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Mitsubishi has completed the design and testing of an electric car, in a bid to be the first manufacturer to launch a viable, crash-tested, mass-produced electric vehicle in Britain.
Company sources have revealed that the iMiev - an electric version of Mitsubishi’s i-Car - is production-ready and that Mitsubishi Japan is building a factory that can produce 10,000 models per year for 2012.
At the moment Mitsubishi only has the capacity to build 2000 i-Mievs per year, 200 of which are likely to come to Britain in late 2009.
The Mitsubishi i-Miev is a Smart-sized vehicle that’s based on the Japan-only, rear-engined i-Car.
It uses new-generation lithium-ion batteries, which recharge more quickly and last longer than conventional nickel metal hydride units. This means the i-Miev has a real-world range of 100 miles and can be recharged overnight from a conventional three-pin mains plug.
Transport for London has already announced plans to treble the number of high-voltage recharging points in the city and to offer free parking for electric cars.
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