Crappy short 2017 Mirage cvt vs 2013 Sonic 1.8l auto Comparison

[Fummins]

I just took a 17' mirage out on the highway for 1.5hr drive, then.........

[Loren]

I always liked the idea of the 1.8 Sonic with a manual trans. But, when I was shopping, I decided that "weight is king".

[MirageRally]

Also that "steller" GM 5 star reliability, haha that's why l went Mitsubishi... Economic and reliable.

[Loren]

Yeah, I've forgotten all the research that I did... but, reliability was probably a factor. Plus the stellar Mirage FE. Plus, just the weirdness of a 3-cylinder. I really did get a kick out of embarrassing drivers of much "better" cars with my lowly 3-cylinder Mirage. A Sonic would have been fun... still a lowly Sonic... but, folks would say "yeah, but it's got a 1.8 liter 4-cylinder in it!"

[MirageRally]

I felt that way too! Extremely lightweight and had a three-cylinder engine, which for me at the time was unheard of and I instantly wanted to know more about it. I thought "how can this three cylinder make better power and be get better MPG at the same time"... It made me even more happy when I went on the test drive with it and realized that the little 70 horsepower 3 cylinder motor really moved!... Definitely not 0 to 60 but Peppy enough to get your places

[Mark]

Just stating the obvious - We're comparing a 78 hp Mirage to a 138 hp Sonic. 50 more hp should make a difference.

Just to put things in perspective - The first new vehicle I bought was a 1988 Isuzu Trooper. That large boxy, 4WD, 4-door, full frame, SUV had 120 hp (2.6L with a 5-speed manual). Yet, it still had a towing capacity of 3,500 pounds. It was a dealership demo model with 600-700 miles on it. I think it was used to run some errands for the dealership. I paid under $14,000 OTD. I think it was something like $13,750 (very basic & very affordable)!

My 1978 Honda Civic Wagon (first car/used) & 1990 Ford Festiva had less horsepower than my current Mirage. I think the Mirage 1.2L engine is matched very nicely with a 5-speed manual transmission.

I wouldn't own a small, low horsepower vehicle without a manual transmission. None of these vehicles ever seemed under powered to me, including the Isuzu Trooper. Then again, I was going from a 1488 cc, 63 hp Honda Civic to whooping 120 hp mid-size full frame SUV at the time. I miss basic affordable vehicles. I don't even consider the Mirage to be basic.

Not sure what your moisture issue is? I haven't used A/C in over a month or two, & I won't need it all winter. I have moisture issues when the cabin filter is dirty, however. Mice clogged it once for me.

[Dirk Diggler]

I just took a 17' mirage out on the highway for 1.5hr drive, then drove a 13 sonic back. Was good to get out of town for a minute or two..
So the Mirage had 190,000kms on it. It ran and drove just like my 2014. Sluggish, slow throttle noisy etc. I reset the fuel economy gauge while on the highway. It stayed around 5.8l/100km for the first half then once I got into some rolling hills it went to 6.2l/100km. I kept the speed at 110kph or as close as I could for the most part. It was windy and i was getting blown around a bit side to side.
Everything was going good til I turned off the ac to see if I could get a little better economy. Within seconds the friggin windows were fogging up. Had to run the heat at full blast to clear them. I was able to keep them cleared without the ac on by cracking a couple windows a bit and keeping the heat on high. That was my only real complaint other than it being hard to maintain speed on the hills. Then I hit an off ramp with a truck on my ass. I figured I'll try to fly through the corner with some speed, it didn't seem bad. Then it got tighter and tighter lol The body roll must have looked hilarious! Thankfully that was the end of me driving that car.

I switched to a Sonic and it's a night and day difference. Barely touch the throttle and it moves. Quickly. I had a hard time maintaining my speed in this thing too(neither car had cruise) but the sonic kept creaping up to 120kph. It wanted to be there so that's where I kept it. Car handles way better. More power, better throttle responce, brakes, you name it. But it's got manual windows. They didn't fog up however.
I'll edit this later when I have more time. I gotta run

Yeah I'm sure the Sonic was nicer in every way except the one thing that matters to most driving an econobox, reliabilty. Your comparison lists between working on a Mirage vs a Sonic, spelled it out pretty good for me. Not knocking the Sonic, it looks good but I'm not one of these people that can afford to dump a car @ 100k miles and get something new. No, I need my ride to get between 175k - 200k miles otherwise I'm in a hole honestly and I'd trust a Mitsu to do that for me vs a Daewoo/GM anytime.

[PityOnU]

Yeah, it all comes down to what you want out of your vehicle.

My buddy worked in car sales for a while, and he would always tell me how the hardest part of the job was just getting people to admit what they actually wanted. Everybody always said "I want a reliable car with great gas mileage that won't break the bank." He would immediately show them a Mirage or something similar, and they would always poo-poo it.

You need to be honest with yourself first. Emotional needs are just as real as practical ones. There are people out there who legitimately NEED a Mustang GT or a clapped out Denali SUV because of those emotional needs. There's nothing wrong with that, so long as you can afford it. But admitting to ourselves that "I'm okay with burning money for the sake of fun/image" means swallowing a bit of pride. It is what it is.

Let's be real: a Mirage is not a fun car. It's not a flashy car. It's not a fast car. It doesn't handle well. It doesn't have a quiet or plush cabin. BUT! "It's a reliable car with great gas mileage that won't break the bank." If that's what you need, then it's perfect. Otherwise, you'll be left sorely wanting.

[Dirk Diggler]

Won't break the bank until you need parts lol. Go on Mitsu OEM Parts and see what a $700 Mirage radiator look like.

[7milesout]

I know I'm rather new here but ... this sounds like something Fummins copied from something like a youtube comment. As I understand, he's had a Mirage for quite a while. Maybe I'm getting confused.

And whether that was Fummins actual post or copied from somewhere, the poster didn't mention the mpg of the Sonic. I daresay it used more fuel than the Mirage.

I wanted a Mirage because ... they are INEXPENSIVE, interesting, fairly reliable and therefore useful. I do not care that it doesn't handle like a go-kart, or accelerate quickly. If I were racing soccer moms through Walmart parking lots to beat them to the prime parking spots, dodging pedestrians like cones on an autocross course, speed and handling might concern me.


7milesout