Originally Posted by
Basic
I just don't believe that...
I have a friend that worked in a Toyota Dealership and he had people come in regularly and say you know... if that prius was just a little pickup instead of an ugly car I'd buy one in a heartbeat. And as you said, the Maverick has been an overwhelming success...
If Mitsu simply took the Mirage hatch and added a weird bed on the back they would have sold double to 3x as many as they have sold since introduction. Period.
I think we're close to the same opinion. Maybe I'm not being clear. When I say, it can't be a Mirage truck, I mean ... they can't keep the same drivetrain, and family look as a Mirage. The Mirage gets crapped on SPECIFICALLY BECAUSE IT HAS 78 HP! You have to realize, that the "reviewers" (as uninformed, unpractical, and unknowledgeable as they are about cars) seem to all have the image that the Mirage is an unreliable crapcan. They DON'T KNOW THAT. That is just what they perceive / assume it to be because, "it only has 78 hp, from a puny 3-cylinder."
That's all it takes. They don't know if it is a good car or not. How do I know? Because I own one and it is a SPECTACULAR car. Plus, I designed at Toyota, then I designed at Hyundai-Kia. I got to see both sides of the perspective. What is a truly great car, and what is a true turd.
So, my point is. It can't be a Mirage truck. Meaning, IT CANNOT HAVE A 3-CYLINDER and be successful. It can have a 3-cylinder and be fantastic. But it WILL NOT SELL. If it has a 3-cylinder, and is basically a Mirage truck, IT WILL GET CRAPPED ON AGAIN, and just not sell. That's not what Mitsubishi needs right now. They need to knock it out of the ballpark, or at least hit the fence with it. And not fool around with a Mirage truck. Or a new Mirage type of any car. I don't see why they wouldn't go ahead and continue the Mirage ... it's not like it's costing them tooling / investment now. Unless they need the manufacturing space that the Mirage is taking.
And I agree with Mark. It can be a value truck. Meaning, it doesn't have to have every bell and whistle that Mercedes can think of. It doesn't have to be a SuperDuty. But needs to be in the size vicinity of a Maverick, with an engine or two that Mericans won't immediately dismiss as "junk." 78 hp is perceived as "junk" and that's all it takes to NOT sell. If they were to make a value based truck Maverick sized, with an engine Mericans would buy, and slide the cost in under a Maverick or Ranger (I don't know their costs), but slide in there with a bit lower price tag, I think they'd go far with that.
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View my fuel log 2020 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 42.5 mpg (US) ... 18.1 km/L ... 5.5 L/100 km ... 51.0 mpg (Imp)