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The first two Mitsubishi i-MiEVs battery-electric cars to reach Australia rolled off a ship under an overcast sky at the Port of Brisbane last Friday.


Company spokesmen said the plug-in model will be available for sale on Earth's smallest continent in the "next few months." Pricing and other details regarding the i-MiEV's release down under were not disclosed.


That said, a Japanese publication reported recently that Mitsubishi believes it can get the cost of the i-MiEV electric city car down to around $22,000 by 2015, which would make it competitive with conventionally powered upscale subcompacts when the total cost of ownership is considered. The car now sells for nearly $49,000 in Japan.


Mitsubishi has said it will go global with the small battery-electric car as early as late this year, with sales in North America to begin in 2011.  Sales in markets such as the U.S.are expected to be limited initially to large cities and possibly to commercial and government fleet operators.


Mitsubishi has sold 1,650 i-MiEVs since it was introduced in Japan in July, nearly 18 percent more than its initial projection of 1,400 sales for calendar 2009.


The company reportedly plans to speed up its i-MiEV production and volume schedules, going into full-scale production of 30,000 cars annually in its 2012-13 fiscal year and bringing the price down within a few more years.

Tags: Australia, Emissions, Mitsubishi, Plug-ins and Electric, Australia, Mitsubshi i-MiEV, Plug-in Vehicles, Zero-Emissions Cars

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First Two Mitsubishi i-MiEVs to Reach Australia Disembark at the Port of Brisbane was originally published by Green Car Advisor. Read the full story by clicking here.