4WD of the future will power your campsite – or home

Mitsubishi’s new plug-in hybrid system is a mobile generator
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Mitsubishi is developing a getaway car that can use electric power to travel to far-flung places, and then power your campsite once there.

And, far from science fiction, the mid-size SUV should be on sale within two years priced about $50,000.

There’s no need to take a generator into the great outdoors with Mitsubishi’s new plug-in hybrid system: it stores enough energy to run a household for up to two days – and a campsite for a week.

“You could say this is the first true recreational vehicle … you can go camping in one of these and not worry about power because you’re taking it with you,” says Ashley Sanders, the EV product manager at Mitsubishi Australia.

“It depends what you run off it, but it could easily run your lights, fridge and cooker for a few days or more, and if the power runs out, just run the engine for a while.”

Of course, camping is not the primary intention of the Mitsubishi plug-in hybrid system: it’s designed to zip around town without using petrol.

The massive onboard battery pack that sits beneath the floor of the 4WD has enough energy for 50km of petrol-free driving. But when that energy is depleted, the petrol engine takes over and acts as a generator to recharge the battery pack.

The technology will be in Australian showrooms in a vehicle similar to a mid-size SUV such as the Toyota Kluger within two years, Mitsubishi predicts.

The product manager for the Mitsubishi MiEV PXII, Mitsuyoshi Hattori, said: “We will offer many four-wheel-drives [with this technology].”

Sanders adds: “We haven’t discussed pricing yet but by the time we get to that stage we expect this system will be just another variation [as well as petrol or diesel]. We’re looking at providing the vehicle with a small premium over existing powertrain options.”

Mitsubishi will continue to offer petrol and diesel power, the car maker said, as well as taking a leading position on plug-in hybrid power for recreational and performance vehicles.

“This [plug-in hybrid system] will be one option,” Hattori-san said.

The Mitsubishi plug-in hybrid system is similar to that of the Chevrolet Volt, which uses a petrol engine to recharge the hybrid system’s battery pack once the electric energy has been depleted (click here for the story).

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