In an effort to showcase all-electric power, Mitsubishi Motors will be entering two Mitsubishi i-MiEVs into the annual Pikes Peak Hill Climb this year.

Seen above is the Mitsubishi i-MiEV Evolution, the Japanese automakers best chance at nabbing the electric class victory at Pikes Peak. It features the same electric motor, drive battery and other major components of the production i-MiEV, but is race-ready.

The i-MiEV evolution uses three electric motors: one for the front two wheels, and two for each rear wheel. Pair this all-wheel drive with the car’s light-weight aerodynamic body and you can see how serious Mitsubishi is taking this event.

The i-MiEV evolution will be piloted by Hiroshi Masuoka, the first Japanese driver to win consecutive Dakar rally victories.

The i-MiEV Evolution will be joined by a production Mitsubish i, which will be driven by Beccy Gordon. The Mitsubishi i, is much closer in appearance and performance to what you’ll see in Mitsubishi dealerships. All the i had changed for the race is its front bumper, a roll-cage and some race-specific safety gear.

Both Gordon and Masuoka are geared up and excited about being apart of the electric class at Pikes Peak.

Masuoka, who currently helps test with vehicle development as well as the training of company test drivers and the running of test drive sessions said “Given the tough driving conditions that Pikes Peak is known for, I’m really keen to show people the world over those electric vehicles are capable of gutsy motive performance and excellent handling in addition to their superior environmental performance.”

Gordon, an experienced off-road racer is equally excited to show that electric vehicles belong in the world of motorsports.

“I’m really happy to be able to drive the Mitsubishi i in the Pikes Peak race and am looking forward to giving it my best in an electric car, the type of vehicle that is set to become a major player in motor sports in future.” said Gordon.

Pikes Peak will take place in Colorado, on July 3-8.

Thanks to data from automotive research firm Polk, we were able to compile a list of the top 10 most popular automakers for buyers aged 18 to 34 – roughly the Gen Y set.

There are quite a few surprises on the list, most notably that Scion is missing. The Toyota spin-off brand was designed to target specifically that age group but weren’t even on the top 10 that were most successful at targeting young buyers last year. Also, you may be surprised by the differences between the top cars for teens and the automakers that made it onto this list.

Starting off the top 10 is MINI, the British automaker known to make fun and compact, yet functional cars. The Cooper models has a near cult following in the automotive community and with just over 10 percent of its buyers between 18 and 34 years old, it’s obvious that the younger Gen Y embrace what MINI is all about.

The new Mitsubishi Mirage has already been introduced in Asian markets, and though it has not been confirmed for release in the U.S., this new Mirage will replace the Mitsubishi Colt which currently sells in worldwide markets.

The Mitsubishi Colt we see testing in our spy photos is a Mirage with minor tweaks to make the styling more appealing to the European and North American crowd. Small changes in the nose are covered up by camo, but it looks like the Colt is getting a more aggressive front end style than its Asian counterpart.

The car has been confirmed for Canadian introduction, so seeing it in the States seems very likely. Also, production of the Mirage/Colt was recently moved to Thailand, which has cut down the cost of building the car, another fact that should aid in the companies decision to bring the car to the U.S.

The Mirage/Colt is almost a foot shorter than sub-compacts currently sold in America, namely the Ford Fiesta and Kia Rio. The Chevrolet Spark, Smart ForTwo and Scion iQ offer direct competition for the Japanese mini-car, but it would be likely that Mitsubishi could introduce the Colt here at a price that would undercut its competitors.

The Mirage/Colt is powered by either a 1.0- or 1.2-liter three-cylinder engine, teamed with a CVT transmission.

GALLERY: Mitsubishi Colt

It’ll be sold in Canada, confirmed Mitsubishi spokesman Roger Yasukawa, however, regarding plans to launch it’s new Mirage minicar in the US, the firm currently remains on the fence.

At 146.1 inches long, the Mirage is roughly a foot shorter than current small cars sold in the US, including the Ford Fiesta and Kia Rio. More akin to the Chevy Spark than anything else, the Mirage, which is powered by 1.0 or 1.2 liter three-cylinder engine, teamed with a CVT transmission, has been primarily conceived for low-budget motoring in developing countries, part of the reason why it’s being assembled in Thailand (at least for now).

However, with Mitsubishi’s US dealer network currently starved for new product, the introduction of a low priced sub-sub compact car would likely make a good deal of sense, at least for potentially attracting younger and new customers to the brand.

That said, given that low price is still a huge factor when it comes to purchasing small, entry-level cars in this country, plus the fact that cars in the Mirage’s category are a relatively new phenomena, there’s still a great deal of uncertainty about how such vehicles will fare in the long run.

In addition, given Mitsubishi’s tight corporate marketing budgets these days, with a new Outlander SUV in the wings, resources are probably simply not available for introducing two new vehicles at a similar time.

There’s also the question of profitability. Traditionally, small cars have been low profit centres for many dealers, thus establishing an MSRP for the Mirage that not only attracts customers, but also enables concessionaires to actually make money on units sold is of paramount importance.

Nevertheless, given that some automakers have introduced smaller vehicles to Canada, which have then later found their way to the US (BMW X1, Smart Four-Two), there’s a distinct possibility the same thing could happen with the Mirage.

[Source: Automotive News]

Among the many vehicles debuting in the U.S. at the New York Auto Show, Mitsubishi brought its refreshed 2013 Outlander.

Updates to the compact crossover include a face lifted front and rear end and standard 18-inch aluminum alloy wheels, offering a mild list of updates to its current best-seller.

Included in those updates, 18-inch alloy wheels are now standard — the front and rear fascias have a smoothed look too. The same headlights and recognizable Mitsubishi grille will, however, remain with new chrome trim surrounding them.

Production will also move from Japan, where the Outlander has traditionally been built, to the U.S. for its remaining life.

The company updated its CVT to offer smoother shifts and an improved driving feel while a new multi-link rear suspension will further contribute to the ride quality and handling.

A leather-wrapped shift knob, steering wheel and standard Bluetooth are now standard equipment. The top-end SE model also adds a six-speaker audio system, HID headlights, push button ignition and smart key passive entry.

GALLERY: 2013 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport

The Mitsubishi Outlander Sport is getting a mid-cycle refresh, despite launching a mere two years ago in the U.S. The refreshed 2013 Outlander Sport will make its debut at the upcoming New York Auto Show.

The Japanese automaker will be giving the crossover new front and rear bumpers, side skirts, and an upgraded interior. In addition, the rear suspension of the Outlander Sport will be fine-tuned along with its CVT. Under the hood, the 2.0L four-cylinder should remain with 148-hp.

Chances are, the redesigned Outlander Sport will have some design influences from the 2013 Outlander, which debuted at the Geneva Motor Show. Out in Switzerland, Mitsubishi spoke about its new design language and said it was “still being formulated.” Perhaps we’ll get a clearer picture of where the Japanese automaker intends to go with the redesigned 2013 Outlander Sport.

Looking to take advantage of the weakening dollar, Japanese automaker Mitsubishi is going to double the production from its Illinois factory here in America.

This will boost production to 70,000 vehicles a year from the plant that currently produces the outgoing Galant. Once the midsized Galant model is discontinued over the next few months, the Outlander Sport crossover will be produced in Illinois.

The strength of the yen has caused several Japanese-based automakers to shift production of export-bound vehicles to America. The doubling of production lets Mitsubishi take advantage of its under-utilized Illinois plant to help meet the demand in markets where its factories are already operating at full capacity. Latin America and Russia are the target markets for exporting the Outlander Sports that will be produced in Illinois.

[Source: Nikkei]

Japanese automaker Mitsubishi will be releasing its i-MiEV Power Box on April 27th in their home country for around $1,785 (149,800¥). 

The i-MiEV Power Box is basically a vehicle-to-grid system that will allow the owners of an i-MiEV and the MINICAB MiEV to use their EV to power an outside device like a phone charger or even a fridge. Weighing in at 25 lbs, the Power Box plugs directly into the EV’s quick-charge outlet to convert electricity into AC 100V.

If the vehicle’s battery is fully charged, the Power Box can put out up to 1,500 watts, good enough for five or six constant hours of energy. According to the Japanese automaker, 1,500 watts is actually good enough to power a typical Japanese household for a full day.

Mitsubishi did warn that everyday use could eventually have a negative effect on the vehicle’s battery pack. The main use for the Power Box is for emergency situations when no other power is available or when the power grid is experiencing peak demand.

There’s no confirmation if the Power Box will make its way to other markets outside of Japan.

Rally racing is not a forgiving sport. It’s not like an oval or most road course’s where you can simply run off the track and not be at risk of smashing a tree, or a hitting a ditch like this driver did.

This video comes from a Hungarian rally race, and shows us why it is not such a good idea to push to hard around a corner. The obviously unsuspecting driver comes out of the turn a little too high and a little too fast, and when the car hits the apex of the turn, it slides straight off the track into the waiting ditch.

Combine wet roads, fast cars, ditches and a driver who’s in it to win it, and the results are disatrous, yet still entertaining to watch.

Thankfully it does not appear that anyone was injured in the accident.

Watch the Mitsubishi do some ditch dancing below.

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Some of us might have forgotten that the 2012 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport exists, after seeing the next-generation Outlander debut at the recent 2012 Geneva Motor Show.

Nonetheless, the Japanese automaker did a light update to their Outlander Sport for the 2012 model year and the small crossover recently earned an Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) top safety award. The 2012 Outlander Sport received the highest score of “Good” in front-, side-impact, rear, and roof-strength crash tests.

IIHS did stress that the award only pertains to the 2012 model, where Mitsubishi strengthened the roof in order to improve rollover protection. In addition to the new roof, Mitsubishi also made some updates to quiet the cabin and recalibrated the transmission.

The next-generation Mitsubishi Outlander has been unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show, sporting an innovative new plug-in hybrid system with an electric all-wheel drive feature.

The unveiling of the new Outlander also symbolizes the beginning of an all-new generation of vehicles from Mitsubishi, where the Japanese automaker hopes to become a greener and more global brand. If you’re wondering why the new Outlander looks so different than other Mitsubishi creations in the past, wonder no more. You’re looking at the new design language from the Japanese automaker, which they say is “still being formulated.” (We hope so).

While the new Outlander is exciting and all, the more exciting news is the fact that it’ll be Mitsubishi’s first model to sport their EV-based plug-in hybrid (P-HEV) system. The Outlander with P-HEV is essentially an electric vehicle but is supplanted by a gasoline engine when needed – much like how Chevrolet is branding its Volt these days in their commercials.

What makes it different though is that it’ll be the first permanent 4WD electric car in series production, and thanks to its unique drivetrain combination of a front electric motor with rear electric motor, plus front engine, drivers will have the choice of three driving modes to choose from. There will be a Pure mode, which utilizes a Twin Motor 4WD EV setup, while the Series mode is a Twin Motor 4WD EV supported by an internal combustion engine (ICE). Lastly is the Parallel mode, which is the Twin Motor 4WD EV supplemented by a FWD-powered ICE.

The P-HEV system will allow the Outlander to travel 31 miles in 4WD electric mode alone. But the versatility that the Outlander offers is what might attract buyers to Mitsubishi’s new system. Drivers will be able to control the use of battery power and when they want to focus more on battery charging.

Standard engine options for the new Outlander will be a 2.0L gasoline engine with 147-hp and 144 lb-ft of torque. A 2.2L DiD Clean Diesel is also available with 147-hp and 280 lb-ft of torque with a manual transmission, or 265 lb-ft of torque with an automatic.

No pricing was announced yet for the new Outlander, but we’ll be sure to catch more when the vehicle gets officially unveiled on the show floor.

GALLERY: 2013 Mitsubishi Outlander

One special Mitsubishi i-MiEV city electric car gets pumped up with performance enhancers as the Japanese automaker prepares to enter an all-electric race car into the 2012 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb.

Details are limited for now, but Mitsubishi says the new i-MiEV hill climb prototype will be based upon many of the same production model components. However, judging from the illustrations, “production based” is loosely interpreted. Designed with a center single-seat driving position, the rendered i-MiEV hill climb prototype is significantly wider and more aerodynamically stylized than the standard road car.

The Pikes Peak International Hill Climb will be held on July 8th and the specialized i-MiEV will be piloted by Hiroshi Masuoka, a two time Dakar Rally winner in 2002 and 2003 behind the wheel of a Mitsubishi Pajero.

GALLERY: Mitsubishi i-MiEV Hill Climb Prototype

[Source: Carscoop]