Managed battery availability?

[howieb]

Hi. I'm a new member and this is my first post. I am in the market for a 2014 and visited a dealer today, had a test drive, and I am working up to making a deal. The question I have is about something the salesman said to me about the batteries. I have not read anything related to what he said anywhere. Essentially he said that the availability of the batteries for charge and use was managed electronically, and I would need to visit the dealer periodically to have the system updated so that more of the battery capacity could be used. He said that this was how they managed to supply a consistent charge capacity over the lifetime of the batteries. I asked if this was done via computer, and he said yes. (I probably was not clear about this question... I was assuming that since he said this would happen during an annual or semi-annual service, that a tech would perform this "operation").

I could understand if this was something that was inherently part of the charging system, but I'm not sure I believe what I thought I heard from the salesman.

Thoughts?

Thanks,

Howie

 

[JoeS]

Howie, welcome to the forum and thank you for your question. Must say, this is a new one!

First off, you are right to question the veracity of what the salesman told you. Sorry, but the amount of misinformation given to prospective clients by car salespeople about electric cars would get a person fired in any other job.

If I understood you correctly, what the salesman told you is that Mitsubishi is "holding back" some of the usable battery capacity and that as the battery pack degrades over time they then are able to access more of this capacity with software reprogramming.

I have not heard of a reprogramming which changes the effective capacity of our pack.

As far as I know, there is no such thing as a periodic battery 'service' required by the iMiEV.

Perhaps the most-telling position by Mitsubishi is this letter they sent out in February 2012:

http://myimiev.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=263&p=1031#p1031

Whereabouts are you located? Perhaps a meetup with one of our forum members would answer many of the questions I'm sure you have. Hopefully, simply perusing this forum will give you a good insight into this vehicle which has so pleasantly surprised many of us.

 

[howieb]

Thanks JoeS. Yes, you understood me perfectly. It's not surprising to me that this information wouldn't be correct.

I hope you don't think I'm hedging on on ordering an iMiEV. Right now it's a matter of just negotiating the "extra fees" doc fee, title fee, etc. that dealers always seem to tack on to make up for their discount below MSRP. I also wish I knew what the new Aquamarine Blue looked like. Not sure I'm going to gamble on that.

I'm in a suburb just west of Boston inside the 95 ring. I'd certainly be interested to hear from owners in the same area. I've yet to see an iMiEV on the road in this area, but I'm sure they are around. We also looked at the Smart ForTwo EV, but the battery assurance warranty (which reduces the price by $5000, but adds an $85 monthly fee) pushes the price way up in the end, to say nothing of the fact it is only two seats). WIth the price decrease of 2014, the iMiEV is the least expensive EV out there (I think).

The dealers are really dying to get rid of ICE stock... Both dealers I spoke with tried steering me toward the motorcycle-engined Mirage instead of the iMiEV. One dealer found a 2012 iMiEV for me, but the price was ridiculous, as the source would only include $6000 of the available $10000 rebate. I won't like the wait for a 2014, but I think I'll be much happier in the end, given what I've read recently about unused 2012s.

 

[PV1]

My dealer said the aqua marine blue is almost identical to the sapphire blue on the Mirage. The last time I was at the dealer, he was trying to push me into a Lancer EVO. :?:

I would imagine that the few 40 kWh Tesla Model S sedans out there do have the ability to maintain 40 kWh capacity for a long time, seeing as how they are software limited 60 kWh models. That would be a decent business model, though. Oversize the battery by 25%, and use software to limit it, gradually using more battery as capacity degrades so that the car maintains its range until the battery loses 25%, then range would start to decrease. The unused capacity would be hidden at the bottom, so you still have quite a distance to go between "empty" and the car stopping.

 

[Lithim]

howieb,

Greetings.
Welcome to the world of EV's. Not to steer you away from the I-miev, but have you considered the Honda Fit electric.
I believe that your state is one of eight where Honda is leasing (only) this car. Specs look quite impressive and a Levitron 240V EVSE is part of the deal. Charge time is substantially reduced due to battery chemistry/electrodes and 6.6 KW on board charger. Due to limited production, there maybe a wait for the cars
Good luck.
2012, silver ES, with quick charger, leased.

 

[howieb]

I have no interest in a lease... Too much money to be left with nothing at the end, and have to start all over again. Maybe it would be different if I was using it for business. I tend to run cars into the ground unless they get totaled first. Our current cars are 10 and 11 years old.

One of our cars is a 2003 Honda Civic Hybrid, which I can't say I've been all that thrilled with. Much lower mileage than expected, generally in the mid-30s in the city, even with a light foot. Had the battery replaced once under warranty, and not too confident about the CVT which has always been unhappy when first accelerating. That car will go with my daughter back to college this spring, and we'll wait for a new i-MiEV. The other car is a 2004 Audi Allroad which we'll use for our long distance trips. I don't want to replace two cars at the same time, so hoping I can make that one last another few years, and then we can see what the best technology is for those trips.

Thanks

Howie