So, I love to rent cars and have been looking for a rental agency that carries Mirages. I continually see Mirages around LAX with the rental car scan codes on them, but couldn't figure out who was handing them out to lost and confused tourists. My typical hangouts; Hertz, Enterprise, and Avis didn't have them. After scoping them out last weekend, it turned out to be Budget. They had a whole fleet of Mirages on their lot in almost every color. Jackpot!!! I could relate to when Balboa discovered the Pacific Ocean.
This weekend I reserved an economy car and was hoping for a Mirage. The rental agent wanted to upgrade me, and I told her I specifically wanted a Mirage. Not a problem, she had one handy. Although she did say I was the first person to ever request one.
There was a moment of excitement in the sea of Focus', Lincolns, Impalas, and Sonatas as I scanned the lot for my chariot. Finally found it; a gray DE with 6k miles. It has a CVT, of course, which is a disappointment but I was mainly hoping to get a feel for the handling and steering issues doing daily errands, and maybe doing a fun day through Southern California's mountains. So far, I'm impressed. Compared to the Charade, it is a rocket, but not quite as fast as the Focus.
We'll see how it goes and I'll write a full review at the end