I feel the 2019 Mirage ES (manual) is an awesome package/value.
I would not place much value on auto critic snobs. They totally miss the point of this vehicle.
I took stock in European reviews of this car before I bought my 2017 Mirage ES (manual). This is a long detailed one -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVi3hYruIqU
Owner reviews are also quite good - Cars.com & kbb.com are good places to check if you haven't done so?
I am old school. I am not convinced a CVT is designed to last the life of any vehicle. The Mirage CVT doesn't have a horrible reputation like the Nissan models, but it does use a CVT made by the same company as Nissan. I like manuals. Service is also quite simple on them. No filters, just drain oil, & refill to the fill hole. We are talking super simple. As long as you don't ride the clutch, it should last a very long time. Steve (previous post) has 250,000+ miles on his manual Mirage without having any issues. You couldn't get me to buy a CVT Mirage at any price, but that's me. I've been buying manuals for decades.
I normally suggest buying a 1-3 year old slightly used vehicles, but these discounted Mirages are an exception to this. If you want a small car that is affordable, reliable, and economical, the Mirage is KING in the U.S. The discounted GT is not a bad value, but I prefer manuals. The ES trim level has some really nice standard features. They have added some each year, & that has benefited the ES trim level the most. If you want fancy wheels, you can always upgrade for way less money than buying an upper trim level.
If the Mirage is already discounted quite a bit, you may not be able to negotiate all that much. To give you a reference point, I paid 65.4% of the window sticker on my Mirage. I consider that to be an exceptional deal, & it is why I bought one. I bought mine in October, however. The next year models were already on the lots, and dealers were willing to move out the old models. I was also willing to shop around. I test drove locally (65 miles away), and a dealer from 225 miles away delivered a new Mirage to my driveway for free. We did the paperwork on my kitchen table (took 15 minutes). It's what you are comfortable doing? Sounds like you have a great deal locally, and that is awesome.
Hope this helps some?