Mitsubishi ‘i’ is a modern day micro car wanting to make it big in the US market. Mitsubishi i is a small four door sedan, which is the cutest of all the Mitsubishis in the market and the word i has its origin from the Japanese word ‘ai’ which means love. The car is a smart peace of work with a lot of mind and thoughts applied for, but what beckons is an introduction into the American market which is more jeopardized than assured.
It has already attained a celebrity status back home in Japan and around 37,000 units made it onto the roads in the country the past year. i bagged a number of high profile awards in Japan for the past year :
* RJC Car of the year 2007- voted for by the automotive researchers & journalists of Japan.
* ‘Most Advanced Technology’ Special Achievements Award- voted for by Japan’s executive committee of the car of the year awards.
* Good design Gold & Grand prize 2006- Japanese Good Design Award
Every day it is becoming more and more hectic to drive through the streets plunging with traffic to find a convenient parking space, along with this, the ever increasing gas prices makes traveling more expensive with the cars which seem to be overpowered for the task they have been assigned with, the Mitsubishis i seems to be the right choice in these circumstances.
The car has got a small turbocharged engine exhilarating 55 hp and 65lb-ft of torque. The car is enabled with a key less start, remote central locking, automatic transmission, complete iPod integration even a hard drive with a memory stick slot.
It is the first Japanese micro car to make it into the European markets; and surely the i makes you fall in love with it at the first glance. It has got an aerodynamic well worked out exterior compared with its rivals. Just as a comparison, the Mitsubishi i is a bit more in length than the first generation smart, of course the reason is that it is made for four, with a uniquely curved out side profile, its European version does an impressive 55mpg, but sadly there is still no information about its US counterpart.
The car does a 0-60 in just below 11.2seconds and seems much faster than the first generation smart. It has got a good suspension which can handle some normal road conditions pretty well. As it offers a comfortable ride at doing 65-70mph it seems no problem to drive it on the highways which seems much difficult for Smart. Due to some aggressive cornering the car becomes a mild under steer.
Its interiors seem pretty ordinary with some outstanding visibility from nicely placed mirrors and clear all around view. It has got an excellent height for some ample amount of head room, though its body is less in size which will make the passengers sit closer. The dash board seems well equipped with a fold down screen having a hard disk alongwith a slot for memory stick and an iPod.
There seem to be a lot of reasons why Americans will fall for the car. With its futuristic design, easy handling, and some good use of interior space the car unquestionably seem an answer for the future. While some beautiful styling and innovative technology has made it a trendy car for some style conscious buyers, it becomes a pick with mature customers with its expediency.
[Via: AutoWeek Subscription]
