I think its funny that there are so many former Toyta Echo owners here! So, someone was askign how i felt about the lower HP rating that the Mirage has vs. the Echo. I can tell you that I do notice it on the daily commute, but I've never felt that it was an issue or something that I really missed. A car can have a 0-60 time in 4 seconds, but how often does that really matter? On ramps are super long for a reason. It takes loaded 18 wheelers for ever to get up to speed. In comparason the Mirage might as well be a fighter jet!
I alaways loved the Echo, but it wasn't as quiet or refined as the Mirage. I also LOVE the hatchback vs the trunk on the Echo. I can fold down the seats and carry a lot of stuff the Echo couldn't.
Lastly the sound system is killer! Yes, I recently upgraded to the Fosgate setup, but man it is so nice to have a USB port to put my old Coast to Coast audio files on.
I feel like the Echo got a bad rap in it's day and I'll agree that the first two years had a ugly front end, but the 2002 to 2005 years were really nice Mine was a base 2 door, with the 5 speed and it served me well for 260K. While I feel the Mirage will get a CVT at somepoint between now and 260K, I still feel it was worth it not to have to shift in traffic anymore.
I'd bet a dollar there will come a day when the Mirage is gone, and people will be looking for clean used models to cherrish just like they do with the great little GEO Metro. In fact, I feel this car is the spiritual sucessor for that car, right down to the 3 cylinder motor!