The Mitsubishi iMiEV All-Electric Vehicle

The Misubishi iMiEV is the company's foray into the eco-friendly, green domain of auto manufacturers. It is a very compact all-electric vehicle that is scheduled to be introduced in the United States in 2009. Let's hope they can stick to that date as we need all the alternate energy vehicles we can get our hands on.

The iMiEV (what a name, huh?) is powered by three asynchronous AC motors which are capable of regenerative braking. This means that the motors turn into genereators when the driver taps the brakes and thus helps slow the car down while simultaneously adding electricity back into the battery pack. This technique allows the car to have a greater range, thus allowing the battery pack to be somewhat smaller in size. Speaking of the battery, Mitsubishi is using a 550 pound, 330 volt, 16 kWh Lithium ion pack. This is enough juice to propel the car for 70 miles or so. Personally, I would prefer the iMiEV to have a 24 kWh battery pack and more than 100 miles range as this would cover the overwhelming majority of daily commutes.

Here are some photos and specs from wired.com:

The iMiEV is an electric version of the "i," which belongs to a popular class of small vehicles called Kei cars. Although tiny — just a hair over 11 feet long — the iMiEV is surprisingly roomy inside because the wheels are pushed to the corners and the battery, motor and other electronics are located beneath the floor.

The iMiEV is a real car, with all the amenities you'd expect to find in a compact or mid-sized car. Fit and finish is solid, though some of the plastic looked and felt cheap. Should the car ever make it to the United States, it will of course be left-hand drive.

The automatic transmission has three speeds, which might more accurately be called "modes." Drive ("D") provides full power. "Eco" tempers that by 10 percent and "B" maximizes regenerative braking to recover as much kinetic energy as possible and maximize battery life.

Dashboard display tells you how much battery charge you've got left in addition to things like how fast you're going and how far you've gone. You can't make it out in the photo, but the green display to the left of the gauge reads "Ready" and lights up once you've started the car. Electric motors are silent, so without the display you may not realize the iMiEV is running.

The iMiEV uses a 16-kWh, 330-volt lithium-ion battery that weighs 550 pounds. It's located beneath the front seats. Mitsubishi is developing and building batteries under a joint venture with the Japanese firms GS Yuasa and MMC called "Lithium Energy Japan."

The battery charges in about 12 hours using a standard 110-volt household outlet. Double the voltage to 220 and you cut charging time in half.