1997 Mitsubishi Mirage review from North America
"Cheap, reliable, economic"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
A/C Switch Unfortunately I had just moved and took it to a new repair shop and took a beating. After their @#$*ing around the bill was almost $300 and should have been less than 100.
General comments?
I've owned several Mirages and Dodge Colts (same as Mirage) and the colt was the only high mile American brand that was consistently as reliable as the asian cars I've owned. I drove a 94 Mirage with 280k miles for a long time. My 97 Mirage was a basic 4 dr 1.5 5sp. I always got 30 + mpg in town and in the cooler months averaged 35. Unreal. Unfortunately I never really took it out of town, but would have expected a min of 40 mpg, possibly up to 45. I had a Dodge Colt that got 45 mpg highway all day long. I would not advise the automatic however, not enough power. My 97 Mirage was very reliable and I would have driven it anywhere. The only repair I had was the a/c button went. The best part was I paid 1900 for it. Put a nice $250 set of tires on it and a $400 Earl Sheib special, made $ when I sold it.
I am once again in the market for a small high mpg car. I have been looking at civics which are great cars unfortunately they are priced almost 2x as much as a used mirage so I may be going back. I saw a 2dr for $3k that had a very sharp paint job and some 17' rims. It was really sharp, too bad it was 2000 miles away. I found a 2001 2 dr Mirage 1.5 5 sp with 42kmi for $4000 that I may buy.
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| 1997 - Mirage LS 1.8L SOHC Sedan This car does not get the credit that it deserves! |
| Reliable, under-rater, quick little sport and economy car., |
| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | Yes |
| Model year | 1997 |
| Year of manufacture | 1997 |
| First year of ownership | 2004 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2005 |
| Engine and transmission | 1.5 Manual |
| Performance marks | 5 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 10 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 5 / 10 |
| Dealer Service marks | |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 9 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) | |
| Distance when acquired | 141 miles |
| Most recent distance | 145 miles |
| Previous car | Saturn ION |
| Date of Entry | 30th November, 2006 |