While some carmakers are trying to endorse pure-electric vehicles as being different and new, others like Mitsubishi are taking a different approach promoting them as the "new normal".
That's the name of Mitsubishi's latest marketing campaign, which will see the Japanese auto manufacturer flooding a quiet Midwest town called –wait for it- Normal with 1,000 MiEV electric cars.
In addition, Mitsubishi will help install a high-tech EV charging infrastructure comprising of 30 ultra-fast Level 3 quick charge "refueling" stations spread across the town.
"Normal EVTown is a community that is embracing new technology in an environmentally sound way," says Chris Koos, Mayor of Normal, Illinois. "It is a way of imagining the future and Normal is that future."
Before you pack your bags and head to find the Midwest town that is situated amid the cornfields of Illinois, learn that Mitsubishi won't be giving up the cars for free. Instead, it will make 1,000 out of a total of 15,000 units readily available to the town's residents who won't have to get in line (or so to speak…) to buy the MiEV.
What Mitsubishi avoids to say in the promotion is that the tiny pure-electric model will reach showrooms in November with a starting price of $27,990, which can drop by as much as $7,500 to $20,490 after government subsidies.