I drove a Festiva for 14 years, & I have to respectfully disagree with you. For a little car it was quite solid & extremely dependable. Heck, Consumer Reports didn't even rip on it at the time. Then again, I've lost all respect for Consumer Reports over the years.
I don't mean to offend any Mirage owners. I own one myself. I wanted to confirm Eggman's point that a Mirage comes with a lot of nice feature compared to the cars of the past (1990's) & even today's cars. Some car critics want to compare the Mirage to Geo Metro & Ford Festiva cars of the past. In my mind, that's not a bad thing. Those cars were dependable & economical transportation. I never owned or drove a Metro, but know those who loved the ones they had. The Mirage is surely a step up over these older cars. I would never argue that!
The Mirage is a wonderful little car for the money. I bought one, because I wanted something that was economical & dependable. I enjoy driving it, too! 78 hp for a car this size is more than enough, too! Small cars of the past had way less hp & people still got from point A to point B.
I have some fond memories of old Festiva and driving the Mirage reminds me of those days. I am thankful for that! By comparison, the Mirage does seem like a luxury small hatchback to me. I've only owned my Mirage for 5 months. I am big fan of it. I'm sure that I will be speaking highly of it 20 or more years from now, too!
Have a great day! Life is good!