US: Car And Driver Magazine Review: Mitsubishi Mirage ES

[festiboi]

The April 2014 edition of Car and Driver, a magazine that I have almost every copy of since 1988, featured the Mirage ES. Like what Metro says, the ES with the CVT may be doing more harm than good to these auto enthusiasts. It's a pretty negative review; even stating that a 1989 Mirage Turbo was a better car.

PROS:
Light weight and non threatening nature
Fuel economy

CONS:
Weak and noisy three-cylinder
1990's styling that looks like a Guatemalan rental car
A loaded ES is bad value compared to the competition





I happen to have a copy of the Jan. 89 Car And Driver, naming the Mirage Turbo as a 10 Best Winner





Sure, that turbo Mirage had 135 horsepower vs today's 74, and was 10 inches longer in length. It also weighed in 500lbs. heavier without airbags and had an EPA rating in the city of 23mpg vs. today's Mirage's 37mpg. But most importantly, let's not forget that in 1989 that car cost $11745 which would be $22237 today; or about $6000 more than a well equipped ES and more in line with a modern performance econo hatch like the Fiesta ST or Sonic RS.

No, the Mirage is aiming for a different audience, basically the cheap, cheery,and fuel efficient segment like my 1988 Charade did ironically, I also have a Car and Driver test of that car from Jan. 1988. It's more of a fair comparison and shows how far economy cars have come in 25 years, since the Mirage seems like a spiritual successor to the Daihatsu



Here are some comparisions with the Charade numbers and the Mirage numbers from both Car and Drivers:

Base Price: $7500 ($14884 with today's inflation) vs. $13790
Engine: SOHC 3-cylinder, 6- valve, iron block and aluminum head, port fuel injection vs. DOHC 3-cylinder, 12-valve, aluminum block and head, port fuel-injection
Displacement: 61 cu. in. 993cc vs. 73 cu. in. 1193cc
Power: 53hp vs. 74hp
Torque: 58 lb-ft vs 74 lb-ft
Wheelbase: 92.1 in. vs 96.5 in.
Length: 144.9 in. vs 148.8
Width: 63.6 in. vs 65.6 in.
Height: 54.5 in. vs 59.1 in.
Curb Weight: 1900lb. vs 2066lb.

0-60mph: 15 sec. vs 10.9 sec.
0-80mph: 37.1 sec. vs 21.3 sec.
0-90mph: Not attained vs. 32 sec.
1/4 Mile: 19.4 sec. @ 69mph vs. 18.3 sec. @ 75mph
Top Speed: 90mph vs. 102mph
Braking 70mph-0: 216ft. vs. 184ft.
Roadholding: 0.70g vs. 0.74g
EPA City/Highway: 38/42mpg vs. 37/44mpg
Observed MPG: 26mpg vs. 30mpg

[Ares]

I guess reviewers do that (choose CVT) because they know MOST sales would be automatics.

Isnt the car sales like 80% auto and 20% manual?

However, since this particular one is C&D, they should have gotten what an "enthusiast" would have gotten: a row-your-boat tranny. Just my thought.

[grsupercity]

Only about 5% of all new cars are manual

[Canoehead]

I agree that the styling isn't all that provocative. On the other hand, it is aerodynamic. Each time I read a review like this I shake my head in wonder, and then realize that the USA has a very different way of approaching driving. When I was 16 I got around on a 250cc motorcycle that would top out at 100km/h in a headwind (130km/h using 6th gear if there was no headwind) and I never felt terribly under-powered. These reviewers going around at WOT are clearly driving somewhere where speed limits are higher, and/or not enforced!

[Yttrium]

Why would anyone trust a review from someone with such bad driving habits that they only got 26 MPG from the Mirage? This guy is probably one of those fools who floors it when the light turns green so that they can be the first one to make it to the next red light.

[MetroMPG]

Thanks for posting, festiboi.

Only about 5% of all new cars are manual

That's true, for the entire U.S. national fleet. But for entry-level subcompacts, I bet the manual proportion is higher. Still, I get your point: most people pick the automatic, so that's what they review.

HOWEVER!

It's "Car and DRIVER" an unabashed 'enthusiast' rag. You'd think they would pick the manual when they're given the choice. (Often they have no choice -- they get the car that Mitsu sends them.)

[MetroMPG]

The web version of the C&D review is up:

http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/...es-test-review

[MetroMPG]

Oh, man! I think they win the award for Best Insult of the Mirage's Styling in an Auto Review:

...looking like a Chinese copy of an old Toyota Yaris

[grsupercity]

Its impossible to post a comment on that site!!!!! Gahh

[Ares]

I signed up just to comment! Haven't received my e-mail conf yet.