Higher milage maintenance / road trip ready / midlife tune up

[MightyMirageMpg]

Trying to get a 2015 5 speed ready for some longer road trips this summer. It only has 76k miles but its been neglected and time for a midlife tune up.

I dont have the factory owners manual to follow and Mitsubishi's online guide was basic with the exception of 1. According to it, by now i should have;

REPLACE: plugs, air filter, cabin filter, engine oil & filter, trans fluid, spare tire
CHECK/REPAIR: axle boots, steering linkages, rubber hoses, drive belt, brakes, tires
ADJUST: clutch, valve clearance

After some reading here it seems everyone has unanimously disregarded the 60k mile valve clearance check. Ive decided to keep with that tradition. But am wondering if there is anything else, common failures around 80k, or anything else i should be getting ahead of? Ive done/will finish all the basics, just hoping to avoid any preventable failures 500 miles from home in the woods.

[Fummins]

Trying to get a 2015 5 speed ready for some longer road trips this summer. It only has 76k miles but its been neglected and time for a midlife tune up.

I dont have the factory owners manual to follow and Mitsubishi's online guide was basic with the exception of 1. According to it, by now i should have;

REPLACE: plugs, air filter, cabin filter, engine oil & filter, trans fluid, spare tire
CHECK/REPAIR: axle boots, steering linkages, rubber hoses, drive belt, brakes, tires
ADJUST: clutch, valve clearance

After some reading here it seems everyone has unanimously disregarded the 60k mile valve clearance check. Ive decided to keep with that tradition. But am wondering if there is anything else, common failures around 80k, or anything else i should be getting ahead of? Ive done/will finish all the basics, just hoping to avoid any preventable failures 500 miles from home in the woods.

Being an "older" 5 speed, there have been a few that have had their clutch cables break without much warning. That's one thing I might consider caring around as a spare.

Same with a belt. If it's never been replaced it wouldn't hurt to do that, then carry tools to re-adjust as needed shortly after(12mm and maybe a 14mm(9/16").

Wipers are often overlooked until it rains. They come in handy sometimes.

Check all the lights, including brake lights. If both bulbs burn out it'll make the car act stupid throwing brake and abs lights, cut power etc...I try not to give anyone a reason to pull me over so try to keep my lights working.

Make sure the spare is aired up, mine was low when I needed it but some air is better than no air...I've never replaced a mini-spare. They're fine, not exposed to sun or heat.

Otherwise, if it ain't broke...

[Ares]

My tranny started grinding at 75k. I think tranny and clutch were replaced shortly after. I do abuse the mirage and have taught several folks how to drive on it which are probably the reasons why the clutch and tranny gave up so quickly.

Depending on your roads, vehicle load, and driving patterns, it may be time to at least check if the struts/shocks are still within acceptable working order.

At that mileage, I had already changed the brake fluid, pads and rotors at least once.

TBH, I haven't changed my plugs yet (at 120k) since I'm scared I'd mess things up. I'm going with the "if it aint broke..." thing on that end.

My road trip list includes but not limited to:
Check all liquids.
Check most rubber components.
Check for leaks & squeaks.

I have the clutch cable in the trunk just in case. Every time I change the oil, I check it and seems to show wear but not enough for me to change it yet.

Personal opinion: the mirage, while most ideal for "city" life, is a decent travel companion. Just don't expect too much from it on the freeways.

[MightyMirageMpg]

the clutch cable is a good idea and is cheap enough. Ive actually been carrying a spare ignition coil, but so far so good.
fummins you made a good point i should make a junkyard run and grab fuses, bulbs and relays too.

thanks guys

[Fummins]

So far the only fuse I've seen blow is the cig outlet one after a driver had a splitter and a bunch of crap plugged into it at the same time.

[Mark]

Trying to get a 2015 5 speed ready for some longer road trips this summer. It only has 76k miles but its been neglected and time for a midlife tune up.

I dont have the factory owners manual to follow and Mitsubishi's online guide was basic with the exception of 1. According to it, by now i should have;

REPLACE: plugs, air filter, cabin filter, engine oil & filter, trans fluid, spare tire
CHECK/REPAIR: axle boots, steering linkages, rubber hoses, drive belt, brakes, tires
ADJUST: clutch, valve clearance

After some reading here it seems everyone has unanimously disregarded the 60k mile valve clearance check. Ive decided to keep with that tradition. But am wondering if there is anything else, common failures around 80k, or anything else i should be getting ahead of? Ive done/will finish all the basics, just hoping to avoid any preventable failures 500 miles from home in the woods.

My 2017 Mirage ES manual is near 76,000 miles, too!

I have done oil/filter (Super Tech 5W-30 Full Synthetic/Purolator ONE) changes every 5,000 miles. I may have used Mobil 1 0W-20 for the first couple years.

When I do my oil changes, I check my cabin air filter & engine air filter. I blow out the cabin air filter whenever I check it, & I replace it with the cheapest one I can find when necessary. I've been replacing my engine air filter with a Wix filter every 30,000 miles (next time for me will be @ 90,000 miles). I check my engine air filter every oil change because some critters had 52 hickory nuts stored behind it a couple years ago. I noticed a rattling sound!

I replaced the manual transmission fluid with Red Line MTL @ 30,000 miles. It looked really good at the time. I am planning to do it again @ 80,000 miles. I decided to go 50,000 miles this time. I had bought a gallon for the first change & have what I need for the 2nd one.

I replaced my front brake pads & rotors last summer, because they were sounding bad. In hindsight, I could have waited longer, but I had some long trips planned, too. The factory rotors (didn't look great) were more of a problem than the brake pads. My local Auto Zone had the brake pads in stock, & O'Reilly's had the rotors in stock. It wasn't hard to replace them.

For the past couple years, I have had a clutch cable, serpentine belt, and two headlight bulbs stored inside my spare tire in the rear. If something like that became an issue far from home, I wouldn't want to be stuck somewhere waiting for the belt or cable. I feel better just having them.

@ 100,000 miles - I plan on replacing my spark plugs for the first time. I will also replace the engine coolant. I will most likely replace the serpentine belt at that time, too. I will keep the old belt as an emergency spare.

The other thing I have done that gives me piece of mind for longer trips - I carry a full size spare in my spare wheel well. A 165/65r14 tire takes up a little more space than the donut spare, but I like the thought of having a full size spare if I were far from home. Since I have winter & summer tires, I didn't have to buy an extra full size spare tire for this.

I have very few concerns when traveling with my Mirage. Should I have a cable clutch or serpentine belt issue, I have that covered. Even if I had a mechanic help me somewhere along the way, I would want those parts on hand. I also carry jumper cables in all my vehicles. I bought a small cheap lithium jump starter ($50) for my UTV, and I throw that in my car for longer trips now, too. If I was really by myself, it's more useful than jumper cables. A friend's 6-cylinder Mercury Sable had been parked for weeks this past winter & the battery was somewhat dead. My little jump starter (not much bigger than a cell phone) started the car. I was impressed by that!

[7milesout]

MMM - I'm thinking bare bones. Not that you are. Maybe you are, maybe you are not. But you seem to be somewhat focused on not getting stranded 500 miles from home. I can respect that. In case your trip is real soon and you don't have time to do a full body-off-frame restoration, my bare bones should suffice. In my opinion, to cover 90% - 95% of what's going to secure your trip, I think the list is quite short.

Tires, battery, oil & filter. Check, top-off, replace as necessary. I will add that carrying the clutch cable is also a great idea. But likely all the other crap is not going to be an issue for a 500 mile / 1000 mile round trip. All the other crap is just good common sense to achieve the longest life possible, with minimal down time for your car. Now if your trip includes 100 laps around Road Atlanta trying to achieve a new record for Mirages, you'll want to do more.

[MightyMirageMpg]

keep the old belt as an emergency spare.
carry a full size spare in my spare wheel well.
also carry jumper cables in all my vehicles.
bought a small cheap lithium jump starter ($50) for my UTV, and I throw that in my car for longer trips now, too.!

You sound like me - meaning youve probably ran out of good space for more junk a long time ago. I found inside the hatch itself to be a great little spot for really light items you hope to never need. Removed the "carpet" cover and stuffed a small tarp and whatever else in there.


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Looking through the factory service manual yesterday and found the service schedule in "00-55 general body and chassis" not sure how i missed it before. Weve covered pretty much everything there except EVAP.