Does anyone wish they had bought Chevy Spark instead?

[Mark]

Mitsubishi does have that 1.5L Turbo engine in the Eclipse Cross... I'd gladly pay a bit extra to have that in a Mirage. Imagine what a screamer that would be.

The non-turbo engine in an Outlander Sport has about the same horsepower & mpg rating as the Eclipse Cross. I see no added value in the 1.5 turbo, & I highly doubt it will be more reliable in the long run. I don't see anything impressive about the Eclipse Cross. It would be my last pick of any of the Mitsubishi vehicle on market, and its sales somewhat reflect that, too.

For a Mirage to be special -

It should be affordable!

It needs to be reliable.

It should be very economical to drive & own.

If a small economy car doesn't get 40-50 mpg consistently all year round, I wouldn't be interested. I'm sure a turbo would kill my interest in a Mirage. A turbo surely didn't save the Fiat 500 in the U.S. Who wants to drive a tiny car that gets horrible gas mileage? YUCK!!!!

[Wallythacker]

With the Micra and Fiat exits Mits is now, IMO, taking advantage of the consumer. Before, as in 2014-7 I could buy a base 5mt for $10G and add AC for $1200. That was a fair deal.

Now, the base ES is $11G, and I have to buy an "Option" package for $4G to get manual AC with a 5mt. I don't even get alloys with that $4G hit. The rest of that $4G is spent on items that should be included for free like they are in most markets.

Manual Air Conditioning
6.5” Smartphone Link Display Audio featuring Android Auto™ and Apple CarPlay
Power Door Locks with Remote Keyless Entry & Panic Alarm
Power Windows with Auto-Up & Down Driver’s Window
Cruise Control
Steering Wheel-Mounted Cruise Controls

The same nonsense applies with the CVT except it's base price is $12,200. After adding $4G to basically get AC this is no longer economical and the Spark is providing more value at a lower price, and the Spark is a better deal with a 5mt as well.

My plan requires something missing from the auto market for decades. That is the concept of ordering your car to your specs and waiting for it to be built and shipped. When was the last time you or anyone you know ordered a car factory built to specs?

[Wallythacker]

The non-turbo engine in an Outlander Sport has about the same horsepower & mpg rating as the Eclipse Cross. I see no added value in the 1.5 turbo, & I highly doubt it will be more reliable in the long run. I don't see anything impressive about the Eclipse Cross. It would be my last pick of any of the Mitsubishi vehicle on market, and its sales somewhat reflect that, too.

For a Mirage to be special -

It should be affordable!

It needs to be reliable.

It should be very economical to drive & own.

If a small economy car doesn't get 40-50 mpg consistently all year round, I wouldn't be interested. I'm sure a turbo would kill my interest in a Mirage. A turbo surely didn't save the Fiat 500 in the U.S. Who wants to drive a tiny car that gets horrible gas mileage? YUCK!!!!

You don't always get 25mpg just because a turbo is hung on the engine. You have to aggressively put your foot into it to get that kind of lousy mileage. The tradeoff is the absolute blast you had driving your Mirage like an F1 driver at Spa.

[Mark]

You don't always get 25mpg just because a turbo is hung on the engine. You have to aggressively put your foot into it to get that kind of lousy mileage. The tradeoff is the absolute blast you had driving your Mirage like an F1 driver at Spa.

I see nothing wrong with a 78 hp Mirage. The powertrain of the Mirage is what I like the most. These 3 cylinder cars have grown on me! I've owned three 4-cylinder vehicles that had less horsepower than a Mirage.

More power doesn't equal more fun to me. I'd much rather drive a 650cc motorcycle than a 1200cc one. Having said that, the 1.5L Toyota Echo made 15-20 years ago got about the same mpg rating as a Mirage with a manual transmission, & it had 108 hp. Likewise, Honda is getting 130 hp out of a 1.5L non-turbo engine, but it's also sacrifices mpg for power.

Overpowered vehicles are boring to me! I find it more fun/engaging driving something a bit underpowered. A Mirage & a Corvette going down the interstate @ 75 mph are both traveling at the same speed.

Low mpg ratings on small cars like the Fiat 500 & Nissan Micra are deal breaker for me. Even the Smart car is a disappointment. If it doesn't offer great fuel economy, why drive something like that?

The Mirage having the same highway mpg rating as a more expensive, complex Toyota Prius c (another small car biting the dust) is impressive to me!

I really appreciate the Mirage for what it is! Change any of these three things (affordable, reliable, & economical), & I would lose interest.

[Dirk Diggler]

Why the hell does my CVT cost more? It better be from Aisin instead of Jatco! lol

[stevedmc]

I was wondering with what we know now since 2014 and the longevity/issues of both models. Does anyone wish they had chosen The Chevrolet Spark instead of their Mirage?

I don't.

[Eggman]

My plan requires something missing from the auto market for decades. That is the concept of ordering your car to your specs and waiting for it to be built and shipped. When was the last time you or anyone you know ordered a car factory built to specs?

That's an interesting point. I wonder what Mitsubishi Motors North America would have to say about it?

I always figured the difficulty and expense in modifying a car once it leaves the factory is the limiting factor, and that is why we see the various trim levels - MMNA is making their best guess as to how to order cars equipped from the factory that will appeal to their market. Sure, it can be added to, but at great expense. But what do I know.

[Mirageman38]

With the Micra and Fiat exits Mits is now, IMO, taking advantage of the consumer. Before, as in 2014-7 I could buy a base 5mt for $10G and add AC for $1200. That was a fair deal.

Now, the base ES is $11G, and I have to buy an "Option" package for $4G to get manual AC with a 5mt. I don't even get alloys with that $4G hit. The rest of that $4G is spent on items that should be included for free like they are in most markets.

Manual Air Conditioning
6.5” Smartphone Link Display Audio featuring Android Auto™ and Apple CarPlay
Power Door Locks with Remote Keyless Entry & Panic Alarm
Power Windows with Auto-Up & Down Driver’s Window
Cruise Control
Steering Wheel-Mounted Cruise Controls

The same nonsense applies with the CVT except it's base price is $12,200. After adding $4G to basically get AC this is no longer economical and the Spark is providing more value at a lower price, and the Spark is a better deal with a 5mt as well.

My plan requires something missing from the auto market for decades. That is the concept of ordering your car to your specs and waiting for it to be built and shipped. When was the last time you or anyone you know ordered a car factory built to specs?

I don't know where you are getting these prices maybe it is just a Canada thing. KBB Says the lowest price for a new Spark is $14k that's easily $2k more than a mirage costs. Combine it with out 100k warranty, 8MPG better city 6MPG better highway, and an extra passenger seat I don't see how you can see Chevy as better price wise. In the US it all comes with AC.

I would rather order online and pick all my options as well and completely cut the dealers out. It drives me bonkers they wont even let you pick the winter floor mats.

[MetroMPG]

The sparks I rented all had nicer cabin materials than the Mirage

That jibes with the many reviews of the 2016+ Spark I read after it joined the sub-$10k base price war in Canada with the Mirage and Micra: nicer interior, quieter cabin, better infotainment, and generally more refined driving characteristics of the three.

[Mark]

I don't know where you are getting these prices maybe it is just a Canada thing. KBB Says the lowest price for a new Spark is $14k that's easily $2k more than a mirage costs. Combine it with out 100k warranty, 8MPG better city 6MPG better highway, and an extra passenger seat I don't see how you can see Chevy as better price wise. In the US it all comes with AC.

I would rather order online and pick all my options as well and completely cut the dealers out. It drives me bonkers they wont even let you pick the winter floor mats.

I only shop for manuals. When I search the Mirage & Spark side-by-side. Sparks are cheaper. 2020 Sparks are advertised for $10,500 today. I haven't investigated the actual OTD price, but they sell cheap. In my 200 mile wide search, 2019 Spark can't be found. These are 2020 Spark prices. The lowest price 2019 Mirage in my area is listed $1,500 more than a 2020 Spark.

Overall, many Spark owners seem relatively happy with their cars. From a kbb.com review -

"I purchased my Chevy Spark to be towed behind our motor-home. The only issues I have with the vehicle is that there is no trunk release button, very little leg room for rear seat passengers and when you fold the rear seat down you have to put the front seats so far forward that even a 5 foot 10 inches person cannot achieve a comfortable front seat position. Other than that I really love the car! It's fun to drive, gets 43.1 miles per. gallon and I get a lot of compliments on it. The Chevy Spark will serve our needs well for a vehicle to tow behind our motor-home and we received an excellent deal on it. Between Chevy's end of the year 20% OFF MSRP, a $380.00 Dealer Discount and the almost $3,200.00 GM Earnings that I had on my GM MasterCard we were out the door; tax, title and everything for a little over $8,400.00. It's been a long time since I purchased a brand new vehicle for that price. I highly recommend the Chevy Spark for someone who doesn't have a lot of money to spend but wants a dependable fun car to drive that is great on gas."

$8,400 OTD for a brand new car is pretty cheap. I believe this was a couple years ago, but I couldn't get a Mirage for that price at any time.

I'm not really interested in GM or Daewoo products, & I much rather own my Mirage. That doesn't take away from the fact that some Spark owner's also like their cars, however.

KBB.com customer reviews for the Mirage are 4.8/5. The Spark gets a 4.6/5, which isn't bad either. I read a lot of customer reviews before purchasing my Mirage. It soon became apparent owners of these cars are happy with them.