Test drove a 2015 Mirage (update: bought it ... 5-speed manual)

[ME_Andy]

Dude, don't trade a good car for a hypothetical, minor problem 50k down the road (which would still be under warranty, too)

[3dplane]

If it means anything I have around 58k miles on mine with no problems.(other than the rear axle alignment which is fixed now).

I also happen to work at a dealer that is also a Mitsubishi dealer, and I work next to the Mitsu tech so I see most of the Mirages coming in.

I only recall seeing this on one occasion. It was an ugly case though,the bearing eating through some of the metal around it. However if the customer would've brought it in sooner instead of keep driving it,might have been a not so ugly situation.

Most of them come in for recalls and customer induced or operator error or simply not reading the owner's manual on some of the silly complaints.
I keep an eye on the Mirages coming in because I'm naturally curious about why they are there.

[MetroMPG]

Thanks again for sharing your knowledge about these cars, 3dplane.

[Hockeynut]

With this scheduled repair I am relegated to driving my 97 4x4 Suburban to work..Grrr..All 15 mpg.

3dplane was the rear axle a Mits fix or something you did?

[3dplane]

Originally Posted by MetroMPG

Thanks again for sharing your knowledge about these cars, 3dplane.

No problem! Thanks to you for running these great sites! I learned a lot from them and of course the smart people that post on them!

Originally Posted by Hockeynut

With this scheduled repair I am relegated to driving my 97 4x4 Suburban to work..Grrr..All 15 mpg.

3dplane was the rear axle a Mits fix or something you did?

Unfortunately something I had to do. In the beginning I did not push for a replacement axle because I KNEW I would get an equally bad replacement based on all the alignment readings I personally seen on several Mirages.
(not one good one to be seen).
I was naive thinking mitsubishi will later take care of the issue (when they come out with good axles)but discovered that they will deny all faults like their life depended on it.

Long story short, after several different approaches of temporary correction of rear axle alignments,I had to put an acetylene torch to it and bend the axle that way to get a permanent correction. Even that took several sessions to get it right. And I have access to an alignment machine so I do not recommend my fix to someone who does not.

Today's example of a Mirage complaint at work was "vibration and whistle noise at 80+ MPH".
Went on a test drive with the Mitsu tech to see if we can duplicate it.

Fastest we got it up to was just over 70 MPH and no vibration or whistle.
The Mirage was wrecked in the front where the fender was bulging out around the headlight so we thought maybe at 80+MPH the air rushes in between the two and possibly whistle but guess what? We are not going to find out. Slow the F down! That would be a typical Mirage complaint around here.

[Hockeynut]

Never any vibration or whistle from my Mirage at any speed.Still tight and smooth.I just hope I got a fluke prob with the AC and the troubles end there because driving my old Suburban is nice but the gas mileage not so..Btw the ol Suburban is a gem I have taken very good care of..286k original miles and runs like a dream.I keep her well maintained and am hoping to get 400k out of my baby.

Thanks for your input 3dplane.

[Hockeynut]

It is with sad news I come today.Little blue is in the graveyard.Heading to work on the interstate very early in the morning last week still dark with some fog.A monster deer ran in front of me and it was lights out for lil blue.2 airbags went off.Front end completely destroyed.One heck of a wallup!.went from interstate speeds to 25-30mph in an instant!.How in the world that deer did not come through the windshield I do not know.

Total loss of course but at this point I am considering buying another.Or any other suggestions in the price range for a car that gets 50+mpg?...Thanks in advance for any and all advice.

[MetroMPG]

Aaah! That bites! How are you doing? No worse for wear, I hope.

As for a replacement, was it paid off, or are you about to get screwed over by insurance?

[Hockeynut]

Thanks for asking metro.Doing fine other than a little beat up from the airbags and wallet.Never a win,win with a new vehicle but yup insurance is giving me some chit!.Insurance is always good til ya need it!!

Have a rental that insurance is paying for til the 20th and at that point I am relegated to driving my gas guzzlin 4x4 Suburban.

Actually been poking around looking at used Mirages.Not alot of manual transmission models out there for sale.Rather have a manual than automatic just for mileage reasons.

Still open to other make and models with good reports.

[ThermionicScott]

Glad that you fared alright, Hockeynut! It's amazing how much safer even subcompacts are these days. Good luck with the insurance stuff.