit idly by.
The Tri-Diamond automaker has two major world debuts planned for its home-market expo: one production vehicle and one concept. The former sees the return of the Mirage nameplate – most prominently used in the 1980s – in place of the Colt with a new entry-level model. The basic five-door hatchback packs an economical 1.0-liter three-cylinder engine with stop/start and a continuously variable transmission that will hit the Thai market first when it launches in March 2012.
Joining the new Mirage on the Mitsubishi stage will be the Concept PX-MiEV II, a plug-in hybrid crossover that joins the i-MiEV electric car and the Minicab-MiEV light-duty commercial vehicle in the company’s expanding portfolio of electric vehicles. A 2.0-liter four-banger is coupled to a pair of 60-kilowatt electric motors to drive entirely four wheels through the Lancer Evo’s S-AWC traction system to deliver comparable power to a 3.0-liter V6 while offering improved emissions and fuel consumption figures.
In addition to the usual battery-only and internal combustion generator modes, the PX-MiEV II also enables outdoorsy types to run portable appliances off the vehicle’s battery packs. There’s plenty more to digest in the press release, so hit the jump to check it out, and scope out the two the Mirage and the Concept PX-MiEV II in the pair of galleries for a closer look.
Mitsubishi Colt Is A New Global Compact Car
Mitsubishi Colt, a new global compact car prepared to launch. And while no official information of the model has been disclosed by the mark, an annunciation around the start of construction of its new plant in Thailand was sent, accompanied by two drawings of an unidentified model. The information leaked from the automaker itself to suggest that either the Colt, which will be reinforced initially in Asia.
Production is expected in March 2012, date of commencement of operations of the plant. According to the statement from Mitsubishi, the complex will be responsible for the following mount an entirely new platform that will include 1.0 and 1.2 engines. The design of Mitsubishi Colt is targeted as a project of the ecological model for the two markets and for emerging economies.
