As we explored in our last blog post, Mitsubishi Motors is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. In celebration of this remarkable milestone, Mitsubishi is embarking on quite an unusual yet exciting project – a plug-in hybrid version of the 1917 Model A, the very first car that Mitsubishi ever produced. With the help of West Coast Customs, the California auto shop made famous on the MTV series Pimp My Ride, Mitsubishi is hoping to bring this 20th century relic towards the cutting edge of 21st century automotive technology.
While the updated Model A will physically resemble the original 1917 version, its platform will be based on the Mitsubishi Outlander Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV), which itself is not yet available in the United States. The original Model A ran on a 2.8 liter, 4-cylinder engine with just 35 horsepower, but the new PHEV engine comes to 119 horsepower and will include two electric motors and a 12-kilowatt hour lithium-ion battery pack. These two motors will give the vehicle a smooth four-wheel drive, with one motor powering the front wheels while the other powers the back.
Despite its distinction as Mitsubishi’s first production car, the Model A wasn’t particularly successful when it first came out 100 years ago – in fact, only 22 were built between 1917 and 1921, including prototypes. Hopefully Mitsubishi will get the opportunity to make at least a few more once this PHEV version is completed, which is expected to be sometime this summer.
We may not have the Model A PHEV quite yet, but in the meantime you should stop by Peruzzi Mitsubishi and check out some of Mitsubishi’s other exciting vehicles. We have an incredible selection of both new and certified pre-owned Mitsubishi vehicles in stock, such as the 2017 Outlander or the 2015 Lancer Evolution. Stop by today and find the car of your dreams at a reasonable price!
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