The exterior styling doesn’t look like any other car currently on the road, and we get a lot of looks from people. It’s a funny shape with a very short front end; evidence that there is no engine up there.
Rather, it’s located just forward of the rear axle and behind the rear seat, low and close to the center of the chassis, giving the car a low center of gravity. This is very noticeable on the road, as the i-MiEV has decent handling and stability. Taking corners, parking and passing on the highway just feels like you’re driving a real car. See what I mean? It’s so easy to forget this vehicle IS an electric.
The placement of the battery pack also allows maximum interior volume. There is lots of room to comfortably seat four adults. If you want to compare electric to electric, then the closest competitor to the i-MiEV would be the Nissan Leaf, and it is bigger with room to seat five adults.
Compared to the LEAF, the i-MiEV feels small. The seats are narrow and even though it is actually 110 mm wider than the Japanese and European versions, the cabin feels a little cramped. The roofline is high, though, and legroom for front passengers is more than adequate.
The second row has limited room, but if you are in the market for a small EV, you won’t be expecting much anyways. The rear seatback splits 50/50 and can easily accommodate grocery bags or luggage.
After driving all morning, feeling at home on the highway and in the city of Portland, I get to experience what has been aptly nicknamed ‘charge anxiety’. My co-driver and I are lost. We have a quarter of a charge left and are confronting some very windy and hilly back roads, looking for the portable charge station they have set up for us.
Despite being a bit lost, we marvel that one of the great things with an electric car is that the torque is immediate; you get 100% torque at initial throttle input. Unlike a gas engine, there is no vertical vibration and the interior is wonderfully quiet. So quiet, in fact, that I have no issues hearing the other journalist gasp as he notices that the charge is dropping – quickly.
What do we do? We are part of a group of 20 other journalists, on the same route in a car that won’t go unnoticed. I joke; can we shift it to neutral and drift on fumes? As we turn a bend in the road we see the portable quick charge station and we both breathe a sigh of relief.
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| The placement of the battery pack also allows maximum interior volume. (Photo: Lacey Elliott/Auto123.com) |
Rather, it’s located just forward of the rear axle and behind the rear seat, low and close to the center of the chassis, giving the car a low center of gravity. This is very noticeable on the road, as the i-MiEV has decent handling and stability. Taking corners, parking and passing on the highway just feels like you’re driving a real car. See what I mean? It’s so easy to forget this vehicle IS an electric.
The placement of the battery pack also allows maximum interior volume. There is lots of room to comfortably seat four adults. If you want to compare electric to electric, then the closest competitor to the i-MiEV would be the Nissan Leaf, and it is bigger with room to seat five adults.
Compared to the LEAF, the i-MiEV feels small. The seats are narrow and even though it is actually 110 mm wider than the Japanese and European versions, the cabin feels a little cramped. The roofline is high, though, and legroom for front passengers is more than adequate.
The second row has limited room, but if you are in the market for a small EV, you won’t be expecting much anyways. The rear seatback splits 50/50 and can easily accommodate grocery bags or luggage.
After driving all morning, feeling at home on the highway and in the city of Portland, I get to experience what has been aptly nicknamed ‘charge anxiety’. My co-driver and I are lost. We have a quarter of a charge left and are confronting some very windy and hilly back roads, looking for the portable charge station they have set up for us.
Despite being a bit lost, we marvel that one of the great things with an electric car is that the torque is immediate; you get 100% torque at initial throttle input. Unlike a gas engine, there is no vertical vibration and the interior is wonderfully quiet. So quiet, in fact, that I have no issues hearing the other journalist gasp as he notices that the charge is dropping – quickly.
What do we do? We are part of a group of 20 other journalists, on the same route in a car that won’t go unnoticed. I joke; can we shift it to neutral and drift on fumes? As we turn a bend in the road we see the portable quick charge station and we both breathe a sigh of relief.
 |
| The rear seatback splits 50/50 and can easily accommodate grocery bags or luggage. (Photo: Lacey Elliott/Auto123.com) |