Mitsubishi recently announced an array of production models for the next few years, which means that the designers will be quite busy. The latest Mitsubishi concept however doesn’t come from the company’s own design studio but from the students of the Istituto Europeo di Design (IED) who envisioned a fully electric SUV called “Moonstone”.
The goal of the project was to create an SUV for 2035, with attention to its environmental-conscious credentials including the use of sustainable materials. The resulting concept car was unveiled today, March 28, at a special event held by IED in Turin, Italy.
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The Mitsubishi Moonstone boasts a two-door coupe-SUV bodystyle with a rather compact footprint, generous ground clearance, an aerodynamic silhouette, and plenty of Mitsubishi styling traits. The front end is characterized by the LED headlights reminiscent of the Mitsubishi XFC concept, the bonnet-mounted Lidar, the fully closed grille, and the pronounced chin on the bumper which is not the best for the concept’s off-road angles.
The profile of the concept is heavily sculpted and features a healthy dose of plastic cladding on the boxy wheel arches, with the rear fenders being the busiest part of the design. The steep front windscreen merges with the side windows thanks to the black roof and pillars, while the heavily inclined roofline and rear glass wouldn’t look out of place in a sportscar. The tail has Y-shaped LEDs, an integrated ducktail spoiler, another roof-mounted wing, and an aluminum-style skidplate.
Overall, the Moonstone could be a reincarnation of the Mitsubishi Eclipse sportscar which would be more in line with the character of the original compared to the current Eclipse Cross compact SUV. IED didn’t provide details on the fully electric powertrain but promised “astonishing performance” and all-wheel-drive capability.
The concept was designed by an international group of 18 students from the 2021/2022 Master Course in Transportation Design in IED Torino. The team had the support of Mitsubishi and the help of technical sponsors Pirelli, OZ Racing, and Lechler, while the full-size model was built by Freeland.car, MINTT, AM Costruzione Modelli, Raitec.
As with all IED concepts, the Mitsubishi Moonstone is not destined for production, and will remain a one-off design study.
Photos @pepe_fotografia / @IED_Torino