Speck :: 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage ES (Garage entry)

[Daox]

Big bummer, but I'm very glad to hear you are okay. I'm sure the Tesla will be a fun replacement!

[MetroMPG]

Eggman - are you watching the auction? I've checked it a couple of times, and it has said "Auction not assigned".

[Mark]

I've thought real hard about a replacement for Speck ever since I got it. You might recall I was a big advocate for the Mirage as a good choice for saving money for more important things?

I have placed an order for a Tesla Model 3 Long Range with dual-motor AWD.

Hi Eggman - Update????

[Eggman]

Hi Eggman - Update????

Hi Mark. Sorry for the late reply.

I picked up my Tesla sometime in May. It arrived earlier than I thought it would. I like it a lot. It works great for the most all of my needs, and then some. Just as I expected.

My phone app says it has 4,417 miles on it. It's super easy to drive. It's really quiet and stupid fast. There's a bit of a learning curve to driving it. I had to (and still have to) really be careful about using all that power.

No oil changes. I don't miss looking for deals on the best 0W20 or filters. No emissions controls or catalytic converters to worry about getting fouled.

With regenerative braking, I rarely step on the brake pedal. With reasonable driving speed and only a bit of planning, I never touch the brake pedal on the majority of my trips.

Gas prices were over $4/gallon. I charge up for $4 of electricity at home and can run for ±300 miles on that. Range anxiety is a thing, but I prefer what I have now to gas price anxiety.

I've only charged at home. I've not used any Tesla Supercharger stations or other charging stations so I can't really speak to how that works. Maybe one day I'll find out. I've charged up on a sunny day at home, to let my solar photovoltaic array do the work. But with net metering, it's really not necessary.


The Tesla AI is a mixed bag. I'm getting used to the Autopilot that comes standard. The Lane Centering is nice, speed warnings come in handy too. Phantom Braking is annoying, but I am getting better at anticipating it.


Cons? I'm not a big fan of the no-knobs, everything-is-on-the-display design, but I'm getting used to it. Rearward visibility isn't so great, but that's not limited to Teslas.

The panoramic glass roof is nice, but I rarely take advantage of it since I'm usually the one driving (can't really daydream looking up when I'm supposed to be watching where I'm going.) If my daughter is driving, I sometimes put my seat back and watch the clouds go by. The glass roof makes it get hot like a greenhouse. I've seen interior temps up to 136℉. It's currently named Easy Bake. I'll probably change the name sometime soon since the hot weather is drawing down. I can open the windows remotely but it doesn't make much of a difference on a bright, sunny day. Turning on the AC remotely cools off the interior real fast, and the heat pump doesn't require any engine to start.

I lost a tire already to a shard of metal in the sidewall. That one tire cost as much as a set of four for a Mirage. I think it's a bit pricey for what it is. The stupid rims are wider than the tires and the whole car is seemingly twice as wide as the Mirage.

The 3 sounds super fun though.

It really is, it's very pleasant to drive. Everyone should at least try one.

I've barely driven my CJ-7 this summer. It's funny driving the CJ-7 as I have to remember to step on the brake pedal when it's time to stop, and it takes more work to get going.

[MetroMPG]

Thanks for the update, Eggman!

I bought an EV this summer too!


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A $900 electric mountain bike. :-D

I mostly use it to replace local car trips - for those times when I'm too rushed / tired / lazy to use my regular bike.

[Mark]

Eggman - It's good to hear from you. I'm glad you are still willing to mingle with us common folks (Mirage owners).

I enjoyed reading your post! The perks of your new car are quite nice!

Some of your concerns would apply to other vehicles (not just a Telsa). Timing wise (gas prices are jumping back up in Wisconsin) you picked a good time to go with an electric vehicle. As time goes on, I think more & more couples/families will have an electric vehicle in their fleet. I hope you continue to share more updates (like winter driving & such).

Bummer about the tire, but those things happen. The guys who pay for tire/wheel insurance never have that happen, however!

Don't be a stranger!

[Eggman]

Eggman - It's good to hear from you. I'm glad you are still willing to mingle with us common folks (Mirage owners).

I enjoyed reading your post! The perks of your new car are quite nice!

Some of your concerns would apply to other vehicles (not just a Telsa). Timing wise (gas prices are jumping back up in Wisconsin) you picked a good time to go with an electric vehicle. As time goes on, I think more & more couples/families will have an electric vehicle in their fleet. I hope you continue to share more updates (like winter driving & such).

Bummer about the tire, but those things happen. The guys who pay for tire/wheel insurance never have that happen, however!

Don't be a stranger!

Mark, from my point of view it's the Mirage that made purchasing this Tesla possible. Five years with the Mirage helped save up, and that's the best design feature of the Mirage - cheap to buy, cheap to operate. That's why at some point in my ownership I began to really question all the extra money I was throwing at it. If asked, I would still recommend a Mirage. It has it's place.

If anyone has any questions about living with an electric car or with solar panels & heat pump, I'll do my best to help out.

[MetroMPG]

I'm getting used to the Autopilot that comes standard. The Lane Centering is nice, speed warnings come in handy too. Phantom Braking is annoying, but I am getting better at anticipating it.

Is this your first experience with "autopilot" in any car?

I've driven two vehicles with adaptive cruise + lane centering + auto-braking. One was crap ('17 Prius) - couldn't hold the lane with any confidence.

The other is surprisingly good (my sister's '22 Rav4), and it completely changed my opinion of those features for the better.

I did a 160 km drive on a 2-lane highway, and even though the painted lines in the middle & edges of the road were inconsistent & hard to see at times (wet), it did a commendable job of smooth "driving". Even on parts that were somewhat winding. In the whole trip, I only had to steer 3 times to correct when it lost the lane marking. But overall it gave me a glimpse of a new way of driving as a "supervisory" task, and I really liked it. I found it relaxing.

My sister, on the other hand, hates it. I think to her it feels like a loss of control, so it makes her less relaxed.

[Eggman]

Is this your first experience with "autopilot" in any car?

Our Escape Titanium has it and that was my introduction to lane centering. Funny I’d often thought that it would be easy to implement into cars.

And congrats on the ebike. Those things look like loads of fun. What did you get?

[MetroMPG]

It is really fun. I always figured I would wait until I was old to get an e-bike... I guess I'm officially old.

It's a brand I've never heard of before - "Metakoo Cybertrack 100". (China makes ebikes by the billions, so I'm not surprised I've never heard of it.)



I got it used (50 miles on it) for 900 CAD from a 6'3" guy who bought it online without taking the frame size into consideration (way too small for his height). He paid 1250 after tax, and could have returned it, but opted to sell it at a discount rather than go through the hassle of re-boxing, shipping & pay a restocking fee.

I specifically got it because it's a "normal" bike with 21 speeds that has electric assist. It's rideable as a bike (46 lbs), which was important to me. I've ridden several other e-bikes that are so heavy or awkward that you would be in trouble if you ran it out of charge far from home.

I should start a thread...