Evo reborn? Taiwan-made 2026 Mitsubishi Australia EV to spin off 300kW hot hatch!
Fresh reports suggest the all-new electric Mitsubishi that’s being readied for Australia with Taiwanese electronics giant and iPhone maker, Foxconn, will spin-off a white-hot hatch.
Set to land here in the second half of 2026, the new sporty EV is claimed to pump out around 300kW in its top specification.
The new Mitsubishi EV is also hotly tipped to come with the brand’s Super All-Wheel Control (S-AWC) all-wheel drive tech that will offer torque vectoring and, potentially, a rally-bred drift mode.
READ MORE: Plug-in hybrid Mitsubishi Pajero previewed: Toyota Prado basher has 100km EV range and quad-motor all-wheel drive!
READ MORE: Plug-in powers up! Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV is back with bigger battery, more range and Australian-tuned handling
READ MORE: More details of Mitsubishi’s Aussie EV outed!
There’s no word yet if the hottest Mitsubishi in a generation will revive the car-maker’s legendary ‘Evo’ nameplate.
But recent trademark applications suggest it’s more likely the new EV will be called either the ‘ASX VR-e’ or ‘ASX GT-e’.
Other options include employing ‘Ralliart ‘or ‘VR-4’ badging that have both been used in the past to denote the firm’s fastest models.
Developed in partnership with Foxconn’s automotive division, Foxtron, the fresh details on the Mitsubishi EV come after the electronics firm launched the Foxtron Bria hatch in Taiwan.
Previously seen as the Model B concept, the Bria is set to provide the building blocks for the new Mitsubishi EV. In its home market the Bria it has been priced from $NT899,000 ($42,500).
But it’s thought when the Japanese-branded electric car lands in Australia it will be priced from around $35,000 plus on-road costs.
In Taiwan, the Foxtron hatch is available in three trims, with the base Bria Elegant and mid-spec Bria Emerge coming with a 171kW rear-mounted e-motor that provides for a 0-100km/h dash of around 6.8 seconds.
The dual-motor all-wheel drive Bria Pioneer flagship, which should donate its powertrain for the hot version, produces 298kW for a brisker 0-100km/h sprint of just 3.9 seconds.
Both models use a 57.5kWh lithium iron phosphate battery that provides up to 516km of range with the rear-drive version.
The AWD drives up to 466km on a single charge, with both recorded on the lenient NEDC test cycle.
Plugged in, DC fast charging is capped at up to 134kW, with a 10 to 80 per cent top-up taking 30 minutes.
There’s no word if the Australian-spec version is simply rebadged version of the Bria or a completely reskinned and reengineered take on the Taiwanese hatch.
But it has been confirmed the Japanese car-maker will treat that hatchback to a comprehensive local suspension tune, that includes hardware changes.
Australian engineers will also develop software for our market.
Set to stay true to the Foxtron Bria dimensions, the new Mitsubishi EV measures in at 4315mm long, 1885mm wide and stands 1535mm tall, with a 2800mm wheelbase, meaning it is closely matched to the Toyota Corolla.
Luggage space is limited to 320 litres of space that is boosted by a 52-litre frunk.
According to Foxtron, the Bria comes with a full-width front and rear light bar, 18- or 20-inch alloy wheels, pop-out door handles and a panoramic glass roof.
Designed by Italian stylist Pininfarina, the small hatch is said to incorporate advanced aerodynamic aids.
Within, there’s a 15.6-inch infotainment that runs wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, working alongside a 9.2-inch digital instrument cluster, with high-grade models including a premium 12-speaker sound system.
Below the infotainment system are useful shortcuts for the climate control.
More tech included with the Bria in Taiwan are electric front seats, a rear-view camera, PM2.5 cabin air filtration, ambient lighting, a 360-degree camera, adaptive cruise control, lane-keep assist and rear-cross traffic alert.
There’s no indication if the inbound Mitsubishi EV will share the same levels of kit with the new Bria, but more details of the Taiwan-built and developed EV will be released in the build-up to its launch in the second half of 2026.
When the new battery-powered Mitsubishi finally lands Down Under it will be the first EV sold by the car-maker since sales of its MiEV ended locally back in 2014.
