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If EVs are to make a meaningful difference to our collective environmental impact, there's one thing standing in the way: price.
Complexity, competency and capability have all improved since EVs started entering new car showrooms a decade ago, but in that time the price tags haven't improved all that much.
Buying an EV is still a rich person's game and scarcity on the used-car market means there are few true bargains for those willing to go with something second-hand. Even the Chinese aren't selling electric cars below the $40K barrier yet.
And that's where the Mitsubishi eK X EV comes in - or at least it would, if Mitsubishi Motors Australia chose to bring it to our shores.
Though it's unconfirmed for our market for now, we took the opportunity to spend a bit of time behind the wheel in its home (and so far, only) market of Japan.
Appetite for eco cars has been strong in Japan for a long time now, and the eK X EV (along with its platform twin the Nissan Sakura) arrives at a time where Japanese motorists are crying out for more affordable all-electric options.
Though its diminutive size and limited single-charge range would exclude it from consideration for a large number of Aussie motorists, would the compact eK X EV nevertheless make sense in Australian cities as a low-cost runabout for urbanites? It's certainly a question worth asking.
Price and features - Does it represent good value for the price? What features does it come with? 7/10
7 / 10
Given it’s currently not confirmed for the Australian market, it’s a little hard to speculate on how much it’d cost over here.
In Japan, however, the eK X EV is offered in two grades, base model ‘G’ and high-spec ‘P’, with the former retailing for ¥2,398,000 (AU$27,000 at today’s rate), and the latter for ¥2,932,600 (AU$33,020).
In Japan, the eK X EV is eligible for a generous government incentive that slashes those stickers down even further, but we’ll just go with the retail price here.
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Those already look like compelling numbers, even without any state or federal incentives. Specification-wise, not much would need to be touched to meet Australian expectations either.
Both the G and P spec come standard with AEB (with pedestrian and cyclist detection), a full suite of front, side, curtain and driver’s knee airbags, front and rear parking sensors, lane departure warning, frontal collision alert, ISOFIX child seat anchorages, auto-high beam, front seat heaters, power-folding wing mirrors, keyless entry/ignition and climate control.
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A 9.0-inch touchscreen head unit with Android Auto/Apple CarPlay integration is standard on the P specification, but the base model G doesn’t include an audio system at its price.
Adding an integrated sat-nav unit adds another ¥222,860 (AU$2508) to the eK X G’s retail sticker, but even with that adjustment to spec the eK X would easily shape up as Australia’s cheapest EV by a wide margin – that is, of course, assuming Mitsubishi Australia could secure a competitive ‘factory door’ price for our market.
Given low market share of EVs in Australia, that may not be an easy negotiation for Mitsubishi’s local office.
Design - Is there anything interesting about its design? 6/10
6 / 10
As a member of the uniquely-Japanese kei class of vehicles, the eK X EV has to fit within a very specific footprint of 3.4 metres long, 1.48 metres wide, and 2.0 metres tall.
The eK X pushes up right to those limits, measuring just 5.0mm shy of those length and width restrictions while stretching to 1655mm tall, and in order to maximise interior volume each face is almost perfectly vertical and all four corners are right-angles.
The end result is a very angular one-box hatchback, with the raked-back windscreen and bonnet giving the front half a somewhat wedge-shaped profile.
Is it a beauty queen? Not by any conventional standard – it’s more bricklike than beautiful – but like most kei cars its shape is driven by its function.
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All four wheels are pushed right to each corner, minimising intrusion into passenger space, and the generous side and rear glass areas allow a great view of what’s around you – ideal for staying out of trouble on crowded Japanese city streets.
Another pragmatic design feature is the presence of roof rails – optional in Japan (¥27,500, or $311), but probably a good idea for those wanting to gain some more cargo capacity by bolting on a roof pod (which would certainly make the eK X EV look even more comically proportioned).
The P grade also brings a roof spoiler and black plastic wheel arch trims (both of which can also be had on the G spec as part of a ¥71,500/$810 bundle that includes the roof rails), which gives the stumpy eK X a smidge of SUV flavour.
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And as far as style goes, it’s certainly cohesive with other members of the Mitsubishi showroom. The brand’s narrow-eyed headlamps and X-shaped grille motif translate well to the eK X’s nuggety bod, looking very much like if an Outlander’s visage was squished into a compact 1.48-metre wide cube.
The two-tone paint of our high-grade test vehicle looks modern and appealing (though it’s an expensive option at ¥82,500/$935), while single-tone paint jobs are also available.
However, if you’re a fan of artful vehicle design then the blocky and boxy eK X EV probably won’t excite your retinas.
Practicality - How practical is the space inside? 7/10
7 / 10
While design might not be the eK X’s ace card, space efficiency absolutely is.
Trust the Japanese to figure out how to make the best use of a compact volume – with compact apartments and ultra-dense cities being the norm for most Japanese people, it’s no surprise they’ve been able to extract the greatest utility possible from something the size of a kei car.
Those in the front seats get to enjoy some fairly cushy (though not super-supportive) chairs, with the driver’s seat being a little wider to cover the gap between it and the passenger seat.
Folding up the centre armrest also allows the driver to slide across to the left seat, perfect for getting out of a confined parking spot… or dates at the drive-in.
The steering column only adjusts for tilt and not reach, which is a bit of an ergonomics fail, but generally speaking there’s a surprising amount of room for ‘Western’ frames.
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The manually-adjusted seats can slide a fair way back, headroom is substantial, outward vision is superb and, thanks to the narrowness of the eK X, literally everything is within arm’s reach.
The long shelf that spans the dash at mid-height is also a useful feature, an ideal perch for small items like keys, wallets, tissues and phones, while the cupholders are moulded into the dash itself and the climate control and shifter quadrant are housed in their own extension of the centre stack.
Below the climate controls, a bag hook is perfect for toting takeaway, purses or small grocery bags, and there’s some additional shelves and cubbies along with a USB-A, USB-C and 12-volt charger.
Peek under the passenger seat, and an under-seat stowage tray reveals itself, too. There’s even a pull-out compartment in the passenger door to house the owner’s manual. Everything in its right place.
Granted, with limited width there are some constraints on passenger space. The eK X’s rear bench only has room for two seats rather than three, but there’s enough shoulder room available to ensure it’s not as claustrophobic as you might think, and the rear bench is even mounted on sliding rails, has a reclinable backrest and offers more cushion length than the front seats.
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With the seat slid all the way back there’s quite a lot of legroom for back seat passengers, while sliding it forward allows at least one piece of large luggage to sit in the boot while still giving enough space for passenger’s feet.
Other quality-of-life touches include some storage pockets high up on the front passenger’s backrest as well as bottle holders and cupholders integrated into the rear door cards, though, unlike the front seats, there’s no fold-down centre armrest or face-level air vents.
Mitsubishi doesn’t publish a cargo volume for the eK X EV, but the boot opening measures 1105mm wide and 875mm tall, with depth variable depending on the position of the sliding rear seat.
The rear seat backrests also fold down (though not flush with the boot floor), and supersized cargo can also be accommodated by reclining the front passenger seatback all the way so you can tote objects up to two metres long.
Under the boot’s floor hides an inflator kit and charge cable storage, though there’s no cargo blind.
Drivetrain - What are the key stats for the drivetrain? 6/10
6 / 10
The eK X EV is powered by a single electric motor connected to the front wheels, and while all kei cars are limited by Japanese law to just 48kW, torque output has no such limitation.
Thanks to that loophole, and the generally torque-rich nature of an electric motor, the eK X EV produces peak torque of 195Nm, which is just 8.0Nm shy of the heavier petrol-powered Toyota Corolla.
A 20kWh lithium-ion battery pack supplies the motor with power, and is located under the vehicle’s floor. It’s a small battery, but it’s also a small car.
According to Mitsubishi, 20kWh is all most eK X EV drivers should need, but it’s about a third the size of typical EV’s battery these days.
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Energy consumption - How much does it consume? What’s the range like, and what it’s like to recharge/refuel? 6/10
6 / 10
Our short (just under 30km) test drive was done entirely at urban speeds, with no significant highway component.
That plays into an electric car’s strengths, with minimal energy being used to fight aerodynamic and tyre drag, while the constant speeding up and slowing down for traffic and stop lights means a lot of energy gets put back into the battery via the regenerative braking system.
At the end of it, after using 23 percent of the battery (4.6kWh) to travel 28.3km, our average energy consumption measured in at 16.25kWh/100km, which is about par for a modern EV.
However, we were expecting a significantly lower result given the eK X EV weighs only 1080kg – half the weight of a Kia EV6 AWD. And Mitsubishi claims an average energy consumption of 12.4kWh/100km, with a city-only figure of just 10.0kWh/100km.
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Couple that result with a 20kWh battery, and the eK X’s real-world range looks a lot more like 123km instead of the 180km WLTC Mitsubishi claims.
Granted, Tokyo traffic and streets aren’t a perfect analogue for Australian conditions, but there seems to be a big disconnect between the factory numbers and what we could achieve. Even for a city car, a circa-120km range may not be seen as sufficiently generous in Australia.
That said, there’s more than one way to deploy this car’s stored energy. You can use the eK X EV’s vehicle-to-load function to power household appliances through an adaptor, while another intriguing feature is the car’s Vehicle-to-Home (V2H) bi-directional charge capability.
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With V2H, a single connector can make the eK’s battery pack the source of power for an entire building. Useful in the event of a grid power outage, which is a real consideration for disaster-prone Japan.
As for regular charging, the eK X EV has a slightly oddball configuration. Open up the charge port flap on the driver-side flank and you’ll see an old-school Type 1 CCS connector positioned above a chunky CHAdeMO port.
While the latter is useful for bi-directional charging and has significant headroom for high-voltage fast charging, the Type 1 CCS port is probably less useful in Australia given most modern electric cars have moved to the more capable Type 2 CCS design.
If the eK X is to make any sense in Australia, that’s something that would likely need to be addressed along with its seemingly short legs.
Safety - What safety equipment is fitted? What safety rating? 8/10
8 / 10
The eK X, being a Japanese-market vehicle, has no ANCAP safety rating.
Standard equipment includes stability control, traction control, AEB (which can detect pedestrians and cyclists, but not necessarily motorcyclists), lane departure warning, frontal collision alert, a 360-degree top-down camera view, front and rear parking sensors and seven airbags (dual front, front side, curtain and a driver’s knee airbag).
Active cruise control, lane keep assist and a self-parking function are available as cost options.
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Ownership - What does it cost to own? What warranty is offered?
The eK X EV is not yet offered in Australia, so at this point in time it’d be premature to put a number on ownership costs, maintenance, warranty coverage and things like that.
However, with a 20kWh battery it would cost somewhere between $4.20 and $7.00 for a full charge on household power depending on where you live and the kWh rate your energy provider charges you.
As always, those with solar generation and/or home battery storage could whittle those running costs down to practically nothing.
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Driving - What's it like to drive? 7/10
7 / 10
Kei cars are something of a unique experience to begin with, an electric one even more so. Besides those compact dimensions giving it the ultimate ability to cut through dense traffic, the addition of an electric powertrain endows it with the torque necessary to feel properly zippy around the city.
And by ‘zippy’, we’re not joking. With all of that torque being channelled through a pair of skinny eco tyres on the front axle, the eK X EV has little trouble squealing its tyres if you’ve got a heavy right foot.
It might be tiny but it moves with the feisty urgency of a Jack Russell, and thanks to its kerb weight of just over a tonne, it’s a nimble and light-footed thing.
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It’s a shame the steering is so lifeless, though at least its fingertip-lightness makes easy work of lane changes, U-turns, and everything in-between.
There are three drive modes – 'Eco', 'Normal' and 'Sport', but they just change the throttle sensitivity and alter the strength of the regenerative braking.
Alongside this, a one-pedal accelerator model allows the bulk of speeding up and slowing down to be accomplished by modulating the throttle pedal, but you still need to move your foot to the brake in order to come to a complete halt.
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We drove mainly in Normal mode without the one-pedal function activated, and the car felt smooth and easy-going.
Power delivery is linear, the regenerative braking feels natural, with no noticeable step between regen and mechanical braking, and there’s just a faint hum from the motor and inverter when power is being delivered or generated.
It’s difficult to form an opinion on the eK X EV’s suspension. Kei cars aren’t typically the best when it comes to ride comfort, handling, or any other discipline that requires suspension talent, but we can say that it was at least reasonably comfortable.
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Take that assessment with a grain of salt, though. The perfectly-graded streets of central Tokyo are ultra-flattering to any car, and with little in the way of huge imperfections, weird camber or any other kind of challenging surface, we’d have to reserve suspension judgements until we can drive it on more varied roads.
That said, for its intended purpose of crushing short journeys through inner-city environments the eK X EV does a stellar job.
Verdict
And that’s the core takeaway from our time driving the Mitsubishi eK X EV – it’s a near-perfect tool for dealing with inner-urban congestion and tightly-packed city streets. After all, while cars have become progressively more bloated, our roads haven’t expanded in sympathy with that. The tiny measurements of the eK X EV and its slick and seamless electric powertrain allow drivers to flip that paradigm.
But even if Mitsubishi's Australian office chose to bring it here, it wouldn't be the first time the company has experimented with an ultra-compact EV in this country. Remember the i-MiEV from a decade ago? That too was a kei car EV with similar performance stats, however it languished in obscurity thanks to a high $48K price tag and a generally ho-hum offering.
By comparison, the eK X EV feels much more complete and better-equipped, though its price will need to be considerably sharper than the i-MiEV's if it's to convince would-be EV adopters to look away from the entry-level options from Chinese automakers like MG and BYD.
Will Mitsubishi take the plunge? It'll be chasing a niche within a niche if it does, but provided that audience uses the car within its urban-only design parameters, and provided Mitsubishi can offer it for a compelling price, the Japanese company could carve out a meaningful toehold in the EV space at the entry-level end of the spectrum.
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