Sittin Waitin Wishin: Mitsubishi i-MiEV

"Jonathon Klein" (jonathon-klein) 04/23/2014 at 18:19 • Filed to: Sittin Waitin Wishin, Mitsubishi, i-MiEV

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What's that? Did you say you wanted a Electric car that is super cramped? Also that you want it to have a French cousin? With a top speed of a snail that's drunk off absinthe? You want it to be hopelessly impractical in every single scenario you could possibly think of? Oh and on top of that you want it from a manufacturer that will most likely not even be in the United States within 3 years! Wow. First, you are super picky. Second, is there something wrong with you that you can't answer back? I mean, all I did was ask questions, no response back. How rude you French loving, tree hugging bastard! Whoa, I think I have been reading Doug's stuff way too much, I think I just went into one of his crazy tirades, also I'm not wearing pants…. Meanwhile in Chicago, the frozen hellscape it is, we have a new !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , and in this episode, we dive into the murky odd realm of EV's with the Mitsubishi i-MiEV. Or as everyone here knows them, a car that makes the driver have a stick up their ass, and makes them feel like they are better than you, because they, unlike you, are trying to actively save the environment. They can usually be spotted doing 20mph in the left lane with many of these bumper stickers, because again, they are better than you.

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( If your other car is a pair of heavy boots, why are you driving so slowly! )

As per usual with this series, we got the rant in early, which leaves us the rest of the space to talk about the car, and with this car, we have some stuff to talk about. i-MiEV mean's Mitsubishi In-Wheel Electric Vehicle, you know just in case you forgot the brand you were buying from, and with the current crop of Mitsubishi's, maybe that was good foresight. The i-MiEV is supposed to be a great small family car, with small being the operative word. The cabin of this car could not get any tinier unless you used some sort of quantum mechanics to shrink it down to the size of a babies left shoe. In fact, I think the shoe might have more space in the end. I won't get into the terrible display Mitsubishi had for the Chicago Auto Show, I'll save that rant for the Mirage review, but to say it was out of the way would be an understatement. I say this for perspective since Mitsubishi was the furthest in a corner main automaker at the show, and the i-MiEV was at the back of their display. I'm getting the feeling that this car is definitely not going to sell how they want it to sell. Two things really struck me about this car, first the size or lack thereof, and second how many electronics the people running the display hooked up into it. It had two iPads, and a bunch of LED Underglow in the rear seats of the car? Are you trying to show that it makes a great outlet, or is this a car?

( Boom chicka boom chicka boom chicka boom! DANCE PARTY !)

The steering wheel is lifted from the Outlander Sport, but has less functionality in it. It's missing key buttons that allow you to have hands free access to the cars radio. It also seems like they wrapped it in a worse material than most of the other automakers at the show, if that is possible. It feels really unfortunate to the touch, not so much as it's going to break, but rather it's like a Twinkie, or hot dog, you could leave it alone for the next 10,000years and it would be perfectly preserved, but would you really want to eat it? No. The central HVAC system also looks like they stole it from the Scion IQ. It has three knobs that go straight up and down, and have a clear plastic covering the dials. And again, it's the sort of clear plastic once used for gold fish platform shoes in the 70's. I have no idea why Mitsubishi did any of this, but none of this can compare to two of my favorite parts of this car. First the paint. Matte Grey, to you know, look racy. And to go with the Matte Grey color, one must have faux Alcantara seat inserts right! Nothing says I want to go fast like a small electric vehicle with a top speed of 81mph!!!!

( Look out , get out of my way people, I have to save a whale stat!)

This car is just frankly ridiculous; the trunk is only big enough for a toy Chihuahua's foot, the interior is bland , cramped, and unpleasant, and the facts and figures belie a car that was made in the early twenties. How can a major manufacturer like Mitsubishi even get away at offering this car? It's unsafe, impractical and boring beyond belief, I don't even know how this car got green lit? It's as if the bean counters at Mitsubishi all were at lunch, and crazy cousin Saske came into the factory, bath robe and all, and told the workers they would be making this! Hooray Saske!!! It may be green, but it's candle sure isn't lit, and neither is Saske's, and if the way that the Mitsubishi display has anything to do with how this car will sell, it may be one of the biggest fizzles ever. And in the end, this green car may very well be a pretty environmentally damaging car, because all it will do is take up space at the local junkyard. There are better ways to save the planet people, one of them is just not buying this.

( I know that says Kia, but imagine Mitsubishi or I will cut you! )

You can find me here on !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

And check out a possible !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! coming soon!

Vince-The Roadside Mechanic > Jonathon Klein 04/23/2014 at 18:24

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I love your reviews they are great write ups that are true and sometimes funny.

davedave1111 > Jonathon Klein 04/23/2014 at 18:31

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This thing really deserves more oppolove, because it's as bizarre as anything on the road. The Mitsubishi I-miev is bonkers enough, but it's merely the electric version of the Mitsubishi I. Which looks just the same, but has a petrol engine. A 659cc petrol engine. Under the rear seats, driving the rear wheels.

It's distinctly odd even by kei car standards.

Stef Schrader > Jonathon Klein 04/23/2014 at 18:51

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If these are the same ones as the Lancer has, they're the radio buttons. That +/-, ^/v pairing looks familiar, and "mode" underneath swaps between FM, AM, and CD or something.

Either way, this really isn't a car built for 'Murica, and its placement at the far corner of the show-niverse reflects that they finally realized that. (Why did we get this over, say, a new Eclipse devoid of fail? Arrrrrgh.)

Mercedes Streeter > Jonathon Klein 04/23/2014 at 18:53

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I went during the Media Preview of the Chicago Auto Show. It had a total count of three iPads. All unlocked, none with iCloud.

Someone stole the one out of the rear left passenger seat!

Mercedes Streeter > davedave1111 04/23/2014 at 18:57

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They do sell the petrol version of the Mitsubishi I in America...it's called the smart fortwo! It uses a 999cc version of the I's 3B2 engine. ;)

f86sabre > Stef Schrader 04/23/2014 at 20:27

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bring back the second gen Eclipse and drop in the Evo power train and print money. Done.

I looked at the iMiEV the last time I was looking for fluids for the Evo. I'm pro electric cars, but it just looked like cheap junk. Interior materials have moved on from the old cassette tape case pressed black plastic that they used.

Jonathon Klein > Mercedes Streeter 04/24/2014 at 08:11

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Did you see all the stuff go down with the Chicagoland Petrol Spotters when that guy stole as many shift knobs as he could then posted it? He got shamed into turning them all into the cops. It doesn't surprise me that one of them got stolen, there were only like what 2-3 people at that both at any given time!

Jonathon Klein > Stef Schrader 04/24/2014 at 08:13

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Yep that's the one, but it felt crappier. My wifes Outlander Sport felt way better than this one. And the entire displays was in the far corner of the show-niverse, it was sad. Bring a new GS-X Eclipse, and a new Evo and just be a sports car manufacturer, have low overhead, and have a much better image.

Mercedes Streeter > Jonathon Klein 04/24/2014 at 10:55

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I remember that fiasco. I loved how he said he "found" them. During the Media Preview, there was only one person at Mitsubishi, and they weren't there the whole show!

Jonathon Klein > Mercedes Streeter 04/24/2014 at 11:09

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They're going away and going away quickly. I've got another Mitsu article coming up, not sure if it's going to be here or TheSmokingTire yet though. It's good.

Mercedes Streeter > Jonathon Klein 04/24/2014 at 11:21

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Yeah, I've been coming to that conclusion myself for the past couple years. The Galant and Eclipse sold so slow that you could've still bought them new, well over a year or two after production had ceased.

Then there's the general quality of Mitsubishis. If you sat in the i-MiEV in 2013 you would've been horrified. If it weren't for the Mitsubishi badge, you could've told me it was a Tata Nano and I would've believed you.

mrtsolar > Jonathon Klein 07/15/2014 at 12:49

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Despite your terrible, false review of the i-MiEV, it is a wonderful car to drive. I love watching the drivers' faces of BMWs, Cadillacs, Camaros, and whatever else I easily out-accelerate in my i-MiEV. It has plenty of interior room, more than most any other car I've seen. I've helped move 2 people with it, fold the seats down and you have more than 50 cubic feet of capacity. Compare that to most other hatchback cars.

In the winter, this car acts like it rides on rails, losing control is quite a challenge. It just goes. It rides smooth, handles well, and has brakes like none other (thanks to the strong regenerative braking combined with discs up front).

For the record, i-MiEV consists of the car's name, i, powered by MiEV (Mitsubishi innovative Electric Vehicle). The car does not have in-wheel motors, it has a motor in between the rear wheels connected via transaxle.

The unique shape of the i-MiEV is what makes it so great. Visibility is outstanding, the car is easy to judge, has a very tight turning radius, and is very easy to park.

So, well done on another bash job, try actually driving the car next time.

Jonathon Klein > mrtsolar 07/15/2014 at 12:56

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The whole point to the series is not driving them. Since I don't have access to press cars, I just base it on sitting in them. And they are my opinions, I never say they are fact! To each their own. If you like it, cool. If I don't, who cares.