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View my fuel log 2014 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 62.4 mpg (US) ... 26.5 km/L ... 3.8 L/100 km ... 74.9 mpg (Imp)
You can find a new es 17 still for under 10k if you search dealers. Possibly near you or with in 300mi
Eggman (11-15-2017)
I did my first test drive today. Used car dealer selling 2015 ES with 17600 miles for $9000.
I was pleasantly surprised with the ride. Very smooth and not as noisy as I expected. Took it on a state highway so I got it up to at least 60mph, maybe more. No funny noises or shake, rattle, and roll sounds. The noise level seemed lower than in my wife's 2004 Hyundai Elantra with 130k miles. Interesting "feel" as the CVT did it's thing as opposed to a traditional automatic transmission. Didn't do much high speed turning, but I loved the short turning radius at slow speeds. Pulling out of the lot I had to make a tight turn to avoid a backup and go turn. I loved that part. The little car just zipped out of the lot and off we went. The acceleration was better than I expected. I wasn't going up hills, but I had plenty of power to get going and even pass other cars.
I am 6' tall and 250lbs. Obviously a small cabin, but I didn't feel cramped. If I were in the back seat I'd likely have a less favorable observation. I sat back there and it was tight. Front and back the headroom was good.
An earlier post mentioned checking tires. This car did NOT have Dunlop tires. It had what appeared to be new "Starfire" radials the 175/65 15 size. The salesman spent time trying to convince me that a 15" would be better for the car than a 14" tire. I am not a tire expert so I have no clue if that's true. What I do know is that the tires looked nice but weren't Dunlop. The car also, accordingly to the salesman had a new battery, although I couldn't tell what brand.
As to price they came down $250. to $8750. I felt they would go more if I played the game. I didn't but courteously thanked him for his time, told him I was interested, but just not ready today to buy the car. His next question was "What price would get you to buy this car today?' I wanted to say $7500 which I was very doubtful his boss would accept. But if he did I might have bought it. Bottom line was I never did answer the question, but we agreed to talk in a few days.
I am inclined at this point to keep shopping. As we enter that period from Thanksgiving to New Years it seems to me some good deals on a new Mirage (probably a 2017) will appear and that might make more sense.
Thanks for reporting back. Always interesting to hear about other people's Mirage shopping experiences.
Well...you have to wonder why a 2 year old car with 17,000 miles is running around on a new set of tires. And they are an off-brand that is technically the wrong size. Not saying that there is a fire here...but does anyone else smell smoke?
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View my fuel log 2015 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 52.2 mpg (US) ... 22.2 km/L ... 4.5 L/100 km ... 62.6 mpg (Imp)
Yeah...absolutely. But this could be an example of a complicated situation. If a dealer wanted to play hardball, they could cry foul on the non-stock sized tires and deny a warranty claim until the owner brings the car in with 165-65-14s. I'm not saying it will happen...just that it could happen.
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View my fuel log 2015 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 52.2 mpg (US) ... 22.2 km/L ... 4.5 L/100 km ... 62.6 mpg (Imp)
You owe it to yourself to drive a 17+ from what I've heard and read they are a better car to drive. I have 2 17s but have never driven a 14/15.
Got a callback from a sales rep at a Mitsubishi dealer in NJ that she has a 2017 ES model new. She quoted a price of $10,300. Sounds like a decent deal. Am going to test drive in the next couple of days.