Yesterday, Mitsubishi announced it would be extending the production and shipment stoppage of the Outlander PHEV until it can find the cause of an overheating lithium-ion battery that caused one of the vehicles to catch on fire.
Batteries in the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV (and in some iMievs) are supplied by a venture that is owner by Japan’s GS Yuasa Corp., Mitsubishi Corp. and Mitsubishi Motors. GS Yuasa is also the battery maker for the batteries that have caused problems with the Boeing 787 Dreamliner jets.
Managing director of Mitsubishi Motors Ryugo Nakao said there were 2 other cases where Outlander plug-in hybrid batteries had signs of short-circuits and where abnormal battery voltage was detected. One was in a customer vehicle in Tokyo that would not start, and the other was at a dealership in Japan where the vehicle would not charge properly.
Mitsubishi Motors was exploring the possibility that the batteries may have experienced excessive shock when they were being placed onto a testing machine. Nakao could not say when production would resume because it will not do so until Mitsubishi has found the cause.
Mitsubishi is aiming to finish its investigation by the end of April.
Mitsubishi has sold 4000 Outlander Plug-in hybrids to date and has received 4,000 more orders. Currently only selling in Japan, Mitsubishi plans to start selling the plug-in hybrid in Europe starting in July. The overwhelming response has led to delays for other countries waiting for the Outlander PHEV.
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