2012 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution Gsr on 2040-cars

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Mitsubishi i-MiEV rallies in WAVE 2014 as support vehicle

Hey, we found somebody willing to drive a new Mitsubishi i-MiEV over 1,000 miles. The little-bitty four-seat electric vehicle will be used on the other side of the Pond as a support vehicle in the World Advanced Vehicle Expedition (WAVE) road rally through the Swiss Alps this spring. Brian Orr from EV Matters Ltd. made the purchase, as he'll be providing the support vehicle for Green MotorSport Ltd.'s hand-built utility concept vehicle that's being built with an eye on deploying it in developing countries, the Auto Channel says. Another i-MiEV will be an official, 900 kilogram-plus entrant in the rally, which begins May 31 in Sindelfingen, Germany and finishes a week later in Rigi, Switzerland, with 20 towns or so in between. As many as 70 teams will be joining the party which, in 2013, set a world record for electric-vehicle parades by sending 305 of them very quietly through Zurich. Despite a tiny price tag, i-MiEV sales in the US (where it's simply known as the i) have come to a near halt as Mitsubishi gets ready to shift its plug-in focus to PHEVs. While US i sales jumped 75 percent last year to 1,029 units, the Japanese automaker has moved just four units (!) domestically during the first two months of 2014.

Mitsubishi Engelberg Tourer concept is a 4WD plug-in hybrid

Mitsubishi has finally taken the wraps off its strangely named Engelberg Tourer crossover concept in Geneva, revealing a twin-motor, four-wheel-drive plug-in hybrid with some nifty off-road capabilities and connected-car technology. Named for a Swiss ski resort famous for its unmarked, backcountry terrain, the Engelberg Tourer is a sporty-looking crossover that could preview a new Outlander. It features plenty of side creasing, an upright front end, interesting running lights and that unique roof box cap with integrated fog lamps and highly reflective strips of chrome along the sides. Mitsubishi says the crossover has an all-electric range of more than 70 kilometers, or around 43 miles, at least on the European WLTP cycle, and a combined gasoline-electric range of more than 700 km (435 miles). The Engelberg — users will inevitably make comparisons to the singer Engelbert Humperdinck, as does Google's autofill function — benefits from established and advanced Mitsubishi technologies. It uses the twin-motor PHEV system developed for the Outlander PHEV and improves it, with high-efficiency motors at the front and rear axles and a 2.4-liter gasoline engine in a series hybrid setup, acting as a generator. It uses active yaw control first developed for the Lancer Evolution series to split torque between the front and rear wheels, or between the front wheels alone, and matches it with a super all-wheel control system to improve performance and stability. The concept also features improved anti-lock braking at each wheel and active stability control to reduce wheel slip on snow-covered roads. The onboard navigation system takes the destination entered by the driver and factors in weather, temperature, topography, traffic and road conditions to choose the ideal drive mode and tailor torque split through drive battery management and the super all-wheel control system. Inside, Mitsubishi fashioned a spacious interior bedecked in white panels and seating material and black contrasts. There's also a roof box that houses fog lamps and front and rear bumper under guards. Mitsubishi also is demonstrating the Dendo Drive House, its version of a vehicle-to-home system that allows electric or plug-in hybrid vehicles to generate, store and share energy with a home. Mitsubishi says the service will be offered through dealerships in Japan and Europe later this year. Related Video:

Mitsubishi is killing the Lancer this summer

The small sedan segment is going to get a little smaller this summer. At a Mitsubishi event last night, the company discussed its new focus on the crossover market. It left us wondering where this leaves the future of Mitsubishi sedans. We asked executive vice president and COO of Mitsubishi's North American division Don Swearingen about this, and he said the Mirage G4 will remain on the market to handle some sedan demand, but that Lancer production will end this August. Swearingen did explain that there will probably be leftover stock for a few months after the end of production, but that the car would effectively be gone this summer with 2017 its final model year. He said the sedan market is shrinking and the company needs to make sure any new product it develops is profitable, which is why Mitsubishi continues to shift its focus to the ever-growing crossover market and there are no current plans for a new Lancer. It should also be noted that the current Lancer was introduced a decade ago and wasn't terribly competitive to begin with. Still, we'll miss the Lancer line, even if it was only for the hope that we'd see another Lancer Evolution someday. Related Video: