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Mitsubishi i

The Mitsubishi i is a 660cc turbo charged compact car, this is the same body as the locally sold i-MiEV electric vehicle, however the main differences are that the combustion engine version i costs about a third of the price of a new i-MiEV and has about 7 times the range of the i-MiEV's real world 100km range.

The Mitsubishi i is a kei car, a special category of vehicle in Japan that are wildly popular, to classify as a kei car it must have an engine no larger than 660cc, no more than 47kW and must be within a certain size. This allows kei cars in Japan to pay less road tolls, less on registration costs and they can always fit into prescribed parking spaces. What this means for Australian shores is a car that is easy to drive around the city, easy to park, and one that gets excellent fuel economy and very low emissions. The i achieves 18.4km/L in city driving and significantly higher on the highway, and emits a mere 114 grams of carbon dioxide per litre using ADR 81/01 test procedures.

The design of the i is revolutionary with an aluminium space frame construction which is unique for a small four passenger, four door car. Combined with the equally novel mid engine configuration (with the engine in front of the rear wheels) for a car of this type the space frame and lack of engine at the front make for very large crumple zones, resulting in excellent crash test figures for the i. The spaceframe and mid engine combination also make excellent use of space allowing far more room for passengers and allowing the wheels to be placed near each corner of the car which also maximizes interior space efficiency. These design features contributed to the i winning 13 design awards in its first year of sale in Japan.

The 660cc turbo charged engine features variable cam timing and produces 47kW (64hp) with an automatic gearbox, while this isn't a huge figure it only weighs 960kg and has the aforementioned excellent emissions figures.

ABS brakes and Electronic Brake Distribution (EBD) are standard, other standard and optional safety features include sizeable crumple zones, rigid aluminium spaceframe chassis, stability control, traction control and multiple airbags. Xenon headlights are standard on the G-spec model (optional on others) as was an intelligent key meaning you only need to have the key in your pocket to open doors or start the car.

MODEL LINEUP

S

Base spec model (from 2007 the S became non turbo and can't be imported) This model is allowed for import

M

Turbo model with CD player as standard. This model is allowed for import

G

Xenon headlights, CD player and leather trimmed wheel as standard This model is allowed for import

T

Replaced the M with similar specs in 2008. This model is allowed for import

X and post 2007 S

Non turbo petrol variants These models are not allowed for import

Only turbo models can be imported and only RWD variants, the 4WD versions can't be brought in. Eligible models are 2006 to February 2009 built Mitsubishi i's only. There are also a variety of special editions which feature mostly minimal cosmetic (and often fashion based) interior changes, these cars are eligible if they meet the above criteria.

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The details provided here may vary for each vehicle, and J-Spec makes no claims as to the accuracy of this information.