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Mitsubishi all set to roll out electric car
by Jamie Anderson - June 5, 2009 - comments
The i MiEV, electric sedan from Mitsubishi, will cost 4.6 million yen ($47,500). But with increase in production, the company aims to bring the price down to below 2 million yen
Tokyo, June 5: Mitsubishi Motors Corp.(TYO: 7211) intends to draw first blood in the market of electric cars. The Japanese automaker has revealed that it will start selling its i MiEV electric car in Japan next month before Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO: 7203, NYSE: TM) and Nissan Motor Company (TYO: 7201; NASDAQ: NSANY) enter the market and launch rival versions.
The electric sedan from Mitsubishi, i MiEV, will cost 4.6 million yen ($47,500), which appears to be on the higher side. However, the company will look to cash in on the demand created by the government’s incentive programs and stringent emission norms.
Buyers of i MiEV can avail of subsidies and pay no tax under a government program promoting the use of ecological vehicles. Mitsubishi Motors’ president, Osamu Masuko, claimed, “It is a zero-emission vehicle. It does not rely on oil, which is different from hybrid cars."
Yasuaki Iwamoto, an auto analyst at Okasan Securities Co., opined, “People won’t pick electric cars as their first choice. Demand for electric cars may grow once they can be replacement for gasoline-powered cars based on price and driving distance.”
Mitsubishi’s plans
Mitsubishi has big plans with regard to electric cars. "With the electric vehicle, we will challenge global players," said Masuko at a news conference.
The automaker aims to sell 1,400 units domestically, mostly to the corporate and government customers in Japan before the end of the current fiscal year. By 2013, the company intends to make the i MiEV business profitable and has set a target to sell 30,000 units in that year.
The company will start selling i MiEV to individual consumers in April 2010. The price and abridged driving speed and range are likely to be the two stumbling blocks and may hider sales.
Mitsubishi will slowly but surely reduce the price of i MiEV. Masuko promised. "This is not the price that ordinary people can easily buy. But as we increase our production, we aim to cut the price below 2 million yen."