Mitsubishi i-MiEV Discontinued From The U.S. Market

Mitsubishi has killed the i-MiEV in the United States, following poor sales.

The announcement was made by one of the brand’s local representatives, Erica Rasch, cited by GreenCarReports.

“2017 was the last model year for the i-MiEV, and all available retail units have been sold”, Rasch said, adding that while the small electric vehicle won’t be replaced by a similar car, the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV will hit the market later this year, and arrive at dealers across the nation in the first quarter of 2018.

Produced since 2009 and launched initially in Japan, one year before the Nissan Leaf’s introduction, the Mitsubishi i-MiEV, which was also sold as a Peugeot iOn and Citroen C-Zero, is a small five-door electric hatchback, and the only kei car adapted for the US market in recent history.

According to the official numbers released by the automaker, the i-MiEV’s zero-emission range is 100 miles (161km) on the Japanese test cycle, but the American version can travel up to 62 miles (100km), in the US EPA cycle.

It uses a 16kWh battery pack and an electric motor, rated at 66 horses, which allows it to reach a top speed of 80mph (129km/h).