While the brochure and specs say the Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross PHEV has an electric range of up to 55km, one driver is getting a lot more out of his, having regularly traveled up to 65km on one charge!
Allan Hood, Brendan Foot Supersite’s Parts Rep, bought his Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross PHEV exactly one year ago, in September 2021, and it’s just clicked over to 20,000kms. Allan and his family often use the car for local driving, making use of full electric and zero emissions for those trips, and have noticed they’re getting a lot more EV mileage than they were expecting. A regular trip takes them from Porirua to Wellington Airport and back, a distance of 60km and up the steep Ngauranga Gorge, and the car handles it easily on one charge. His record is 65km, but Allan’s hoping to push that too!
Often at weekends, they’ll head out of town and on long-distance journeys, Allan has found that the Eclipse Cross PHEV’s fuel economy is excellent. On a recent drive from Wellington to Taranaki it averaged 5.7L/100kms, which is impressive for an SUV carrying two people and their luggage. On a trip from Wellington to Taupō, it was a little more, at 6.7L/100km, with the increased altitude and hill climbs that require a little more power accounting for the difference. Allan is keen to point out too that this is not ‘grandpa driving’ – he has the cruise control set to 100km/h and drives to get there, as opposed to pottering up the island!
To charge the car, they simply plug the standard 3 pin plug into a power point in the garage and leave it overnight, costing them just $3.50 in electricity.
Being on-staff, Allan is obviously familiar with many of the vehicles in the Brendan Foot Supersite range and spends pretty much all day, every day in a company vehicle. He and his wife chose the Eclipse Cross PHEV after much consideration because they were keen on a hybrid model, and the fuel economy and cost savings it offers. They bought the top-of-the-range VRX model for the sunroof (which they thought their dog would enjoy) and while she sadly passed away recently, they’re finding it’s a great feature, along with the leather interior. The Eclipse Cross PHEV is roomy enough to load the boot with suitcases and a large chilli bin without having to put the seats down, but they know if they need more capacity, it’s there.
Another great thing about the Eclipse Cross PHEV is everything it tells you – if you’re interested! You can jump in and drive it as you would a normal car, with the vehicle’s intuitive energy system selecting the mode of power for you. Or you can use the information on screen to make the selections yourself. Allan takes a keen interest in the different engine modes and efficiency of each, so knows exactly how the car is running and how much it’s costing. He can switch to Eco Mode to increase the vehicle’s efficiency or for an instant change to zero emissions, switch to EV Priority Mode. And because the Eclipse Cross PHEV prides itself on communicating, when it’s in silent EV Priority Mode, it uses its built-in approach warning system to let pedestrians know it’s there!
Concerns about range often come up when people are considering a change from a conventional petrol or diesel vehicle to a hybrid, PHEV or EV, however recent statistics from Waka Kōtahi and EECA show that most NZ drivers travel less than 30km per day. This distance is well inside the electric range of most, if not all, PHEVs in New Zealand. Based on these figures, the Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross will get you everywhere you need to go for two to three days on a single charge – and with no CO2 emissions. And as Allan points out, the beauty of a PHEV is that you have the petrol there as a back up. No range anxiety – and with its fuel economy so low, anxiety at the pump is diminished too.
Now they’ve owned a PHEV, Allan and his family feel there’s no going back!