Mitsubishi Will Give It All to You, Electric, Hybrid And Gasoline Drive In One

The Mitsubishi Outlander Plug-In Hybrid is the best of both worlds. This plug-in hybrid lets the driver choose.

The promise of plug-in hybrid (PHEV) has been long and laborious. The allure to drive on electricity for short distances meant commuter could start off their journey on electricity, have the gasoline engine recharge the battery just in time to meet bumper to bumper traffic downtown. This is the perfect spot for an electric motor and plug-in hybrids excel in this hybrid scenario.

Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV. Back in 2009, every proudly showed front stage anything with an electric motor. Big trucks, SUVs and big V8 were relegated to the back. Mitsubishi had one of the most daring plug-in hybrid concept on platform. The iMiEV II, as it was called then showed the promise of a crossover but with an electric motor. Now add to that letting the driver choose electricity, hybrid or gasoline or let the car do it all automatically. Four years later, Mitsubishi is finally getting to it. Are they late on the market? Not necessarily, this is a generation 2.0 plug-in hybrid.

Technically Speaking. The Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV has a lot to show for and should be a winner for the company. The 2.0L MIVEC four-cylinder gasoline engine drives the front wheels with a maximum power of 95 horsepower. However combined with an electric motor power of 82 hp and 101 LB-Ft and now the Outlander starts to come alive. The rear-wheel drive electric system delivers more power, 144 LB-Ft. This twin-motor 4WD system platform accelerates as the 3.0-liter V6 engine version would. Top speed is electronically limited to 105 MPH. Using a 12 kWh lithium-ion battery pack located in the vehicle floor, a home Level 2 charge should take 4 hours, about half an hour on a fast charger.

Drive Choses Driving Mode. A rarity these days in a world where cars do increasingly most of the thinking to alleviate such commonalities from its drivers, but this Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV lets you choose and that is its biggest selling point. Drivers can choose between the all-electric which will get you 34 miles, or combined mode where the car becomes as frugal as possible. Finally the third mode where the car uses both the electric drive and conventional internal combustion engine (ICE) as a generator to produce and recharge the battery pack.

We can expect the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV to hit the Japanese market soon, followed by a European and North American markets.