Mitsubishi has made a name for itself by going all-in on plug-in hybrid technology, but as the world pushes toward a lower-emissions motoring environment it may have to offer a new version of its hybrid tech alongside pure electric vehicles.
Speaking to Australian media in Japan, General Manager of EV Powertrain Engineering for Mitsubishi Takashi Shirakawa explained that the new plugless hybrid electric system was primarily developed with the South East Asian market in mind, and would debut on a new version of the Xpander MPV for those markets in the near future.
“HEV (hybrid electric vehicle) is out of date in Europe, but we can create a new market for this kind of vehicle in South East Asia,” he explained, noting that the system will be a Mitsubishi-developed drivetrain, and not the ePower system borrowed from its Nissan alliance partner.
He also confirmed the system would be related to current electrified Mitsubishis: “We can easily create HEVs by swapping battery size while using common components,” Shirakawa said.
Slides to explain the yet-to-be-revealed HEV tech show an identical layout to the current PHEV systems Mitsubishi uses, but with a smaller battery system. This means an electric motor on the rear axle, with a combustion engine and second motor on the front axle.
While Toyota’s popular Hybrid Synergy Drive system mates the engine and electric torque to the front axle using a continuously variable transmission, the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV uses a two-stage reduction gear to match the speed of the two at a front transaxle.
Although PHEVs and fully electric vehicles were the focus for Europe (likely based on badge-engineered Renault models), Shirakawa did not rule out HEVs for the Australian market.
“In theory, yes, we could have these in the Australian market” he said.
“Some HEV models will be produced and launch in [South East Asia] first, and then they will be expanded to some other regions. Probably not Japan or the US.”
But while customers might warm up to HEV systems more easily than they do to PHEVs due to the inconvenience of charging, or EVs due to the upfront cost of the vehicle, Shirakawa was quick to explain why Mitsubishi considered plug-in hybrid technology the best global solution for combatting carbon emissions.
Using the Outlander as an example, he explained that out of the three electrified systems over a 110,000km distance, PHEVs were more carbon efficient once you take into account emissions from production and driving.
“If we’re going to use limited resources to build batteries, we should use them in the most carbon efficient way possible,” Shirakawa said.
Australians have shown their love for hybrid technology, but still primarily for powertrains that do not require a plug, like Toyota’s popular hybrid synergy drive. If Mitsubishi was to decide to bring hybrids to Australia, what would that look like?
Aside from the Xpander MPV which is a vehicle tailor-made for markets like Thailand and Malaysia, the mid-term plan showcased by Mitsubishi also shows a second HEV MPV, as well as a small SUV hybrid. Could this be the future of the ASX in the Australian market?
“There’s not one choice for us,” explained Koichi Namiki, Executive Officer of Product Strategy on the replacement for the ASX.
“Again, we haven’t decided that ‘we’re going to do this one’. One option is to use the product from the South East Asian region if it works, or we can utilise some of the alliance vehicles. In the future we would like to have an attractive line-up in Australia – we just haven’t come up with a concrete one.”
Mitsubishi is expected to reveal the Xpander HEV imminently, so stay tuned for more on this new hybrid system soon.
Keyword: Mitsubishi to come after Toyota and Nissan with its own hybrid-without-a-plug? Why the Japanese giant is working on a new in-house hybrid system