"AS-IS special" I got at a North Toronto Toyota dealer with 145,000 km on the clock (90k miles).
Came with a clean Carproof report, service history from the Mitsu dealer next door (one owner, relatively well maintained).
It's so much nicer to drive than the 2000 Metro winter beater it replaces!
Other nicknames considered: Lifestyle Inflation, Metro DeVille, Silver Poupon, Mirage #1 of N
New, this car cost $15,898 + $1450 mandatory freight charge = $17,348. With taxes: $19,603. Doesn't include unknown dealer charges. Basically, $20k out the door.
Details
Whoopsie-daisy on the front left corner contributed to its low, low price. Several other misc scuffs & chips in the paint around the car.
So, so dirty. The Toyota dealer didn't even bother vacuuming it.
Busted antenna, so the radio reception isn't very good right now.
Looks like it still has the original battery.
Cadillac soft! So soft.
Came with Dunlop WinterMaxx snow tires 165/65r14 size and lots of tread. Looks like the wheels have never been cleaned - the finish is stained from all the brake dust!
63.4 mpg US = 3.7 L/100 km over 521 miles / 838 km (last bar just started flashing before I filled), calculated at the pump.
New mods added this tank: radio antenna delete (just moved it inside the car - reception is worse, but good enough); WAI / warm air intake; engine kill switch.
Weather wasn't horrible for early January: ranged from roughly -5C to +5C. Note that most (~95%) of my driving is on very MPG-friendly secondary / scenic routes with a max 80 km/h / 50 mph speed limit.
4th measured fill-up = 59 MPG US / 4.0 L /100 km over 763 km / 474 miles.
Not bad, considering the weather's been colder than last tank, and includes a couple of short freeway trips at higher than usual speeds for me (woulda beaten 60 MPG for the tank if not for the need for speed!).
Yeah, it's been a mild winter around here for sure, otherwise I wouldn't be seeing these numbers.
Coldest I've personally seen so far is -27 C / -17 F, but only for a handful of days. I don't think I've driven the car in weather colder than -15 or so.
I did hear what sounded like a touch of lower end knocking on the few really cold starts I've done and thought of you. Checked my oil level (was OK). I'm just being paranoid - it's catching around here.
Almost all driving was secondary highways/scenic routes at or near the posted limit (80 km/h = 50 mph max.)
Plenty of use of the engine kill switch, eg. approaching stops, turns & down some hills. Plenty of use of many other ecodriving techniques on top of that.
And sometimes I just put on the autopilot ... I mean cruise control ... and let the car do its thing.
I started wet sanding to get rid of the scuffs & scratches.
Will need to remove the cover to epoxy behind the cracks (in the top left of the photo) before I can fix that area. Those torn edges are too floppy to do bodywork on without reinforcement.
Will epoxy even bond well to this plastic? I'll slice the back side to ribbons to make sure there's a good mechanical connection.
I picked up some paint -- a colour match rattle can from Crappy Tire. Of course, they didn't have anything specifically for the Mirage listed in their book, so I took off the fuel door and brought it inside to eyeball a best match from the available cans in stock. They probably had a dozen or more different shades of silver on the shelves.
Chrysler Radiant Silver Metallic won me over.
(Not the actual can of paint)
Now I'm just waiting for a break in the weather to see how this is all going to turn out. Worst case scenario, if my rattle can paint job sucks, I can sand it off and take it into a bodyshop for a pro to do it.
Over the last couple of days, I cleaned the carpets... pulled the front seats out to do it. First serious cleaning in 6 years... dirt & salt crust.
(NOTE! If you pull your seats, don't turn the ignition on, or you'll trigger an airbag fault/warning that a dealer will have to clear.)
Before:
After:
Bucket of soapy water, a scrub brush and a shop vac.
I've cleaned lots of car carpets in my day, and I have to say: the mouse fur in the Mirage cleans up relatively easily - there's not much pile there to trap the crud.