Accenture forecasts that there will be 1.5 million electric vehicles on the road in the US by 2015, but for now all-electric vehicles are not a common sight. In a report released by the management consulting company, electric car buyers top concerns were how long it takes to charge and how far it can travel.

With the release of the new Mitsubishi i-MiEV pure electric vehicle, the automaker has created the Electriphobia Research Institute, tongue-in-cheek educational site to help potential buyers overcome some of the common (and uncommon) fears and anxieties around electric cars.

The Institute website features details about the 6 therapy treatments including:

• Shock Therapy – Fear of electrocution: all objects in the lab are electrified except the car
• The Silent Treatment – Fear of Silence: features exotic dancing mimes
• Mapnotherapy – Range Therapy: enter your home and work address, the Commutalulator will calculate if the car will have enough juice
• The Tailpatch – Tailpipe Separation Anxiety: eases the fear of gas-fueled cars drivers over the lack of tailpipes on EVs
• Alternative SUbstitution Therapy – Gas Withdrawal Anxiety: the Gripe-o-Matic provides alternative things to complain about besides gas prices
• De-Hippification – Fear of Becoming a Hippie: for those who fear electric car ownership will turn them into a hippie, this treatment includes ways of reversing that transformation including ordering a vente double-half-caf-half-ice-no-whip-mocha-latte-chino… non-organic!

The campaign was created by Toronto agency john st. Co-creative director Stephen Jurisic noted:

“EVs are still largely misunderstood. We wanted Canadians to really learn about the Mitsubishi i-MiEV and, to do that, we had to get them to spend some time on the Electriphobia.com website. So making it entertaining and fun as well as informative was crucial.”