Mitsubishi announces $6K price drop on 2014 i-MiEV!!!

[user 1835]

it does not compare favorably with the i-MiEV for a number of practical reasons. I think this is what gets i-MiEV fans a bit annoyed - the attention, even praise, heaped on the somewhat impractical SmartED.

Well, impractical is subjective. For me, I didn't need the extra two seats. Instead I bought a black on silver with red interior...decidely different from the iMiEV in terms of style. As for practicality, my ED has clear roof panel with a shade slider, which is great on nice sunny days. The heated seats, battery heater and other winter features are more than practical, they are necessary for the cold winter we've seen in Ontario this year.

Nothing is perfect, and the Smart ED has it's faults. It is so quiet that I find running the fan annoying, which isn't even an issue in most ICE cars...

I might think of getting a second EV in a few years time, as the cost savings pay for the vehicle over 8 years. We could park our SUV for 90% of the year....but the other option is the Tesla Model X SUV...if I could get up the courage to spend that much on a car...

 

[Zelenec]

Why would it be annoying if someone prefers a two-seater? Each car model has its own purpose, pros, cons and their fans. Smart ED is a great car if only two seats are needed.

 

[JoeS]

SmartElectricDrive - I think you will find most on this forum quite favorably disposed towards the Smart ED. Here's my take on it - http://myimiev.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=14508#p14508 The feature I really liked is the optional paddle for both zero regen and increased regen.

It will be interesting to see if Smart will drop their price after Mitsu comes out with their less-expensive 2014 model.

 

[Vike]

Okay, this has gotten silly. Folks, please read my original comments as opposed to SED's misleading snippet (a bit of editing I did not appreciate in the least; I'd note that adding the closing period after "SmartED" raises the stakes from sloppiness to dishonesty). I am not hostile to the SmartED, and I would certainly have considered it as an option had it been available in my market when the i-MiEV was. That said, of course it's less practical - it has two less seats and a much smaller trunk. Why would anyone consider this a controversial point? If a two-place runabout works for you 100% of the time, jolly good, but my needs are I think a little more typical. For instance, my workplace is populated with fellow humans, some of whom I shuttle to lunch on occasion, and being able to take more than one is of some benefit. I also often take the Weeble on shopping excursions with my wife, and we do find it convenient to have a nice sized trunk (or enormous cargo hatch, if it comes to that). But I don't think either of those points counts as peculiar. Do you?

As I have already noted, there are plenty of special cases where a SmartED is immeasurably more practical, as in fitting end to end with a second car in a longish garage when nothing else would. And especially with electric power, I imagine they provide a unique driving experience, so there's that.

I am not "annoyed" that anyone would prefer a SmartED. What annoys me (and this was the point utterly lost in that partial quote) are the generally positive comments in the press about not only the SmartED (which I will continue to insist meets the needs of a smaller market segment than does the i-MiEV), but also the Fiat 500e and Spark EV, both compliance-only dodges served up by half-hearted manufacturers who will cease their production the moment they cross the ZEV credit finish line to preserve their CA market access. While I have never accused the SmartED of being a compliance dodge (because it isn't), I do think it's fair to group it with other small EVs that have gotten an easier ride from critics who have savaged the i-MiEV, even though the i-MiEV has some significant advantages over the lot of them.

None of this makes me a SmartED basher. But like many in this forum, I am an i-MiEV fan mildly peeved at our car being treated like the Rodney Dangerfield of EVs.

 

[user 1835]

please read my original comments as opposed to SED's misleading snippet (a bit of editing I did not appreciate in the least; I'd note that adding the closing period after "SmartED" raises the stakes from sloppiness to dishonesty).

Not my intention to decieve. Sorry for any quoting or editing mistakes, I was trying to be (too) brief to save folks who are reading this entire thread from re-reading substantial parts of posts they've already read. I happen to love al EV's, and especially the iMiEV as it was one of the earliest to come out, so kudo's to Mitsubishi and to those early adopters including yourself. My compliments!

Anyway, the Smart ED is routinely bashed for it's smallness, especially with regard to the harshness of handling on rougher roads due to the short wheelbase. I acknowedge these as true compromises, but there are so many more things about the ED that are truly top of the class in EV's including integrated cooling/heating of the battery and exceptional road handling in the winter due to use of Mercedes ESP (stability control) computers/algorithms.

As for the iMiEV, I have seen exactly 1 on the road, just like I see 1 Leaf (a neighbours) , 1 Telsa, 2 ED's (mine and one more I've seen) and a Volt. None of these cars are more visible or common than the other where I live, and that is because here in Ontario Canada, you have to be a true believer to drive one, as there is absolutely no marketing or advertisement for them.

 

[jray3]

SmartElectricDrive wrote:
As for interior, iMiEV does not have the interior options of the Smart. My Smart is black with silver "tridion" stripes on outside, red and black interior on inside, with clear roof panel. To each their own...

SED is right on that point- and it seems strictly a regional marketing decision. I remember seeing some pretty wild interior color schemes on European market cars, with stitched leather dashboards, etc...

 

[Vike]

Not my intention to decieve....Anyway, the Smart ED is routinely bashed for it's smallness, especially with regard to the harshness of handling on rougher roads due to the short wheelbase. I acknowedge these as true compromises, but there are so many more things about the ED that are truly top of the class....

Yes, sorry to get a bit touchy - I had the feeling of being picked at for stuff I hadn't exactly said, pushed the wrong button. Again, the point of my comments wasn't that the SmartED was inadequate, but rather that some of the same newspapers and web sites that have run articles slamming the i-MiEV for being a cramped little clown car have run much less critical pieces on the SmartED. It has long been bashed for its extreme form factor, but that's always struck me as someone criticizing an American football for not being round enough - it is what it intends to be.

Actually, the cars create such a similar impression visually (I think it's the lack of a hood) that the handful of i-MiEVs around here draw little attention, because people incorrectly assume they know what it is. More than once someone's remarked to me "Oh, I always thought these were neat - I didn't know it came in a four door," and I had to explain it's not a Smart.

SED is right on that point- and it seems strictly a regional marketing decision. I remember seeing some pretty wild interior color schemes on European market cars, with stitched leather dashboards, etc...

Indeed. I always felt that the U.S. SE interior was a pretty meager step up, since I actually preferred the looks of the blackout interior on the ES. I was thrilled when Mitsubishi relented at the last minute and decided to offer CHAdeMO-equipped ES models to consumers (they were originally only going to be available to fleets).

To those who countered with "Hey, it's a kei car - how fancy did you think it could get?", my answer was always "They do it just fine in Europe", having seen the U.K. market's Tamashii Pack:

http://www.mitsubishi.panoscope.co.uk/iMiEV_tamashii_red/V1R0M4/

 

[user 1835]

To those who countered with "Hey, it's a kei car - how fancy did you think it could get?", my answer was always "They do it just fine in Europe", having seen the U.K. market's Tamashii Pack:

http://www.mitsubishi.panoscope.co.uk/iMiEV_tamashii_red/V1R0M4/

Very nice! I approve! Frankly, the iMiEV that I saw in the local dealer was bland, but some folks like that (I used to own two boring 4 door Ford's just a year ago, so a change was welcome!).


I bought my Smart ED in black exterior with red interior ala:

 

[acensor]

Still having trouble finding dealers I can send interested folks to who have them.

Did a quick search on autotrader.com and just found one 2024 SE. at Love Mistubishi in South Carolina.

The good news is their asking price is just under $24,000.

Anyone know if any other dealers.. Esp in the west have any if seem interested I. Getting and selling any?
.

 

[DaveMiller]

Our Mitsubishi dealer (O'Brien) here in Normal Illinois had 7 2014's all in a row last Monday.
I took a photo that a could mail if you like.

Dave

 

[jray3]

I made an 'emergency' charging stop at my Mitsu dealer last week after getting 'Blinked' again by an offline CHAdeMO station. The sales manager was bored and talked nonstop for an hour, and also gave me his 2014 i-MiEV marketing poster, since the dealership opted to take no 14's (over the sales manager's protests that the car would sell since they finally hit the right price point).
He claimed that the 14's are actually leftover 2012 production that got 're-VIN-ed' and a few items re-worked. Anybody else heard such or found old date codes on their 2014 model?

 

[siai47]

The battery date code (which is located on the back of the battery pack just in front of the motor) has a easy to decipher year and date printed on it. That would be the telltale. I sure wouldn't want a "new" 2014 with a 2012 pack as the pack is the one item that degrades if you use it or not.

 

[Vike]

He claimed that the 14's are actually leftover 2012 production that got 're-VIN-ed' and a few items re-worked. Anybody else heard such or found old date codes on their 2014 model?

Rubbish. The "SE equipment with ES interior" combination did not exist for 2012 NA models. It's a safe bet Mitsu neither stripped out SE interiors to install ES "blackout" innards nor retrofitted stereo upgrades and aluminum wheels to ES models (and either way, they'd have to add all-new heated passenger seats and charge port lighting) for cars they then marked down an additional $6k.

There have been reports on this forum that 2014s were being built to use up NA-spec i-MiEV parts that had been overproduced during the 2012 fiasco. I find that more credible, but it's a far cry from "re-VIN-ing" and upgrading old inventory to sell as new. That just doesn't pass the laugh test.

Worth remembering - car salesmen are, in large part, ignoramuses (I don't expect much pushback on that from smart, capable car salesmen - they know their peers better than most). For what should be obvious financial regulation reasons, franchised dealers don't get any significant information that's not publicly available (insider trading risk, etc.). But that doesn't stop know-nothing sales drones from spouting off when questioned by folks who assume those drones are somehow "in the know."