mitsubishi long term reliability

[aydu]

Don't know for sure.

The Mitsubishi 10yr\100,000 warranty sure helps offset my concerns about it.

[MyNewMirage]

It may be only a three banger but it's powerful enough to drive on the interstate daily, in fact I do each day, 100 miles.
I don't feel it's under powered doing 75MPH even though it's only has 74 HP.
Sure it's slow on take off but once this all new Mirage is up to speed it does very well.

[MetroMPG]

I have a bit of experience with triples: my current car (Pontiac Firefly = Canadian market Geo Metro) has a 1.0L three built by Suzuki.

Yes, they work harder: they'll be at a higher load for a given road speed than a larger displacement engine. (That's also why they're more efficient.)

But they're durable: these engines will run many hundreds of thousands of km with normal maintenance. I've seen more than a few dead Metros in the junkyard with ~250,000 - 300,000 km on them. Typically these cars die from unibody rust before the drivetrain wears out.

[silverstreak]

Thanks for quick answers.

[cookiemonster]

According to ReliabilityIndex (a UK Warranty Company's evaluation of cars based on insurance claims it's received), the Mitsubishi Space Star and Mitsubishi Colt (immediate ancestors of the current Mirage) rates 36 (lower is better) on their reliability index, near the Honda Civic (32), Toyota Corolla (32), Honda CRV (51). The second highest rated car is the Mitsubishi Lancer with a score of 6!

So if history has any say, I'd imagine that the Mirage is just as reliable, if not more.

[Ares]

I honestly think that if these cars are good enough for "developing" countries like the Philippines, they are durable enough. Also, with the warranty they offer, it sure seems like these cars' engines can "take the heat."

Also, always remember that maintenance is key with every vehicle. That's why I'm fighting for 5k mile maintenance service - not 7k miles that the manual (and HUD) talks about.

Also, I just got a letter/email (can't quite remember) stating that its time for my 3months/ 4k mile oil change. Guess it's recommended here in Texas to do a shorter interval...

[aydu]

Check who the e-mail is from.

Some dealers want you in their shop more frequently than the manufacturer, just to generate income for their shop.

The current business generator in my area is the "forever" warranrt, offered "free" by one of our local dealers. The catch is that to keep this very limited power train warranty in effect, you have to double the manufacturer's schedule. Good extra maintenance income for the dealer.

[festiboi]

I have a question that goes along with this topic. Do you all think the 3 cylinder would be subjected to a lot more stress because it's a smaller engine?

There is that urban myth out there, and as long as the driver is respectful of the engine's capabilities and doesn't redline it everytime to get onto the freeway, they can be just as durable as any other car.

My 1993 Metro in high school made it to 110,000 miles until I traded up. It ran fine, with the exception of an oil leak.

Later on, I had a beater 1987 Subaru Justy with the 1.2 liter 3-cylinder and drove it everywhere around California. It took on long freeway runs, steep mountain grades, LA traffic, and blistering heat over several summers in Fresno. I finally sold it at 140,000 miles to get the Daihatsu, but it never had a mechanical issue with the engine in that time (the A/C and electrical were a different story; but were no fault of the little engine)

[Canoehead]

I had a Honda XL250 dirtbike that spent a whole lot of time at WOT. Plenty of highway driving with it pinned (which was good for only 90km/h into a stiff headwind, 130km/h max speed. It never had any issues. The mini-trucks/kei cars are all 660cc, and they can reach highway speeds. Considering that, the engine is working half as hard as a 660cc is designed to, so lots of margin there. Finally, the old Volkswagens were much less refined, and had far less power - some of them are still running.

[Mikhail]

The Mitsubishi Mirage has only 74 hp on 1.2L engine, which makes only power density of 62 hp rep 1 liter.

If the engine receives a lot more (for example 100 hp per L or even higher), then engine will not last long (Ford's Ecoboost for ex.)