Used Mitsubishi i-MiEV review and buying guide (2009 to 2017): which one to buy and what to check

Which used Mitsubishi i-MiEV should you buy?

The one to buy is the youngest i-MiEV you can find whose battery has a documented history, because the battery is the part that decides whether a car's a good one. It was on sale between 2009 and 2017, and there's no separate generation to pick between, so the choice comes down to the condition of each car rather than a particular year or version.

Age matters for the body too. The i-MiEV is lightly built, and rust starts showing at the front edge of the bonnet and on the rear wings once a car reaches 8 to 9 years old. A later car gives you more time before that shows up, but don't assume it's clear: look at those panels on every one you view, whatever the year.

Which i-MiEV motor and battery should you go for?

There's no engine choice to make: every i-MiEV has the same electric motor and drive, and nothing in its history points to a weakness there. That's a thin record rather than a clean bill of health, so don't read it as proof the motor's bulletproof. What actually separates a good car from a bad one is the battery, and replacements are very expensive.

Mitsubishi stuck with the 16 kWh battery, made up of 88 cells. Its French twins from Peugeot and Citroen dropped to a smaller 14.5 kWh pack of 80 cells in the summer of 2012, but the i-MiEV didn't follow. That means you're not hunting for a particular battery version on this car, just for one that's held its capacity.

What should you check when viewing a used i-MiEV?

Ask for written evidence of the battery's condition before anything else, and don't buy without it. The pack is the one part you least want to pay for on this car, so its state matters more than the mileage. Ask the seller to have it fully charged when you arrive, then watch how quickly the range reading falls over a short test drive.

Get down and look along the front edge of the bonnet and around both rear wings, where rust appears on cars of 8 to 9 years and older. Bubbling paint or brown staining there means corrosion has already got going, so factor in bodywork repairs or move on to another car.

Ask for proof that two recalls were done. One replaces the passenger front airbag inflator, whose propellant can break down after years of heat and humidity, so the inflator can split when the airbag fires. The other greases the switch connections for the indicators and lights, which can cut out or flicker without warning. Check every light works while you're there.

Paste the advert into the free check and it runs these against the listing, the MOT history and the DVLA record before you travel.

What does a used Mitsubishi i-MiEV cost to run?