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Thread: Small car enthusiast from Canada

  1. #1

    Small car enthusiast from Canada

    Hi there! Darin here.

    I'm a big fan of small cars that get great fuel economy.

    Over the years I've gone through a few fuel-sippers (and the occasional gas hog), including these 3-cylinder beasties (and one "former" 3-cylinder):


    • 1998 Pontiac Firefly (Suzuki-engineered, Canadian market Geo/Chevrolet Metro) 1.0L, 5-speed;
    • 2000 Honda Insight, hybrid 1.0L, 5-speed;
    • 1991 Geo Metro electric - I yanked out the 1.0L engine and converted this one to battery-electric drive
    • 1992 Pontiac Firefly convertible 1.0L, 5-speed (currently in storage... this is a future fixxer-upper)


    So, based on my automotive history you can see why Mitsubishi caught my attention with the announcement of a light weight, 3-cylinder Mirage, designed for efficiency. That's the reason Tim (Daox) & I decided to dedicate a forum to the car.

    Yet despite having a driveway littered with efficient cars, I actually ride my bicycle around town most of the time.

    Oh, and I'm also a co-founder/administrator at EcoModder.com, a community focused on improving fuel economy through vehicle modifications & driving techniques.


        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2014 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 63.2 mpg (US) ... 26.9 km/L ... 3.7 L/100 km ... 75.9 mpg (Imp)


  2. The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to MetroMPG For This Useful Post:

    skajan (05-02-2014),socal6g (11-19-2013)

  3. #2
    Senior Member zefke's Avatar
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    Hello Metro,

    Superb Forum.

    Really International. I like it a lot...

    I have one question: I can upload photo's in the garage, but when I want to upload a photo in a thread it doesn't work. I see the tekst upload but when the mouse is over it, it dissappears... and when I click nothing happens...

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2013 Spacestar Invite 1.0 manual: 48.2 mpg (US) ... 20.5 km/L ... 4.9 L/100 km ... 57.8 mpg (Imp)


  4. #3
    Hi, zefke. Glad you're enjoying the forum. So am I!

    I'll post a dedicated thread about adding images. It's bound to come up again... I'll return shortly and post a link to the thread.

    Thread: How to add photos/pictures to your post

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2014 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 63.2 mpg (US) ... 26.9 km/L ... 3.7 L/100 km ... 75.9 mpg (Imp)


  5. #4
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    Hi MetroMPG,

    You're a wealth of information! This forum helped make my choice in buying a 2015 Mirage ES. I am very happy with this car. I bought the manual transmission (wanted to keep the cost at a minimum, and I enjoy shifting my own gears). However I find the final gear a little on the high side, 3000 rpm at 100km/h (60mph). I think Mitsubishi has done this to reduce downshifting on inclines or even strong headwinds especially if you have a car full adults, since we're dealing with limited HP. Nevertheless, I think if the rpm were somewhere around 2500, that would be sufficient. I'm wondering if a transmission shop could change that 5th gear ratio, as in machining a custom gear?

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 48.3 mpg (US) ... 20.5 km/L ... 4.9 L/100 km ... 58.0 mpg (Imp)


  6. #5
    Bonjour, motormontreal!

    Quote Originally Posted by motormontreal View Post
    This forum helped make my choice in buying a 2015 Mirage ES. I am very happy with this car.
    That's excellent to hear. I'm sure Mitsu will be sending a commission fee soon.

    I find the final gear a little on the high side, 3000 rpm at 100km/h (60mph). I think Mitsubishi has done this to reduce downshifting on inclines or even strong headwinds
    Join the club - I think it 5th revs too high. While you may be right, I think they could have geared it higher. If I didn't want to downshift during those rare occasions 5th gear can't provide the power, I would use 4th! It's not just Mitsubishi - most modern manual transmissions are geared too short, as if there's some rule that once you get to top gear, you should never have to downshift out of it.

    I'm wondering if a transmission shop could change that 5th gear ratio, as in machining a custom gear?
    It would be very expensive to get custom gears made (probably well past $1k) -- not cost effective. Another option is taller tires (which would throw off the speedometer/odometer, and may adversely affect aerodynamics & rolling resistance). Or use the taller final drive gearing from the Euro/Japan Mirage (though that will slow acceleration in all gears).

    There may be 5th gear "swaps" that can be done on this car from other vehicles that use a similar transmission. I haven't heard about one for the Mirage yet.

    Welcome to the forum! Nice to see a new member in "my neighbourhood" ... I'm just about 200 km up the river from you.


        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2014 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 63.2 mpg (US) ... 26.9 km/L ... 3.7 L/100 km ... 75.9 mpg (Imp)


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