A couple of days ago, Nissan announced the North American price tag for its soon-to-be-released electric car, the Leaf.  No doubt you’ve seen the commercials for it on TV or on websites like Facebook.  The Leaf will hit the streets at about $32,750 before any incentives.  It will be just over $25k after the federal tax credit.  Some state incentives would drop it even further.  This seems to have made Mitsubishi nervous – their i-MiEV electric car was reported to be expected to sell for about $50,000.  You may recall my poignant question at the time: Would You Spend $50,000 on THIS?

Given that the i-MiEV is such a stupid-looking car, being basically a half-moon with four tiny wheels and a terrarium-like windshield, it should be nervous about its price tag.  The ultra-mega-sardine-compact is not what I would call practical.

Now, the more contemporary Nissan Leaf (which, from all reports, has about the same interior space as my wife’s Honda Civic) will hit the U.S. not only before the i-MiEV, but at a much cheaper price.  I can imagine the Japanese version of “oh shit” resounding through the Mitsubishi corporate offices.

So they quickly decided that profit is not an option and they might have to actually compete.  Their marketing and “first one out” advantage was lost long ago, since they failed to capitalize on the huge amount of publicity the i-MiEV received last summer and fall.  With that momentum lost and now with the Leaf about to appear in numbers on American shores, Mitsubishi has to scramble to do something.

So they dropped their price tag for the i-MiEV down to something more comparable with the Nissan.  Yesterday, they slashed Japanese prices on the car down to about $30,000 (¥2.8 million) and it’s expected that U.S. prices will be roughly the same when the i-MiEV comes here next year.

Speaking of currencies, when I was 18, I went to the bank and withdrew $150 in pesos.  It was a lot.  One day I’ll go to Japan with $50 and become a millionaire.  In Yen.  Then I’ll blow it all on a Happy Meal (super sized) and texting my friends about the coolness of being rich.

Related posts:

1. Mitsubishi Once Again #FAILs With the i-MiEV
2. Mitsubishi Can’t Accept the Obvious, Tries Hype Instead
3. Nissan Says Long Range Unnecessary in EVs

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