US: Mirage is #1 best bang for your buck -- Cars.com

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Woohoo! Mirage takes top spot on a Cars.com study of "best bang for your buck".

They awarded top place to the 5-speed Mirage for lowest total cost including MSRP plus destination fees, plus how much fuel they'll use over 8 years (15k miles/year).

For the Mirage, they calculated:

$13,790 purchase + $10,703 fuel cost ($3.30/US gallon) = $24,493 total cost.

http://blogs.cars.com/.a/6a00d83451b...b654970c-800wi

Couple of interesting points:

• The least expensive hybrid to own over 8 years is the Prius C at $27,810
• The Mirage's CVT apparently doesn't pay for itself in 8 years going by their figures
• Even though the Ford Fiesta 1.0t has the same combined EPA rating as the Mirage 5-speed, the additional cost of the 1.0 option in the Ford actually makes it more expensive to own over 8 years than the base 1.6L Fiesta. See also: 2014 Mirage 1.2 vs. Ford Fiesta 1.0 ecoboost - which has better mileage/fuel economy?

Read the full article: http://blogs.cars.com/kickingtires/2...u-can-buy.html

This Cars.com ranking joins others showing the Mirage as unbeatable value, although not quite as comprehensive as: Mirage is cheapest new car to own/run in Australia, NZ (RACV/RACQ/NRMA)

Oh wow congrats Mirage. Amazes me as Mirage is the cheapest car to get here in NL (base price)

Keep the awards coming

Nice analysis. Its great to see the Mirage getting more awards. :)

Good to see this bit of math done in an article. This is how I tend to think of car cost as well, considering the total cost over the lifetime of the vehicle. I would add to the totals regular scheduled maintenance, and an estimate of typical repairs. Most cars will need some things within 8 years/120k miles (battery, tires, shocks, exhaust, brake pads, ball joints, belts/hoses). These things often cost a bit more with bigger vehicles, or premium/luxury vehicles. The counter point is that perhaps a better-built car might have higher quality/longer lasting components as OEM, and will be a better long term value. As such, it isn't just the lowest sticker price + the best fuel efficiency that gives the correct answer.

Another confounding variable is fuel prices. Should they double in the next 8 years, the fuel price will eclipse the MSRP of the vehicle as the most important factor. When the Nissan Micra is considered, with a base price $2500 lower, but also less efficiency, I think it is important to realize that fuel prices don't ever really trend downward. At today's prices it might make sense, but anticipating higher prices the Mirage, or even a PriusC might be better long term value (depending of course on how much you drive and how much gas goes up in price)

Good points. Do you think it's reasonable to ignore repair/maintenance costs within the same vehicle class? I would imagine that unless a company produced a genuine lemon, they're going to be similar between Spark/Mirage/Micra. Same thought for depreciation at the low end of the market.

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Originally Posted by MetroMPG

Good points. Do you think it's reasonable to ignore repair/maintenance costs within the same vehicle class? I would imagine that unless a company produced a genuine lemon, they're going to be similar between Spark/Mirage/Micra. Same thought for depreciation at the low end of the market.

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The line "past performance in not a guarantee of future performance" might apply. On the flip side, companies like Honda and Toyota have a very strong reputation for quality. Look at the price of an old Toyota pickup compared to anything domestic. That isn't to say that a Ford or a Hyundai built today isn't as good - it may well be, but only time can tell.

I think repair/maintenance costs are much closer than they used to be. Still, I believe most companies seem to design products to have a particular service life - and I suspect this is intentional, not a mere by-product of lowering cost. Even though cars last longer now than they did in the past, they still reach a point where seemingly everything needs replacing. Compare this with a Ford tractor from 1948 which had a less sophisticated engine, but very rarely needs a new part, and when it does that part is easy to get and easy to replace.

I'm rambling, but I suppose my point is that the car will last about as long as the designers intended it to last - and that I suspect this comes down to market pressures (Domestics forced to make better cars when their monopoly came to an end) and corporate philosophy (most reliable vs most cutting edge vs most affordable etc)

You made some very good points there ^

Mitsu USA picked up on this "Top-10 car for penny pinchers" list and put out a press release:

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All-New 2014 Mitsubishi Mirage Ranked #1 in Cars.com's "Top 10 New Cars for Penny Pinchers"

Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) has seen its all-new 2014 Mitsubishi Mirage 5-door hatchback take overall top honors by finishing in first place in Cars.com’s latest “Top 10 New Cars for Penny Pinchers” list.
In its evaluation, Cars.com utilized key data points in its assessment, including a vehicle’s starting price, combined EPA fuel mileage rating and estimated cost for fuel over the first eight years of ownership to determine its rankings.

In the very important eight-year cost for fuel metric, Cars.com determined that the 2014 Mitsubishi Mirage would save consumers nearly $1,000 in fuel costs when compared to the vehicle that finished in second place, and more than $2,000 over many of the other “Top 10” finishers.

The 2014 Mirage delivers impressive fuel economy with an EPA fuel mileage rating of 37 mpg city/44 mpg highway/40 mpg combined*.

With a starting MSRP of only $12,995, the 2014 Mitsubishi Mirage boasts a long list of welcome standard features including fuel-saving Electric Power Steering (EPS), stylish rear spoiler, power windows/mirrors/door locks, keyless entry with panic alarm feature, automatic climate control with micron filter, a dynamic-sounding 4 speaker 140-watt AM/FM/CD/MP3 audio system with USB port, plus much more.

Important standard safety features include 7 air bags (including driver’s side knee air bag), Active Stability Control (ASC) and Mitsubishi Motors’ patented Reinforced Impact Safety Evolution (RISE) body/chassis construction.

Among the welcome available upscale features are the convenient FAST-key passive entry system with push-button engine start/stop, large touch-screen navigation system with backup camera and a Bluetooth hands-free phone system.

Additional peace of mind is delivered through Mitsubishi Motors’ exceptional warranty that includes a 10-year/100,000-mile limited powertrain warranty, 5-year/60,000-mile new vehicle basic limited warranty, 5-year/unlimited miles roadside assistance and 7-year/100,000-mile anti-corrosion limited warranty.
For more information about the highly fuel-efficient and affordable 2014 Mitsubishi Mirage, please visit media.mitsubishicars.com.

*2014 Mirage models equipped with the available continuously-variable transmission (CVT).

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Source: http://media.mitsubishicars.com/rele...6-39a143498197

Good to see Mitsu taking advantage of this.