Mitsubishi’s new energy ecosystem lets your car power your home

When Typhoon Faxai’s record-breaking winds and heavy rain battered Chiba Prefecture (about 40 kilometers southeast of central Tokyo) last September, Mitsubishi Motors sent 12 Outlander plug-in hybrid electric vehicles or PHEVs to community facilities and other sites in the area to serve as power sources for household appliances. Weeks later, the Japanese auto giant concluded disaster cooperation agreements with several more areas to eventually create systems throughout Japan that would enable Mitsubishi Motors to quickly provide electric vehicles to help disaster-stricken areas.

This development somehow points us to a near future where electrification of transportation can bring environmental, health, and economic benefits. This was further highlighted when Mitsubishi Motors Philippines brought select members of the Motoring media covering this year’s 46th Tokyo Motor Show to Mitsubishi Motors’ newly opened Mi-Garden GINZA (pronounced “My Garden”) located in metropolitan Tokyo.

The two-story center that features a posh coffee shop, a gift shop, and a sprawling garden area at the back, showcases a combination of inspired architectural design, time-tested engineering, and pioneering technologies that the Mitsubishi Motors brand and its brand message “Drive your Ambition” represent.

“The ‘M’ stands for Mitsubishi, while the ‘I’ is for intelligent, ingenious, inspiration and interaction. Such initials aim at making MI-Garden GINZA a place that offers inspiration, new ideas and help expand one’s field of possibilities through the medium of expertly designed vehicles to everyone who visits,” said Fumito Ueyanagi, in charge of Mitsubishi Motors’ Overseas Network Development Department.

He explained that the snacks served to us were prepared from cooking appliances powered directly from an Outlander PHEV parked at the back adding that such set up shows the possibilities of a sustainable energy lifestyle leveraging Vehicle-to-Home energy system or what is known as Mitsubishi Motors’ new Dendo Drive House (DDH) package.

Ueyanagi explained that a DDH is a package of systems conceptualized for households, comprised of electric vehicles and vehicle-to-home (V2H) charging devices, solar panels, and household-use rechargeable batteries, sold as a comprehensive service that incorporates everything from sales and installation to post-sale maintenance.

“Mitsubishi Motors is working to make society more sustainable and convenient through the electrification of vehicles and home. With the DDH, electric vehicles become a sustainable choice of mobility while driving and when parked, and can be integrated seamlessly as part of home,” said Ueyanago who informed that a number of communities in Japan now use the system.

Indeed, DDH makes it possible to use power generated by the house to charge vehicles like the Outlander PHEV and conversely to supply power back into households, offering a variety of benefits to customers such as cutting down on their electricity bills while offering convenience as an emergency power supply in case of emergencies.

“To provide this sustainable lifestyle experience, 100 percent of the energy used here at MI-Garden GINZA comes from renewable resources. Furthermore, MI-Garden GINZA aims to become a new symbol here as we regularly host a variety of events at the garden area, a rarity in this highly urbanized district of Tokyo,” he said.