Prius C mpg; not outstanding...

[7milesout]

Just wanted to throw this out there. I saw a Prius C out in traffic randomly. It looked pretty nice (it was blue of course). And I thought it was roughly the same shape and size of a Mirage. I'm sure it's heavier and, you know, a standard deviation larger than the Mirage. But roughly ... about the same, roughly. Did I say roughly?

So I thought, since it's a Prius, it is a hybrid. I don't know hardly anything about them. I suppose it could be a plug-in. And so I thought, I bet that thing gets 60 mpg+. So I just looked them up on fuelly. NOT! They average about 46 mpg. Nice car, sure. But not worth the cost difference IMHO.

A testament to just how valuable a Mirage is.


7milesout

[Fummins]

Just wanted to throw this out there. I saw a Prius C out in traffic randomly. It looked pretty nice (it was blue of course). And I thought it was roughly the same shape and size of a Mirage. I'm sure it's heavier and, you know, a standard deviation larger than the Mirage. But roughly ... about the same, roughly. Did I say roughly?

So I thought, since it's a Prius, it is a hybrid. I don't know hardly anything about them. I suppose it could be a plug-in. And so I thought, I bet that thing gets 60 mpg+. So I just looked them up on fuelly. NOT! They average about 46 mpg. Nice car, sure. But not worth the cost difference IMHO.

A testament to just how valuable a Mirage is.


7milesout

True, but look up a Mirage and they're rated for what, 40mpg? I agree though, the extra cost of that model doesn't make a lot of sense if you're looking for pure money savings.

I'm sorta interested in the 2023 Prius. They look less crappy, awd(standard in Canada), and are rated at 50mpg. But they cost money and I'm cheap.

[Mark]

Just wanted to throw this out there. I saw a Prius C out in traffic randomly. It looked pretty nice (it was blue of course). And I thought it was roughly the same shape and size of a Mirage. I'm sure it's heavier and, you know, a standard deviation larger than the Mirage. But roughly ... about the same, roughly. Did I say roughly?

So I thought, since it's a Prius, it is a hybrid. I don't know hardly anything about them. I suppose it could be a plug-in. And so I thought, I bet that thing gets 60 mpg+. So I just looked them up on fuelly. NOT! They average about 46 mpg. Nice car, sure. But not worth the cost difference IMHO.

A testament to just how valuable a Mirage is.


7milesout

I never looked that seriously at the Prius c, but I know that it was listed as the most reliable vehicle on the road by someone just a year or two prior to being discontinued.

When I was shopping for a Mirage in 2017, the Prius c was $20,150 - $24,965 MSRP window sticker (don't remember much of a discount being offered on them). The four Prius c trim levels are 1, 2, 3, & 4. If you compared window sticker prices alone back then, the Prius c was a good value compared to the Mirage. Since I only buy manual vehicles, the Prius c was never on my radar.

I wish cars like the Prius c, Yaris, and Honda Fit hadn't disappeared from the North American market. If a Mirage is not highly discounted, I would lean towards these other cars. I own a Mirage because White Bear was listing the new updated 2017 ES manuals for $9,500 for most of that year. If you financed with Ally & qualified for the 3 rebates (loyalty, military, & VIP), you could have bought a brand new for as low as $7,500 (well below 60% window sticker).

I was buying a brand new Mirage ES manual for well under half the price of a brand new base level Prius c in 2017. A 2017 Prius c had a 48 city/43 highway mpg rating. I do very little city driving. I saw NO advantage to the Mirage in the area of economy. I'm sure a Prius c handles better, has more power (99 hp combined), is quieter, & more comfortable to drive, but I have never been in one.

I think the downfall of the Prius c was the larger Prius model did everything better. A 2017 Prius (not a c) was rated at 58 city/53 highway (that's quite a jump), it's larger, safer, more comfortable, & faster (121 hp combined), etc..

[7milesout]

I think the downfall of the Prius c was the larger Prius model did everything better. A 2017 Prius (not a c) was rated at 58 city/53 highway (that's quite a jump), it's larger, safer, more comfortable, & faster (121 hp combined), etc..

I'll allow it.

[Wallythacker]

I wish cars like the Prius c, Yaris, and Honda Fit hadn't disappeared from the North American market. If a Mirage is not highly discounted, I would lean towards these other cars.
I'm sure a Prius c handles better, has more power (99 hp combined), is quieter, & more comfortable to drive, but I have never been in one.

I would be in a Nissan Versa hatch 5 MT if not for the Mirage. Fit was too expensive, Micra didn't offer enough advantages to drop down from the Versa and the Prius never made any of my lists. The Versas I rented were really enjoyable, comfprtable, peppy, thrifty and very roomy. I managed to pack a Marshall stack into one. I was sold!

[7milesout]

I would be in a Nissan Versa hatch 5 MT if not for the Mirage!

Me too. The Versa 5MT is what brought me to the table. Once there I looked about and found the Mirage. Then saw the idiot's video and knew I had to have a Mirage.

[Wallythacker]

Me too. The Versa 5MT is what brought me to the table. Once there I looked about and found the Mirage. Then saw the idiot's video and knew I had to have a Mirage.

At the time I didn't know Nissan had a 35% stake in Mitsubishi, nor the head of Nissan was a total screwup criminal. Wouldn't have made a difference as Nissan was really aggressive with rebates, low interest rates, tire deals. I was a day or so from signing to a Versa when I spied an ad for brand new blue 5 MT 2014 Mirage (this was the fall of 2016). Nissan wasn't sure they could get my Versa in the color I wanted and were trying to steer me into a Micra. They were about $12.3k OTD for the base model which lacked AC. I wasn't going backwards at my age so I rented a Spark, drove to Ottawa and wrote a cheque for the Mirage, I missed the blue ones and had to take the grey or white. I loved that little car and pampered it, started to customize it and it was written off. Oh well.

[7milesout]

I loved that little car and pampered it, started to customize it and it was written off. Oh well.

Wally - Good story. I like certain customizations. But in the case of most, due to getting older, I wonder, how long will I even have that car? Will it get skwarshed tomorrow? And then I think I'd rather invest that money into hookers & liquor. I've decided to not spend anything extra on the Mirage, besides you know, maintenance. I want it to stick to what it does best, cost very little. The less it costs, the more valuable it is.

[Mark]

Wally - Good story. I like certain customizations. But in the case of most, due to getting older, I wonder, how long will I even have that car? Will it get skwarshed tomorrow? And then I think I'd rather invest that money into hookers & liquor. I've decided to not spend anything extra on the Mirage, besides you know, maintenance. I want it to stick to what it does best, cost very little. The less it costs, the more valuable it is.

I bought a Mirage, because it's cheap, reliable, & economical. It's not a car I want to throw any more money at then necessary. I added a used rear hitch for my rear bike carrier. Weather-tech floor mats have been worth the investment, & I did splurge on custom seat covers that look like trash now. Seats under them should still look good, however.

Beyond that I enjoy the car for what it is. I did buy a $122 tool to clone sensors for the TPMS, but I used it for my Forester, too. Lifetime updates will make it useful for all future vehicles, too.

[Wallythacker]

Wally - Good story. I like certain customizations. But in the case of most, due to getting older, I wonder, how long will I even have that car? Will it get skwarshed tomorrow? And then I think I'd rather invest that money into hookers & liquor. I've decided to not spend anything extra on the Mirage, besides you know, maintenance. I want it to stick to what it does best, cost very little. The less it costs, the more valuable it is.

I figure whatever I drop on the Mirage will hopefully upgrade it enough that I don't need to sell it and buy another ride altogether. I nearly bought a mint Fit 2008 this week. 50,000 miles, dark blue, really clean underneath and mint inside. I was in the process of writing up ads for my Saturn Vue and my 2014 Mirage to finance the Fit when I got wind of the Fit sale. It would have been a nice deal for me and put a few dollars in my pocket.