Mitsubishi i-MiEV

Mitsubishi i-MiEV at a glance

The i-MiEV is one of the early cars in our electric cars section. Mitsubishi's other models are on our Mitsubishi brand page.

Generations

There was only one generation. The car was updated several times, most visibly for North America, where it was longer and wider, and in Japan from 2018, when new bumpers increased the length to 3,480 mm. The code HA0 is the one used by ADAC.

History: from kei car to electric pioneer

The i-MiEV takes the body of the Mitsubishi i, a Japanese kei car whose engine sat ahead of the rear axle. For the electric version Mitsubishi replaced the engine and fuel tank with a battery pack, motor and inverter. Fleet customers in Japan received the first cars in July 2009, and private buyers from 1 April 2010.

European production started in October 2010, and 15 European countries received the car from January 2011. PSA sold it as the Peugeot iOn and Citroën C-Zero; Wikipedia reports a contract for up to 100,000 units, but Mitsubishi suspended deliveries to PSA in August 2012 because of weak sales. By July 2014 more than 17,500 cars of the three badges had been sold in Europe, with Norway the largest market (about 4,920 registrations), followed by France and Germany. Global sales passed 50,000 by March 2015, counting the Minicab-MiEV vans and trucks.

Outside Europe the numbers stayed small: Japan had taken 10,423 cars by December 2014 and the United States 1,893. Mitsubishi also put the same motor and battery options into the Minicab-MiEV van and pick-up, launched in Japan in 2011; Wikipedia gives combined sales of the Minicab-MiEV and the i-MiEV of more than 31,000 by April 2019.

In Germany Mitsubishi renamed the car simply Electric Vehicle in April 2014 and cut the list price. The US version was dropped in August 2017, and production ended in March 2021.

Motor, battery and performance

From the 2013 model year the cells changed from LEV50 to LEV50N, with an electrolyte additive meant to improve life under heavy load and heat. The Peugeot and Citroën versions moved to an 80-cell, 14.5 kWh pack at the same time. A Toshiba SCiB lithium-titanate battery was offered only in Japan. Our power converter translates kW into PS and hp.

Range and charging

The EPA rated the 2012 i-MiEV at 112 MPGe combined, more efficient on paper than the 2011 Nissan Leaf. Like all cars of its era it loses much of its range when the heater runs. A CHAdeMO fast charger fills the battery to about 80% in 30 minutes. On an AC wallbox limited to 16 A a full charge takes about five hours, and on a 10 A household socket at 230 V about eight hours.

Dimensions, space and boot

The US car was 3,680 mm long, 1,585 mm wide and 1,615 mm tall, 285 mm longer and 110 mm wider than the Japanese version. The long wheelbase for such a short car puts the wheels at the corners, which helps cabin space. Our sources give no official boot volume. Compare its footprint with other cars using the size comparison tool.

Running costs and prices

At launch the i-MiEV was expensive. Mitsubishi aimed for about EUR 33,000-35,000; the German list price in December 2010 was EUR 34,990, Spain started at EUR 29,153, and the UK price in January 2011 was GBP 28,990 (about EUR 34,000 at the time), down from GBP 38,699 announced in March 2010. ADAC lists the renamed Electric Vehicle at EUR 23,790 in Germany from April 2014. Today the car is a cheap used EV whose value depends almost entirely on the state of its battery.

Safety

Euro NCAP tested the i-MiEV in 2011 and gave it four stars, with 73% for adult occupants, 78% for child occupants, 48% for pedestrians and 86% for safety assist. Euro NCAP stated that the result also applies to the Citroën C-Zero. More results are on our safety page.

Reliability and known issues

The battery is what matters on a used i-MiEV. Wikipedia notes that UK cars did not get the 10-year traction battery warranty offered elsewhere, although that claim is marked as needing a citation. The cell change of 2013 was intended to make the battery more durable. Otherwise our sources contain no fault statistics, so we do not repeat forum claims; a battery health report is the most useful document when buying.

Rivals

See exact versions in our comparison tool.

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