Regardless of which controls you prefer, grab a spare control head on eBay for $25 while you can...because manual or auto are both fairly costly...
Regardless of which controls you prefer, grab a spare control head on eBay for $25 while you can...because manual or auto are both fairly costly...
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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)
The 2012 Nissan Versa I had used cables for the vent selector knob and temp knob. Very stiff and mechanical. Hard to turn at times. The fan speed knob and recirculation button were electronic. So cable operated systems do exist still. I suspect mainly on entry level vehicles such as these.
I'm assuming the prices are so high on the units because of low demand. Otherwise, why so much?
Last edited by palebeachbum; 08-16-2017 at 02:07 AM.
Welcome here, Andy!
FYI, we posted about both your Mirage reviews - 2014 hatch and 2017 sedan.
cheers
Darin
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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)
That's pretty common for OEM electronics. Even a single key fob for a Mirage is almost $250. This $10,000 car has about $30K of parts in it..lol.
Check out a parts catalog here:
https://www.mitsubishipartswarehouse...electrical-cat
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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)
I'm trying to find a car that is like my old Geo Metro. That's why I'm interested in the Mirage. I wouldn't want to buy such an old car used. So I'm looking for a minimalistic Mirage.
My fear with regard to the automatic climate control is not so much the cost to replace, but the question of whether any parts will be available when this car has, for example, 150,000 miles on it. My Metro had about 200,000 miles on it and was 15 years old when it finally died. Will there be parts available when the Mirage is 15 years old?
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View my fuel log 2017 Mirage SE 1.2 manual: 45.4 mpg (US) ... 19.3 km/L ... 5.2 L/100 km ... 54.5 mpg (Imp)
My guess is the Mirage will be no different than most other vehicles. If you go to the dealer to buy parts for any 15 year old car, it is hit or miss. I own a 1999 Eclipse and I have still been able to find a decent number of parts for it...even through the dealer. But I've also been told on some occasions that "this part is no longer available."
The good news is that there are lots of Mirages being parted out...so you can build your own stock of expensive replacement parts for just a few dollars. For example...that $800+ climate control head used in 2014-2015 Mirages can be found on eBay for under $40.
The bad news is that the aftermarket has not stepped up (in the US) to produce some basic parts like shocks and struts. That's concerning...but hopefully that will change as more are sold.
Last edited by Top_Fuel; 08-16-2017 at 05:00 PM.
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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)
With all this talk about replacing the auto climate controller, I'm beginning to wonder what the job would entail.
Has anyone here replaced one?
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View my fuel log 2015 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 49.6 mpg (US) ... 21.1 km/L ... 4.7 L/100 km ... 59.5 mpg (Imp)
All our cars have manual heater controls. I pulled the dash out of one car to retrieve a pen that was thought to have been blocking a blend door. It was relatively simple, pull the steering column, console and then the dash if I recall correctly.
The cars we have are all optioned the same. es plus(canada) gives you cvt,pw,pl,manual ac,blue tooth,steering wheel radio controls, but no cruise
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View my fuel log 2014 Mirage SE wussie cvt edition. 1.2 automatic: 37.7 mpg (US) ... 16.0 km/L ... 6.2 L/100 km ... 45.3 mpg (Imp)
Yeah, that is a concern of mine. With my Metro, I was able to go into any repair shop and have it repaired with aftermarket parts. The scarcity of aftermarket parts for the Mirage is a flashback to the '70s and '80s when parts for imports were hard to come by.
All this makes me wonder if I am not better off just sticking with my Fiat. The Fiat is certainly no Metro, but at least it has Fiat-Chrysler standing behind it. Still I want to be able to get high gas mileage again.
And while I'm discussing my concerns as well as high gas mileage, the Fuelly numbers for the Mirage are disappointing. Even the logs on this site have some cars with low or mediocre numbers. This is disappointing for a 3 cylinder car. My Fiat gets 40 MPG and it's a 4 cylinder car. My Geo Metro reliably got over 50 MPG no matter how I drove it.
Don't get me wrong ... I like the Mirage. I want to get one and hopefully it will get better gas mileage than the Fiat. Many things about the Mirage remind me of the Geo Metro, and as I mentioned, there is a nostalgia factor in it for me. But I think the ES is the model for me. It's not like I will get better trade-in value or resale value if I went with an SE. I realize that whatever I get, I'm getting for me and for the long term because the depreciation is so great.
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View my fuel log 2017 Mirage SE 1.2 manual: 45.4 mpg (US) ... 19.3 km/L ... 5.2 L/100 km ... 54.5 mpg (Imp)
I check the fuel economy display(trip b) on the mirages when they come in the shop. They vary a lot depending on the driver and tires. But I see consistent numbers for each car between 38 and 46 us mpg. From what I see you get the better fuel mileage with the stock tires than the wider 185/60/14's that some of the cars run.
I too was concerned about aftermarket parts as well since we have a hino here that is stealership only for 95% of parts, but I haven't really needed anything for a Mirage that isn't already available. Brake pads and rotors are easy enough to get. Same with air,oil filters wiper blades. I haven't had to replace any ball joints, tie rods or shocks. Same goes for wheel bearings. I'm pretty impressed with how they are holding together especially for being delivery vehicles which replaced 1/4 ton pickup trucks.
Just don't crash it and you shouldn't have a problem keeping it running on the cheap. Front ends are easy to replace but parts can be crazy expensive.
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View my fuel log 2014 Mirage SE wussie cvt edition. 1.2 automatic: 37.7 mpg (US) ... 16.0 km/L ... 6.2 L/100 km ... 45.3 mpg (Imp)
bolo (08-17-2017)