A Weekend with a Mirage Rental

[festiboi]

How about the temperature in your rental? It was a black Mirage after all. Did you use AC and or did you compare fuel economy with and without AC?

Good question, the first 150 miles or so were without A/C and just outside air through the vents. It's still quite mild in Southern California and only in the mid to upper 70'sF during the day. The rest of it was on with the A/C at the lowest fan setting. Despite the dark interior and exterior, the Mirage didn't feel overly hot, and I made a note that the A/C was strong. Fuel economy didn't seem to change with it on. The only observation with the A/C was there was a little more stutter and shake from the engine at idle when it was on

[festiboi]

It does. To use it, pull the stalk around halfway. If the stalk "clicks" the high beam will toggle, if you just pull it halfway through before you feel the click, the high beams will simply flash.

Ahhhhhh..... I did notice that. Maybe I'm spoiled, but I'm used it to be pushed or pulled the opposite direction from setting the high beams. I did try what you said, but did accidently turn on the high beams a few times. Thanks for clarifying

[festiboi]

Well done report and those photos are wonderful . Can't wait for the second one . I take it the 46+ is with 2 people in the car . Could you get pics of the display showing the miles on tank and overall gas mileage along with the bar left on the fuel gauge ? Appreciate you time and effort . Better than many online car sites and their expert reviewers .

Thank you for the kind words Cinder. The 46mpg is actually with just me in the car; I did essentially this whole road trip solo, with the odd person along on small errand runs.

Here is one shot from last night. This is after approx. 150 miles since filling up and after freeways, an aggressive mountain drive, and driving around LA to dinner


And here is the [optimistic] range after my fill up yesterday. The prior 20 miles had all been downhill, so the computer was possibly hopeful that the next 600 miles would be as well

[MetroMPG]

Excellent and thorough initial impressions. I like that you've driven some of the competition and can make comparisons.

It didn't feel overly strained going over grades or merging.

Really? Why do you figure that's mentioned so often in CVT reviews? Is this a case of perspective, where you're used to a 3-cyl Charade, and they're used to driving around in BMW's?

The first few curves were met with squealing tires, oversteer, and tons of body roll. Where a Ford Fiesta begs for more, the Mirage says "I'm going to kill you!"

Funny. Double-check please: "oversteer"?

-fuel economy took a nasty nosedive with some desert winds

To be fair, this is true of any car. You can't over-rule physics!

It also represents how far minicars have come since the days of the Charade, Justy, and Metro; the Mirage is downright civilized compared to them

I agree. Yet reviewers keep making the comparison. (Because their reference point is their memory alone... whereas I still own one, as do you.) The only similarities is the number of wheels, cylinders and the fact that it's an entry level car that's cheap & gets good fuel economy. Technically, and in terms of features, the Mirage is worlds apart.

impressed with the level of equipment on the DE. "Are you sure this is the base model?" he kept asking.

Yeah, I've read similar comments in a couple of reviews.

Maybe, but there's just an appeal to the Mirage that the others don't have

There's no doubt the Mirage has a quirky appeal -- the activity level in this forum is proof of that (remember, those Spark forums are much less active than we are, even though the Chevy sells better and has been out longer).

Nice photos and really looking forward to part 2! This'll be going in the 'featured threads' on the home page for sure.

[festiboi]

Really? Why do you figure that's mentioned so often in CVT reviews? Is this a case of perspective, where you're used to a 3-cyl Charade, and they're used to driving around in BMW's?

It could a bit of both.... auto journalists can be some of the biggest drama queens. I laugh when they say about a car that they'd rather take a bus. I've ridden the Metro here in LA numerous times, and trust me, any car is better. The CVT is not great; Nissan CVTs are more slick, and it does hamper the acceleration. So from being spoiled with BMWs and Audis, the Mirage CVT is a nasty wake up call

And I went into this hoping it would be better than the Charade and it was. But I do drive the Focus regularly, and have rented my fair share of sports and luxury cars, so I've had experience with faster cars. It's important to put everything into perspective, and for what it is, the Mirage ain't bad.

To be fair, this is true of any car. You can't over-rule physics!

This is true, Sir Newton. It affects every car, but seemed to really affect the Mirage more so. Must be the lightweight. I was humming quite nicely on the freeway at a steady 47mpg, and when the crosswinds hit, it plummeted down to 38mpg in a matter of miles.

Funny. Double-check please: "oversteer"?

There was oversteer. At one point, I had oversteer and understeer at the same time. I didn't know that was possible, lol

There's no doubt the Mirage has a quirky appeal -- the activity level in this forum is proof of that (remember, those Spark forums are much less active than we are, even though the Chevy sells better and has been out longer).

You hit it on the nose. There's just a strange appeal to the Mirage's sheer quirkiness. My best friend asked me what in the world about this slow, tipsy, and tiny car appealed to me. All of my answers just made no sense to him. It's one of those things, you get it or you don't

Thank you for all of the kind words Darin!

[festiboi]

Okay, here we go with day 2. We covered another 350 miles and started again near sea level in West LA and managed to get several feet short of 8,000 ft. today; at about 7900 ft. (for those of you not familiar with feet, let's just say we got to a higher elevation than Australia's tallest mountain, Mt Kosciusko). The drive included steep hills, sharp curves, desert stretches, and LA freeways.

Most of the observations from yesterday carry over, but a few more:
- The CVT does hold back on mountain grades, it does take a heavy foot when the road gets steep. The engine itself seems willing and able; but the CVT holds it back. The manual would indeed get the most of the engine's performance.
- The CVT, like any other I've driven in Nissans and Subarus, does just hold the one rpm range when accelerating from a stop, giving the engine a feeling of lugging occasionally.
-Once I got the hang of the handling yesterday, it's easy to decipher what the car can do around corners. On the infamous windy Angeles Crest Highway, the Mirage was easily able to conquer sweeping bends and sharp turns. As funny as it sounds, I ended up being stuck behind other cars on this treacherous mountain road that ended pulling over for me, including a newer Porsche 911! For any reviewer, the Mirage's handling would seem strange and dreadful; I did too initially. But after a few hundred miles of getting used to the more-than-normal body lean and loose steering, the car gains a zippy, point-and-shoot character around bends. It's important to not get too carried away, but it can be a fun ride and I can't imagine the average car buyer even coming close to the Mirage's limits
-Like yesterday, the ride of this car over potholes and uneven patches is superb!
- Headroom is great up front as is leg room. The rear headroom is a little tight, but leg room is fine and more accommodating than either the 2 or Fiesta. The seatbacks have some give to them as well, for knees that could be digging in
- The engine does sound coarse at start up. Either you love it or you don't. I like it, as it has that tough and ready sound, like an old Toyota Truck. Some people may find it annoying
-My biggest complaint today is that the plastic around the power window switches juts out into knee room. I'm partially guilty as I sit with my knees out, but the hard plastic does rub my knee where there's no padding on the bone. Haven't noticed that in any other car other than the Fiesta; which is like a coffin in the driver compartment
- The car is extremely sensitive to cross winds at highway speeds; same complaint as yesterday. Except today was windier, and the Mirage did have moments like a drunken sorority member; it was hard to stay in a straight line
-Storage bins in the front doors were supersized and could fit large bottles and items
- As silly as it sounds, the "oh-s**t" grab handles retract back in a very nice fluid way. Some other cars have them snap back with a thud
- The roof sounds tinny and when the sunvisors snap back to their original position, there's a hollow thunk. I had the car go through an automated wash this morning and was expecting it to sound like rain on a tin roof (like it does in the Charade, it sounds like the roof is about to be peeled off), but it wasn't nearly as noisy in the Mirage as I had expected

-Fuel economy was good going up the hill. Climbing a continual steep grade, it averaged 32mpg. Once we leveled off, it got up to 39mpg, but coming back down and going on the freeway for about 50 miles, we managed to wrestle 45mpg average today. Not bad at all

So, I've done 800 miles in the Mirage over two days and am exhausted! But, the car has been a champ. It's not perfect, but it's faults are not as glaring as most of the automotive press will have us believe. It is an absolutely fine little car, and has been, dare I say it, a fun companion through some of the most trying terrain in this country.


Question is: would I buy it? That's a toughie. It's not as refined as an Accent, Sonic, Fiesta or Fit. It certainly is more desirable than a Spark that I rented a few months ago. But none of those cars have the quirky and eccentric character that Metro mentioned in an earlier post. In some ways, the Mirage is a downgrade from my Focus (size, engine, handling), but an upgrade in others (features, content, fuel economy). However, it's made me realize again how easy it is to live with less, as those 800 miles flew by. It's a tough call.....

Look for a review on my website in the coming week or two on the Mirage: www.roorentalcarreviews.com

Here are pictures from today:

[Ares]

-Handling, as reviewers have stated, is terrifying at first. The first few curves were met with squealing tires, oversteer, and tons of body roll. Where a Ford Fiesta begs for more, the Mirage says "I'm going to kill you!" However, after about 100 miles of hilly driving, I learned the car's limits and it can be quite entertaining if you stay within them. It doesn't inspire driver confidence, but once you get past the body roll, grip isn't too bad and the car can be fun.

First of all, it takes some rally-car-driver skills to do oversteer on a fwd car. I want to know how you did it.

Second, if you in fact drive like a racecar driver, then you would have easily appreciated grip the stock wheels and tires give. I easily do twice the speed limit (exit speed) on curves and turns.

[adrew]

First of all, it takes some rally-car-driver skills to do oversteer on a fwd car. I want to know how you did it.

My Yaris is pretty neutral -- come into a turn a little hot, lift, give the wheel a little flick and the back will come right around. It is a little surprising the first time around, but feels totally natural once you feed in a little countersteer.

Not me:

[festiboi]

First of all, it takes some rally-car-driver skills to do oversteer on a fwd car. I want to know how you did it.

Second, if you in fact drive like a racecar driver, then you would have easily appreciated grip the stock wheels and tires give. I easily do twice the speed limit (exit speed) on curves and turns.

Oops, you're welcome to correct me if I'm wrong (which happens a lot!!!). I thought it was oversteer, the back wheels would give out and start to slide on some sharper bends. I always get confused, is that understeer? It was kinda like those videos that adrew posted above in the Yaris; I was wasn't that extreme at all and much more responsible with public safety, but I do push cars hard through mountain turns and it did some minor back end slides (still not anywhere as crazy as the video).

I have had three close calls like that first video in my younger days and drive much more cautiously now.

[Yttrium]

This is true, Sir Newton. It affects every car, but seemed to really affect the Mirage more so. Must be the lightweight. I was humming quite nicely on the freeway at a steady 47mpg, and when the crosswinds hit, it plummeted down to 38mpg in a matter of miles.

I'd also say that cross wind hit in MPG is a lot more noticeable in a Mirage than other cars. Driving an 8 cylinder 18 MPG (highway) 7,300 pound Escalade you won't notice the hit because so there's so much gas being used for stuff other than overcoming wind resistance.