The Geneva Motor Show is currently on and vehicle manufacturers are unveiling their latest creations. This evening we see Mitsubishi unveil two new concept cars, the Mitsubishi GR-HEV and CA-MiEV were on show. In one of the shortest release presentations, Mitsubishi were right down to business.
After what they say was a successful program with the first iMiEV, they are now focused on a new model, the 5-seat, CA-MiEV. The new styling and design is a massive improvement on the jelly bean shape of the first model. Let’s hope the makeovers extend to the price if this concept ever hits the showroom as $60k was a hard pill to swallow.
The biggest announcement out of the unveiling was that Mitsubishi expect to get 300KM range on new high-density lithium-ion batteries. This would substantially change the equation for electric vehicles with the 321KM journey from Wodonga to Melbourne being almost in-reach on a single charge.
This does open the door for a quick rapid charge at a service station and taking the journey into the realm of possibility. While it’s not a Melbourne to Sydney distance, it’s a very nice improvement, almost 3x the current distances available.
Naturally all the standard disclaimers apply with Concept vehicles, they may never see the light of day, but then again many do after some revision. It does still feel like Mitsubishi are around 5 years away from really committing to EV and battery technology is likely the reason.
The future is bright with EV, just how bright remains to be seen. On a side note, Mitsubishi used the @earth slogan throughout the presentation, but don’t actually own the twitter account.