2016's Ten Worst Automobiles (The Truth About Cars)

[MetroMPG]

The Mirage makes an appearance on a list of terrible cars as compiled & voted on by the editors & readers of The Truth About Cars blog.

After the obligatory opening joke about the credit ratings of Mitsubishi customers...

Here’s the problem with the Mirage: modern subcompact cars need not be dreadful penalty boxes, yet the Mirage is. An underpowered three-cylinder engine sends double-digit horsepower to the front wheels. It’s saddled with a continuously variable transmission if you have neither the want nor the mental means to shift gears yourself...

Read more: http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/201...y-nine-losers/

Tons of comments below the article, of course. I see that Festiboi, a sometimes participant here who has also written for TTAC, left a comment in defense of the car along with a couple of other people.

[IchabodCrane]

No big deal here.
I test drove a Nissan Micra a few weeks ago and I left the lot loving my Mirage.

[tomrad]

Hey ichabodcrane, how is your car doing? Was the low compression (or whatever) due to the ecu fuel mapping (the recall)?

[MetroMPG]

No big deal here.
I test drove a Nissan Micra a few weeks ago and I left the lot loving my Mirage.

Can you say why?

Almost every Micra owner who also drove the Mirage seems to hate the Mitsu.

Micra owners definitely don't prioritize fuel economy the way Mirage owners do. And more people (not just Micra owners) seem to prefer taut handling suspension over a smooth ride.

[man114]

I've driven a lot of cars, the Mirage is not that bad. Not by a long shot.

I think the low power and handling suspension get people against it. I for one want a more detached road feel. Driving a crisp handling car is fine for 10-20 minutes, try doing a long commute or drive in one.

If I want to take a long ride I'd prefer to feel nothing, I'll take my 83 Grand Marquis, which is like driving a plush couch, you can steer it with a finger and you hear bumps but don't really feel them.

I find the Mirage far easier to drive than my Fusion. I'd only dock it for power. It's not even as loud as many of these reviews claim, it's those factory tires. If you don't mind sacrificing a few MPGs (as a large car owner living near a reservation with tax free gas I could care less) nice soft touring tires would immensely help the road noise.

My wife and I took an hour+ long road trip the other day and I didn't feel as beaten and stiff as I typically do coming out of a stiff handling car with a firm suspension (and I should note got 48mpg with the AC on).

[MightyMirageMpg]

nobody here bought a mirage expecting it too be a fire breathing high end sports car. "most fuel efficient non-hybrid vehicle" speaks volumes on what too expect. quite honestly, i think Mitsubishi nailed it.

my girlfriend and i both test drove multiple vehicles, and both, independently, decided the mirage was the best value.

besides... what else would i do with my "50+ mpg" bumper sticker?

[man114]

nobody here bought a mirage expecting it too be a fire breathing high end sports car. "most fuel efficient non-hybrid vehicle" speaks volumes on what too expect. quite honestly, i think Mitsubishi nailed it.

my girlfriend and i both test drove multiple vehicles, and both, independently, decided the mirage was the best value.

besides... what else would i do with my "50+ mpg" bumper sticker?

I think the automotive critics who review these cars are at a disconnect of what people actually want or are looking for when they buy cars. I was on a site, forget which, where the reviewers rated it one or two stars but the owners overwhelmingly rated it four or five stars. Same goes for how a lot of them hated the Crown Vic/Grand Marquis, yet many owners were repeat buyers heck they've even interviewed police on the local news in just the past few weeks who are complaining about the new police cars and wish Ford would resume production.