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Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) entered a pair of all -
electric vehicles in the 2012 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb
held in Colorado, the United States, from August 7 to August
12: the i-MiEV Evolution, a purpose-built racing prototype;
and the Mitsubishi i North American market version of the
production i-MiEV. In the Electric Division, Hiroshi Masuoka,
two-time winner of the Dakar Rally, drove his i-MiEV Evolution
to score an excellent second-place finish while American off-road
racer Beccy Gordon piloted a 2012 Mitsubishi i, fitted
with additional safety equipment and modified |
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bumpers, to a
commendable sixth-place finish. The results demonstrate that
production EVs can compete with gasoline-powered cars and
boast excellent reliability under very difficult conditions, including
climbing steep roads at high altitude (finish line at 4300m).
After the run, team captain Hiroshi Masuoka said:
“Although we finished second, I’m satisfied that we were able
to successfully compete in the challenging conditions of the
Pikes Peak course using the same motors and batteries as the
production i-MiEV. I would certainly like to try again in the future,
leveraging our experience and the data we gathered this year.”
Beccy Gordon, the driver of the production Mitsubishi i, said:
“I am very excited about both cars making it to the top in this
very difficult hill climb event. The Mitsubishi i proved the EV’s
impressive capabilities by climbing the steep gradient without
suffering any loss in motive performance from start to finish.
It was a lot of fun driving this electric vehicle and it made me
realize the exciting potential of electric vehicles.”
MMC will use the data and know-how garnered through
participation in the race in the development of future EV models.
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