Car Industry: 2012 Mitsubishi i: An electric car on a budget - by Tom Voelk

When it comes to electric cars, most people think Nissan Leaf and Chevrolet Volt. Wealthy folks might shop Tesla and Fisker. Now there’s a plug-in car for budget buyers- the Mitsubishi i. Not a lot of people are plugged into the i just yet. It’s been available in Japan and Europe but the US version is only now arriving in Hawaii, California, Oregon, and Washington. The Northeast will see them in April. It goes nationwide next year.

The i is the most inexpensive electric car you can buy in America, starting at 29,125*. My friend the asterisk (which you’ll see a lot more of in the video) signals that the price is actually $21,625 because of a $7,500 federal tax credit.

The EPA rates city MPGe at 126, highway is 99. This is more efficient than both Leaf (106/92) and Volt (95/93). Range is a different story. Volt is much less limited because of its onboard gas generator, Leaf is EPA rated at 73 miles. The EPA rates i’s range at 62 miles on a full charge. That’s under ideal conditions.

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