Self-sufficient dealership

Mitsubishi's newest dealership is completely self-sufficient, with solar power and the ability to use old electric vehicle (EV) batteries for electricity storage.

The Futamatase Dendo Drive Station showroom opened December 20 in the Fukuoka Prefecture, Kyushu. 

The showroom uses large capacity solar panels and a storage battery unit to short the power generated. 

The system specification provides for the future reuse of EV and plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) batteries, which can be incorporated into the storage unit.
 
The solar panels installed at the showroom have a 30kW generating capacity, equivalent to the showroom's average power consumption, while the battery unit can store 100kWh of electricity, equivalent to 10 days power usage in an average household.

In addition to being able to supply EV and PHEVs with electricity for charging purposes, the use of a V2H (vehicle to home) adaptor allows the system to supply enough electricity to meet the showroom's needs using a combination of power extracted from EV and PHEV batteries and electricity generated by the solar panels.

The project will collect a variety of data over the next year to demonstrate the viability of the solar panel and storage battery capacities and help shape future Dendo Drive Station showrooms. 

The showroom also features a presentation and demonstration area where visitors can learn and experience how EVs will play a key role in diverse energy grids of the future, and their value in times of natural disaster.

Since Mitsubishi opened its first Dendo Drive Station showroom in October 2016, it has converted 56 showrooms in Japan as of December 20 and expects to increase this to 200 by financial year 2020.