Mitsubishi Outlander Plug-in Hybrid EV – more details on the Paris debutant

It’s already known that Mitsubishi’s Outlander PHEV is set to make its debut in Paris later this month. Now, more details about the world’s first plug-in hybrid SUV have come about.

The five-seater is powered by a combination of a 2.0 litre MIVEC Generator petrol unit offering 94 hp and a Twin Motor 4WD system comprising independent electric motors to drive the front and rear wheels, integrated with Mitsubishi’s S-AWC (Super All Wheel Control) integrated vehicle dynamics control system.

Both permanent magnet synchronous motors each offer a 60 kW output, and in terms of torque the front unit delivers 137 Nm, while the rear motor has 195 Nm. In all, it’s good enough to offer the Outlander PHEV a cruising range in excess of 880 km.

As mentioned in our earlier story, the Plug-in Hybrid EV powertrain automatically selects one of three drive modes for optimum performance, these being EV Drive Mode, Series Hybrid Mode and Parallel Hybrid Mode.

The all-electric EV Drive Mode utilises the front and rear motors drive the vehicle using only electricity from the drive battery, which is a high-capacity 300 volt, 12 kWh lithium-ion unit offering an operating range of over 55 km on electric power alone, which the company says is sufficient for all-electric operation in most everyday situations.

The driver can also manually switch to Battery Charge Mode in which the gasoline engine acts as a generator and charges the drive battery whether the vehicle is stationary or on the move. Battery Charge Mode gives the driver the flexibility to use the gasoline engine as a generator at any time they want, so if the driver wants to use EV Drive Mode at a specific time, he can make sure the drive battery has enough energy for that.

Meanwhile, in Series Hybrid Mode, the gasoline engine operates as a generator supplying electricity to the electric motors. The system switches to this mode when the remaining charge in the battery falls below a predetermined level and when more powerful performance is required, such as under heavy acceleration.

As for Parallel Hybrid Mode, the 2.0 litre lump provides most of the operational power, assisted by the electric motors as required.

The 1,810 kg Outlander PHEV, which will wear 18-inch wheels and 225/55 series tyres, will be introduced in Japan in early 2013 before being sequentially rolled out in Europe, North America, and other key markets around the world.

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