2019 Mitsubishi Mirage G4 5-speed

[MetroMPG]

Originally Posted by 2016 Versa

I wouldn't trust the factory mileage readout. The one in my Versa is always about 4-6 MPG optimistic.

Just FYI:

I've done 10 fill-ups in several Mirages, comparing the volume/distance calcs against the factory computer.

Results showed the factory gauge was optimistic in a range at the extremes from 1% to 9%, which equates to ~0.6 to ~5.4 MPG (US).

But most of the fills were around 4.5% optimistic, or ~2.7 MPG on the gauge. (Also FYI, I always fill the car using the same number of clicks when full, and often use the same pump at the same station.)

Smallie - I'm sure you know the car has 2 factory MPG gauges, right?



The default "A" gauge auto-resets after 4 hours of inactivity; the "B" gauge is user-resettable (good for monitoring tank MPG). Unfortunately "B" is buried in a stupidly designed user interface. (Search for the "B" gauge thread on the Mirage forum... or RTFM )

[smallie]

Thanks for the reply! That is an interesting fact about the grill block. I also had no idea about the other MPG gauge on the car! I'll check that out tomorrow.

There are three main reasons I went with the manual. Here they are in order of importance.

First, I feel the manual is going to be more reliable. I perused some forums before buying this car and it would appear that the CVT can have issues much sooner than the manual. It will also be cheaper to replace or repair when it does have issues.

Second is the fuel economy. Although the CVT has a higher EPA rating, the manual permits coasting and EOC which I do on rare occasions. I am working on this more as I get to know the car. I also typically shift at 2000rpm and skip 4th gear.

Lastly, they had two identical sapphire blue 2019 mirage G4 ES sedans with about 1000 miles on them at the dealership, the only difference being one had the CVT and one had the 5MT. The manual was exactly $1000 cheaper. So that made my decision even easier!

I could see how the sedan wouldn't sell well, the hatch is just more practical. However I get the impression the mirage in general was brought to the North American market as an afterthought.

[MetroMPG]

All good reasons to pick the manual.


I wish we had stats on the durability of each transmission style. I have seen 3 different used Mirage ads that stated the manual transaxle had been replaced. But we've seen many more than 3 CVT failures.



We know of one manual in the U.S. that went to ~300k miles / ~500k km before it started having shifting problems, but the owner never bothered having it diagnosed. He just replaced the car. On the other hand, we recently saw a story of a CVT going over 400k miles / 640k km with no major problems.

I get the impression the mirage in general was brought to the North American market as an afterthought.

Definitely! In a way we're lucky that Mitsu dealers were asking corporate for any fresh product to sell.

[MetroMPG]

PS:don't know if you saw this thread...


Thread: 2014 Mirage aeromods A-B test: grille block, mini-Kammback, air dam, mirrors, 1 wiper

[smallie]

I may have overlooked it, but what material did you use to make the air dam on that car?

Also, I figured I would ask since you have a Mirage too: do you know of a trick to pass the scangauge cable from the OBD port up the side of the dash when using a windshield mount? I took a quick look at it and it looks like I will have to loosen the dash itself and pull it back to make room to get the cable through. I didn't try it because I was short on time but I am now off work until after new years

[wjohn]

I'm interested to follow this. My Civic is going to rust in half one of these days and I will be tempted to replace it with a hatchback Mirage or a Spark. I have been leaning towards the Spark since they are far more readily available around here, and I'd like to be able to find junkyard parts in the future. The Mirage definitely wins in the fuel economy department though. They just don't pop up on CL like the Sparks do, and the one dealer in the area doesn't really seem to care to sell them. We'll see when the time comes.

Interesting to hear of the manual trans failure on the Mirage, although 300K isn't horrible. I haven't seen enough to convince me which car wins the reliability contest - yet. All I know is that I can afford to replace an engine or two in either one and still come out ahead of paying for a Fit, which is unfortunate. You should have many thousands of trouble-free miles ahead of you on your car with such low miles!

[smallie]

1715 Miles

I was able to get my SGII mounted where I am reasonably happy with it. It is much more visible now and doesn't block my factory readout with the windshield mount. I was able to run the cable behind the dash. This entailed removing the 10mm bolt at the bottom left corner of the dash and pulling it out a little. The cable has created a little more of a gap than I would like between the dashboard and the pillar trim, but I think I can live with it.

Also I got my license plate in the mail yesterday. I took it to the county clerk today and traded it for this awesome specialty plate that benefits the Tennessee Arts Commission.

[smallie]

1838 Miles

I came outside on Saturday to scrape the windshield on my wife's Corolla and noticed a strange ice pattern on the rear window of my Mirage. I went to feel of it and realized it wasn't ice at all when the window started to fall in - it was shattered. I don't think someone smashed it because it was intact until I touched it, and my wife's car was behind it and wasn't damaged. I guess it had a defect in the glass and the cold weather caused it to contract and break? It was 15f when I noticed it. Oh well. Its fixed now. Hope it doesn't happen again

[Vman455]

Ouch! Glad it's fixed; are parts on the Mirage generally cheap?

I had a star ding on my windshield once. The Safelite guy came out and filled it, but several months later we had a warm day followed by a hard frost. Came out that morning and there was a crack running across the entire windshield, originating from the original ding.

[Ecky]

Originally Posted by smallie

1838 Miles

I came outside on Saturday to scrape the windshield on my wife's Corolla and noticed a strange ice pattern on the rear window of my Mirage. I went to feel of it and realized it wasn't ice at all when the window started to fall in - it was shattered. I don't think someone smashed it because it was intact until I touched it, and my wife's car was behind it and wasn't damaged. I guess it had a defect in the glass and the cold weather caused it to contract and break? It was 15f when I noticed it. Oh well. Its fixed now. Hope it doesn't happen again

It certainly happens. I've heard of this happening rarely on Honda Insights as well.