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Thread: Thanks all!! Almost a Mirage owner

  1. #11
    Quote Originally Posted by Danny View Post

    I had no clue about the axle issues. I've read a fair amount on this forum- at least as much as ya can in a few days. I thought I knew the car pretty well. I guess maybe not.
    I haven't seen a noticeable rear axle problem yet. Sent a few out to get checked out years ago and one was out in the front end and needed camber adjusting bolts. Otherwise I try to rotate the tires at sooner than later. Tiny tires spin and wear faster.

    Hundreds of thousands of people have had their axles replaced. But not really. Some have most haven't. It wouldn't hurt to get it checked out though to save yourself years of sleepless nights worrying about it. I worry about it as much as covid.


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        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2014 Mirage SE wussie cvt edition. 1.2 automatic: 37.7 mpg (US) ... 16.0 km/L ... 6.2 L/100 km ... 45.3 mpg (Imp)


  2. #12
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    I certainly wouldn't give the rear axle a 2nd thought. I saw you said it was fine. Personally I don't trust a dealer with not one word that comes out of their mouth. I have 1 shop ... just ONE, that I actually trust to tell me the truth about the alignment condition. And it's only because I just happened in their shop.

    I have a 2003 Camry (that is the best car ever). It had about 80k miles on a set of michelins. Maybe more miles that that. The front tires were plum worn out. And they looked worn out more either on one side or on the outsides ... I forget. The Discount Tire guys nearly freaked out, "oh you gotta get an aligment, RIGHT NOW." But I told them, those tires have 10 million miles on them, and the car still drives quiet. No shimmy, no shake, no pulling either direction, steering wheel is straight ... it doesn't even feel like the tires are worn. It drives like a cream puff. "Doesn't matter, those tires are being chewed up."

    I didn't believe them really, so before I bought tires from them, I take it to the shop next door (because for some D/A reason Discount Tire doesn't do alignments). That shop put it on their 4 wheel alignment, then called me in about 45 minutes and said ... "hey, we could charge you $92 and adjust your alignment and try to make it straigher ... and probably make it worse ... but that car is straight as an arrow. No alignment needed. What do you want to do?"

    I told them that not only do I prefer to save $92, but for their honesty, I'll take a set of 4 tires from you. I've been using them ever since. I get really intimate with my vehicles, and I can feel what they need. Took my dad's pickup (which is now mine) to them, and they diagnosed exactly what I was feeling with the truck.

    Point is: I doubt your dealer is fibbing about this particular issue. But I also doubt your vehicle has any axle issue to be concerned about. But in the future ... unless a check or repair is covered by warranty, find yourself an outside shop that you can trust. I worked in design for Toyota and Hyundai. I got some direct work with dealers with Hyundai. And they (and probably all other OEM dealers) are the most deceitful, incapable sons of (you know what) that ever walked the earth. They make Las Vegas casinos look like Bible School classes. My $0.02 worth.


    7milesout

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        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2020 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 42.4 mpg (US) ... 18.0 km/L ... 5.6 L/100 km ... 50.9 mpg (Imp)


  3. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by Fummins View Post
    Tiny tires spin and wear faster.
    Good point. I never thought about that. Our Mirage wheels and tires must be like Marvin the Martian's feet / legs when he walks.

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        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2020 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 42.4 mpg (US) ... 18.0 km/L ... 5.6 L/100 km ... 50.9 mpg (Imp)


  4. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by Top_Fuel View Post
    I had my alignment checked (for free) before my car had 700 miles on it. The front end toe was out of whack. The dealer aligned it for free under warranty. If I didn't have the alignment checked/corrected when my car was new, I probably would have been one of those guys on this forum complaining because their original tires only lasted 15,000 miles.


    Your rear axle can probably be slightly out of spec and you can live with it (as long as you rotate your tires consistently). My rear axle is within spec (not by much) and my original tires lasted 90,000 miles. But that's another story.
    Clarification: When you say original tires lasted 90,000 miles, you are not referring to the original factory tires? You switched over to a high mileage, LRR 185/55r15 tire/lightweight rim set up shortly after buying your Mirage, correct?

    Regardless, 90,000 miles out any set of tires (even those with a 80,000+ warranty) is pretty amazing!

    I asked White Bear to check the alignment of my Mirage prior to delivery, because of the warnings from here. It's worth doing, but I wouldn't lose sleep over it. Others like the Honda Fit have had some rear axles issues, too!

    Danny - If you don't fall in love with the narrow 165/65r14 tires, a 175/65r14 tire would work quite well on your existing rims. Practically, all tire companies manufacture/sell 175/65r14 tires. The same cannot be said for 165/65r14 tires, but it has gotten much better in the past couple years. Those who decide to go to 15" wheels tend to look at 185/55r15 tires. Both 175/65r14 & 185/55r15 tires are 23" in outside diameter, which is close to 22.4" or 22.6" factory tires offered on a Mirage.

    This may be putting the cart before the horse somewhat? I would just enjoy your new car as is. I have owned my Mirage for over 3.5 years (over 48,000 miles), & I have no intention of using anything other than 165/65r14 tires. For me, it's part of the charm of the car. I also prefer skinny tires in snow. Others like a slightly larger tire, & that's ok, too! A car like the Chevy Spark uses a 185/55r15 tire.

    Look forward to hearing what you think of your new Mirage!

  5. #15
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    Quote Originally Posted by 7milesout View Post
    Good point. I never thought about that. Our Mirage wheels and tires must be like Marvin the Martian's feet / legs when he walks.
    The 145SR12 tires on my 1990 Ford Festiva never lasted very long. Then again, I don't remember ever finding a 12" tire from a major tire company, and tires were cheaper back then. $25-40 got you a new 12" tire. If you got 30,000-40,000 miles out a pair/set, you were doing exceptionally well.

    Today's larger, wider tires aren't so cheap. One would hope they last longer! $140 for single Dunlop Enasave would have bought you an entire set of 12" tires years ago. Even by today's standards, I couldn't justify paying that price for a 165/65r14 tire. The Falken tires on the new 2021 Mirages are surely more affordable. I wonder how they will do in the wear & mpg departments?

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    I've got Riken Raptors on 2 or 3 different cars in my fleet. They are inexpensive. And so far have been exceptionally valuable. Wish they made them in 165/65 R14 size. If so, I'd buy them.

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        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2020 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 42.4 mpg (US) ... 18.0 km/L ... 5.6 L/100 km ... 50.9 mpg (Imp)


  7. #17
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    I just got home with it. I got the proverbial someone almost hit me less than 1 mile from the shop. That must be the new car jinx. Fortunately nothing happened, but I did find I could slam brakes and downshift w/out stalling the car. It's been a bit since I drove a stick.

    It handled the roundabout in much less space than my mini van or Fusion. That would make sense. I'll have to get used to feeling like I'm about to go on two wheels. That will come with time. I'm really stoked about a 3 day interval between fill ups. That extra day sometimes gives fuel the chance to come down.

    I appreciate the tire info given. For now I'll stick with what I have. When it comes time to get new ones, I'll revisit the subject. At this moment I'm not crazy about them. That's subject to change once I get used to them.

    I wanted to take a pic, but it's such a dreary day here I'll wait until the sun is shining.

    I told the district sales manager about this forum. I liked her a lot. We talked quite a bit about the axle. I feel better about that, though still not 100% totally confident in it just yet. She assured me that if there is a problem, they will fix it w/out any hassles. Not sure if she'll visit this site or not- but when I mentioned White Bear she knew exactly who I was talking about. I put in a good word about this site to my sales lady, her boss, the guys in the garage, the finance guy, and her. The only one who seemed to take an interest was her.

    Two questions here: 1) Any thoughts on the 150,000 mile warranty? They told me $2,000. My own thoughts are not really worth it at $2000. I'm putting 1,000 miles/week on this thing. About 70% of those will be highway. I'll blow right through the regular warranty, but I'm still not crazy about the extended.

    2) Is there any way to get the seat belt chime off? I wear it when I drive. It's just that I have a lot of deliveries that have 2-5 stops in the same parking lot. I won't get above 15MPH or so on those. I tried the way I did my Dodge (ignition on, click/unclick seat belt 3 times, wait for the chime), but it didn't work with this. I searched You Tube last night and nothing for Mitsubishi seat belts. Any help would be appreciated.

  8. #18
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    If it's not a hassle, snap the seat belts in place then sit on top of them.

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        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2020 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 42.4 mpg (US) ... 18.0 km/L ... 5.6 L/100 km ... 50.9 mpg (Imp)


  9. #19
    Senior Member Top_Fuel's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Danny View Post
    Two questions here: 1) Any thoughts on the 150,000 mile warranty? They told me $2,000.
    Do not buy an extended warranty. These cars are pretty much bullet-proof as they sit. Just change the oil and it will last you well beyond 150K miles.

    I'm surprised this place tried to sell you an extended warranty. Seems like most new car dealers have moved on to the "Lifetime Powertrain Warranty" around here. My own Mirage came with a "Lifetime" warranty...although I violated it almost immediately because it had a requirement that only a "licensed professional shop" could perform the oil changes.

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 52.2 mpg (US) ... 22.2 km/L ... 4.5 L/100 km ... 62.6 mpg (Imp)


  10. The Following User Says Thank You to Top_Fuel For This Useful Post:

    Mark (05-05-2021)

  11. #20
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    Top Fuel - I believe the Magnusson-Moss Act covers the clause about having to use a "professional shop" to do maintenance in order to have warranty. I'm fairly sure it does.

    However, depending on how the "Lifetime Powertrain Warranty" is written, maybe creative writing is their workaround. I would imagine with the help of a decent enough slimeball lawyer, a "warranty" could be written in such a way that "Warranty" is just part of the title of some kind of dealer POLICY. And thereby since it is a policy and not really a warranty, maybe they could get away with denying coverage if the "little shop of horrors" didn't do all the maintenance.

    Dunno, I speculate. I have a bit of a conspiracy mind. All I know is my work with OEM in design, I got to do some work with dealers behind the curtains. And boy, were they a bunch of liars. Their whole career centers on telling lies. I have no love of any OEM dealer.


    7milesout


        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2020 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 42.4 mpg (US) ... 18.0 km/L ... 5.6 L/100 km ... 50.9 mpg (Imp)


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