Road Trip: Central Florida to the Smoky Mountains

[Chumbo]

On Monday, I set out on my first road trip (hopefully of many) with my new Mirage. I started out wondering if it could handle the trip, and oh, it did. I thought the MPG would tank the moment I took it on the interstate. I hadn't really taken it past 60 MPH since I had bought it. On the first tank of gas, I got 44 MPG going about 75 down the interstate. I got about the same on the second tank, though that was a mixture of interstate and going up the mountains of Georgia and North Carolina/Tennessee. Didn't have any problems on the way there, except for a potential problem with my brakes if I had pushed it any further. Should have put it in DS mode while going downhill. I think my brakes may have overheated a bit, but that is a small problem of my own doing. They still work fine now.
Once I got there, there was a lot of uphill/downhill driving. Everything held up great. I went to Cades Cove, a 2-3 hour scenic traffic jam, no problems. This car is a lot better than I originally thought. I have no doubts that it will do what I need it to. On one trip to the gas station to fill up and get more nicotine pouches I got 65MPG since I was going down the mountain most of the way.
On the way back, I took less breaks. I only stopped when necessary, and I had taken off the hubcaps thinking it may make the brakes cool better, but I think this hindered the MPG. No problems even with rain. The only scary time was when a truck had gave me a bunch of turbulence from the wind and rain. I slowed down after that.

All around a good trip and much more confidence in my purchase. I hope to have many more adventures with my Mirage. It's a great road trip car, even if a bit uncomfortable being on the taller side.

[defensivetackle99]

Awesome. The Mirage is great on hwy.

On my current fuel fill up I have been pushing my CVT hard with Ds and a lil bit of L to combat long distance steep hill commute while maintaining 65-75 mph with the A/C on. What really amazes me is the MPG hovering at 40-42. My ex 05 Corolla, ex 06 Prius, ex 22 G4 5 speed didn’t come close to equalize or surpass that. I love it!