Three Bodacious Green Innovations

Clever planet-fixing inventions

By Michael Behar Posted 12.16.2008 at 9:55 am 9 Comments

Green Racer: The i MiEV Sport will do 122 mph and get 124 miles on a single charge courtesy Mitsubishi Motors North America

Plug-N-Play Cars

Zero to 60 mph in about nine seconds may sound sluggish, but it's a breakthrough for a zero-emissions, all-electric car that can travel up to 100 miles on a single charge and hit speeds of 85 mph. That's the claim of the i MiEV (for "Mitsubishi Innovative motor Electric Vehicle"), a new plug-in four-door coupe. The i MiEV runs on a pack of 22 lithium-ion batteries, but unlike other electric cars, including the Chevy Volt and Tesla Roadster, the i MiEV doesn't require a liquid cooling system to avoid overheating. "Proprietary metals in the battery design let us do away with it," says Moe Durand, the communications manager for Mitsubishi Motors North America.

Driver's Seat: Look for Mitsubishi's lineup to start incorporating the i MiEV's energy-saving windows and interior: courtesy Mitsubishi Motors North America

This makes the i MiEV lighter and more efficient, which -- combined with a small, rear-mounted electric motor -- gives it plenty of zip and extended range. The company is also developing a two-door i MiEV Sport with a planned top speed of 122 mph and a 124-mile range. Still a concept, the sportier version will have a rootop photovoltaic panel for extra power, heat-deflecting windows to save AC, and an interior made from polymer-producing plants. Mitsubishi is now fleet-testing the four-door in the U.S. and will sell a $28,000 model in Japan this summer.

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9 Comments

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i_am_a_nerd

12/16/08 at 6:39 pm

thats a huge breakthrough, but i noticed it said that it will be testing the i MIev in the US, but will sell it in the japanese market. we talk about going green all the time, but we never seem to do it. thats what gets me, the US needs an efficcient way to bring these all-electric cars into the US market! thats why were doing so bad.

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podboq

12/17/08 at 1:26 am

How efficient will a parking lot be, when it's covered by cars during peak sun times?

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njdevil

12/17/08 at 9:59 am

I just don't agree that all- electric cars are the future.120 miles on a single charge, but then how long do you have to let it charge before you can go another 120 odd miles? the only place I could ever see something like that work out is in a big city, but I don't think it would be legal to have them charging on the street all night.

Cars powered by compressed hydrogen seem to make more sense to me. you fill them up like you would with gas or diesel, you drive, and when you start to get a little light on fuel you pull into a filling station for a few minutes. Its the system we have now and its the system that makes the most sense. Batteries are just a step backwards

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matthschul

12/17/08 at 3:53 pm

i dont understand why these big companies dont hook up with tesla. the tesla roadster gets 250miles to a full charge and it charges like a cell phone. 4 hours and bam its ready to go again. but its 100k sports car. hits 0-60 in 4 seconds and has a top speed of 120. Now personally i dont need all he speed and acceleration. If i could purchase a car that went 0-60 in 9 seconds and could get that mileage and i dont have to pay for gas. 40K sounds right to me. To bad the volt only gets 40 miles thats crap. They could add in a biodisel generator or something to increase the cars charge power or even as an emergency generator if you ran out of power. lets see what he future holds i guess

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1Slyfox

12/17/08 at 11:23 pm

That's a great looking car. NJDEVIL is right; they would be great in big cities. True, some people in big cities have to park on the street. However, most people live in the suburbs and commute (less than 100 miles round trip). Heck you could even equip parking garages with plugs if needed.
The "Big 3" auto companies in America have a problem. They have become too large, and they can’t get anything accomplished quickly. Labor unions are also a part of the problem. They have become so entwined in the decision making of the company that they cannot operate efficiently. They can get great looking to car shows, but they never come to fruition. They have become such large bureaucracies that nothing can get done. I think the best possible way to fix the problem is to break each company into about 4 or 5 smaller companies. The cream will rise to the top.

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podboq

12/18/08 at 6:01 am

did you have to use "Bodacious" twice in articles this close together?

http://www.popsci.com/cars/article/2008-12/return-bodacious-bots

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1Slyfox

12/20/08 at 5:35 pm

Podboq,

What is the problem. Did you do a web search for bodacious something and get turned on by POPSCI? Sorry, couldn't resist.

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podboq

12/21/08 at 10:01 am

maybe it's the birth of a buzzword...

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unitedelectric

01/29/09 at 7:14 pm

The road system wont work without some sort of binary or isobutane closed loop vaccum system, where the working fluid can boil at low temps. Not enough heat to push a turbine with water. Aslo, hydrocarbons would be dangerous underneath asphalt for obvious reasons.