Cheap Plastic Car :: 2014 Mitsubishi Mirage DE (Garage entry)

[Mark]

Haha.

The only cars I'm used to seeing regularly with half a million km on them are diesel VW Golf & Jettas.

This gentleman recently got 1,000,000 miles (1,609,344 km) out of his 5-speed manual Nissan Frontier pickup truck, & it still looks good, too. His clutch lasted 801,000 miles (1,289,085 km).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAi9o8SXjNg&t=137s

Shortly after this started appearing on youtube, Nissan gave him a new pickup truck.

My neighbor is shooting for a 500,000 miles on his Dodge Dakota. His truck looks rough, however.

[MetroMPG]

Those seem to be the exceptions that prove the diesel longevity rule.

I seem to be able to find high-km VW's all day long on my used car searches.

[Mark]

Those seem to be the exceptions that prove the diesel longevity rule.

I seem to be able to find high-km VW's all day long on my used car searches.

Diesels typically do well, but there are many high mileage vehicles on the road. The average age of an American vehicle on the road is 11.8 years. I'm sure many of those are 20+ old vehicles. Honda & Toyota in particular were making some pretty reliable stuff 20-25 years ago.

[stevedmc]

Diesels typically do well, but there are many high mileage vehicles on the road. The average age of an American vehicle on the road is 11.8 years. I'm sure many of those are 20+ old vehicles. Honda & Toyota in particular were making some pretty reliable stuff 20-25 years ago.

Most American's don't get as much life out of cars as I do. The average consumer gets a scratch on their car, or a tear in a seat and instantly thinks they have an old piece of junk. To me, there is nothing special about buying a new car, its just transportation.

The only cars I get excited about are classics. I've owned a 65 Mustang, a 1981 Toyota Corolla Wagon, and currently have a 83 Delorean and 85 Ford F150. Those are all vehicles to get excited about and they never get "old." You simply do restoration work as needed. For vehicles that are driven, there is never such thing as a completed restoration.

In other news, my dad's health has been declining and he decided to give me his 2007 Toyota Camry. Ironically, I gave this car to my dad last year for his birthday. It had 205,000 miles on it at the time. I paid something like $1,900 for it and another $2,000 or so restoring it. Restoration included some light mechanical work such as replacing the radiator, other odds and ends which I can't remember, and a paint job. The car looks new.

The Camry has 208,000 miles on it. For me, that is a low mileage vehicle. The only drawback is it is an automatic. Its going to take some getting used to.

That being said, I am not about to stop driving the Mirage. It will simply be used strictly for work going forward. The Mirage gets something like 45 mpg and the Camry gets 34 on the highway. Also, the Mirage has a lot more dents and scratches on it than the Camry. Driving in traffic and parking garages is sooooo much easier in the Mirage as well. It isn't as comfy as the Camry but the Mirage gets the job done.

It makes more sense to keep racking up the miles on a car that is beat up. The Camry is near mint condition despite its age and miles. Its a much nicer vehicle.

When I do get around to swapping the clutch on the Mirage, it is going to be a lot less stressful and rushed being that I have a full size sedan to rely on should the job take longer than expected.

[Mark]

Most American's don't get as much life out of cars as I do. The average consumer gets a scratch on their car, or a tear in a seat and instantly thinks they have an old piece of junk. To me, there is nothing special about buying a new car, its just transportation.

I don't necessarily agree with all of that, because the average car on the road is 11.8 years old. There are a lot of people driving much older cars than your Mirage. They may not rack up the miles as fast, but the age of cars people are driving has gotten older in recent years. In my opinion, it's a bit of a reflection of the pricing of new cars today. It's foolish to throw that much money at something that's going to lose most of its value in 10 years.

I may be wrong, but I think the market is ripe for less frills more affordable vehicles. We can't get past air bags, back up cameras, & a few other safety items, but I do feel some people would embrace more affordable vehicles with fewer overpriced options.

While waiting to pick up my 2011 Forester @ the dealer yesterday, I happened to look at a few new Subaru Outbacks in the lot to kill some time. They weren't allowing people to wait for their cars inside. I looked at the sticker price first. As soon as I saw $39,000+, I knew that I wasn't interested. I just stop looking period. It didn't matter how the car was set up or has AWD, because $39,000 for a station wagon is nuts!

Your dad's older Camry are great cars in my opinion. The Camrys, Accords, Corollas, & Civics from that time period were very solid, reliable cars. The Camry has a lot of life left in it, & that's probably why you bought it for your dad. Sorry, you're dad's health isn't better.

Hope your repairs go well on the Mirage. I'm sort of curious what you will find for wear & tear on it.

[stevedmc]

298,001 miles Changed the oil with Supertech 5w30 Conventional and an AC Delco filter.

[stevedmc]

[MetroMPG]

Nice!

[Fummins]

Well done!

[Mark]

I was just thinking this day had to be coming up soon! Congrats! It's a great testament to these cheap little cars!

Time to pull that clutch out now????