Published April 21, 2012
By Philippe Crowe
This week Mitsubishi Motor Sales of Canada (MMSCAN) installed the country’s first Level 3 quick-charging station at its Mississauga, Ontario headquarters, and is offering free use to the public.
The Eaton-manufactured direct current (DC) unit provides the i-MiEV an 80 per cent charge in less than 30 minutes, and to date, this is the only electric car in Canada to offer a DC quick charging port as standard equipment .
The DC quick charger is the most potent of three methods of providing electricity to i-MiEV's 16 kwh, lithium-ion battery pack. Level 2 AC charging – available to home- or business owners, is a 240-volt system that offers a full charge from empty in seven hours. To date, over 76 Eaton Level 2 chargers have been installed at Mitsubishi i-MiEV-certified dealers in Canada. Many more have been installed in the homes of i-MiEV owners. Level 1 charging utilizes standard 120-volt receptacles and requires up to 22 hours to charge from empty.
Among early adopters of i-MiEV are Hydro-Québec, government of Quebec, Transport Canada, city of Calgary, British Columbia's Saanich Police Department and Saskatchewan's SaskPower. In addition to fleet deliveries, most i-MiEV sales have been to consumers who have taken delivery throughout the winter. To date, MMSCAN has named 30 certified i-MiEV dealerships and expects that number to grow during 2012.
MMSCAN’s headquarters are located at 2090 Matheson Boulevard East, Mississauga, Ontario.