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Thread: Overall quality/durability/reliability?

  1. #1
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    Overall quality/durability/reliability?

    I want to believe in this car, but I have questions. I am not particularly knowledgeable about the mechanics of a modern auto, but it seems to me that if they have gone to great effort to reduce weight, and also have kept the price under $13000 including air and some other features . . . something has to give.

    Do forum members think that given all scheduled maintenance and using the car within its limits the new Mirage could last as long as the Honda Fit or the Toyota Yaris? I know some Accords have clocked over a million km, but wonder if that is because it is a better car, or because the owners really cared for them well.

    Put another way - what are the chances that these light cars will make it up into the 300,000km range like many Hondas and Toyotas are? Does making the engine work a little harder wear it out sooner?

    Thanks!


        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2014 Mirage SE 1.2 manual: 45.0 mpg (US) ... 19.1 km/L ... 5.2 L/100 km ... 54.1 mpg (Imp)


  2. #2
    what are the chances that these light cars will make it up into the 300,000km range like many Hondas and Toyotas are? Does making the engine work a little harder wear it out sooner?
    I had exactly the same concern when I bought my first Pontiac Firefly (Geo Metro clone in the Canadian market): it's so lightly built, I was sure it wouldn't be durable.

    I've had it ~6 years now, and it's actually been the most reliable car I've owned (of about 20, including Hondas & Toyotas).

    But I've seen lots and lots of 3-cylinder Suzuki Swifts / Geo Metro / Pontiac Fireflies make it well past 300,000 km (186k mi.) with normal maintenance. And they're lighter than the Mirage, and have significantly smaller, less powerful engines.

    The thing that ultimately killed most of those cars was corrosion, not mechanical issues.

    What was the last small car you owned?

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2014 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 63.2 mpg (US) ... 26.9 km/L ... 3.7 L/100 km ... 75.9 mpg (Imp)


  3. #3
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    Like most cars, it will last if its well taken care of. The mirage is also cheap as its built in 1 place and is income tax exempt. It is globalization to the max.

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2013 Mirage (Malaysia) GS 1.2 automatic: 44.6 mpg (US) ... 19.0 km/L ... 5.3 L/100 km ... 53.6 mpg (Imp)


  4. #4
    Good point, Polkiuj -- the last cheap 3-cylinder car we had here (the Suzuki/Chevy I referred to) was built in Canada with relatively expensive union labour. But nobody builds entry level cars in North America any more - and that's how they keep the price low. You want cheap, you scour the globe for cheaper tax and labour rules!

    (The exception that proves the rule is the Chevy Sonic / Aveo, which is being built in Michigan, and is the only sub-compact being made in the U.S: the workers making that particular car are in a special union class, and make significantly less money than workers in other GM plants in the U.S. The division was created specifically to permit GM to assemble the car there and keep a relatively low price.)

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2014 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 63.2 mpg (US) ... 26.9 km/L ... 3.7 L/100 km ... 75.9 mpg (Imp)


  5. #5
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    What was the last small car you owned?
    I have never owned a small car, truly, or a large one - all compacts, I suppose. The total list of cars I have owned and prices paid:

    Ford Focus 4cyl manual ($6,500)
    Oldsmobile Cutlass Cierra - 4cyl auto (free-family)
    Dodge Omni - 4cyl auto ($200)
    Rennault Alliance - 4cyl manual ($500)

    I also owned a Honda XL250R, which is an on-off motorcycle. It had 6 gears and in a headwind would only do 100km/h at WOT.

    My roomate had a Festiva which was a fantastic little car until it rusted away.

    Because all these cars were well past new, I can't really comment on reliability except to say none of them gave me major problems.

    I wasn't trying to pick a fight - just curious if in an attempt to make this car inexpensive the folks at Mitsubishi had to compromise on quality.

    I recently bought a bargain bicycle new for $300 at the bike shop. It the first year I replaced both wheels and the chain as they didn't stand up and the seat and handgrips because they were uncomfortable. The guy at the bike shop that built the new wheels told me that the cheap wheels were there to meet the price point, and in fact slightly more expensive bikes can be better value if meant to be used as everyday commuters. On bikes, it is easy to know what "quality" looks like, but as I am not a car guy, I can only guess at the features and benefits of a car built to last compared to more disposable offerings.

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2014 Mirage SE 1.2 manual: 45.0 mpg (US) ... 19.1 km/L ... 5.2 L/100 km ... 54.1 mpg (Imp)


  6. #6
    I think it's a fair question to ask - and I sure didn't see your question as "wanting to pick a fight."

    just curious if in an attempt to make this car inexpensive the folks at Mitsubishi had to compromise on quality.
    From the dozens and dozens of reviews I've read, it could be said the compromise may be more on "refinement".

    Your Omni was probably the closest -- assuming it was a 4-door hatch. Omni/Horizon cars were slightly bigger/heavier than a gen. 1 VW Rabbit/Golf... and not nearly as satisfying as a Golf/Rabbit to drive. (That's the same comparison repeatedly being made today between the new Mirage and VW's new small car, the Up.)

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2014 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 63.2 mpg (US) ... 26.9 km/L ... 3.7 L/100 km ... 75.9 mpg (Imp)


  7. #7
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    I loved the Omni. I put a few hundred in parts on, but got 30000miles more before I sold it for $100, so great value! Now we have safety inspections, and it wouldn't likely pass.

    It's good to know, as I want a car that is mechanically sound. As for what the dash looks like or the type of fabric on the seats or how many cupholders it has, I am less interested. I wonder how anyone who needs 11 super-sized cup holders can get anywhere with all the bathroom breaks they would need!


        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2014 Mirage SE 1.2 manual: 45.0 mpg (US) ... 19.1 km/L ... 5.2 L/100 km ... 54.1 mpg (Imp)


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