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16Mitsubishi Mirage

Mitsubishi Mirage

 Verified
16Mitsubishi Mirage
4.3

85 reviews

Positive vs Negative
83%10%7%
Build Quality
4.2
Value for Money
4.7
Noise Level
3.1
Gorrace
Gorrace6 posts
  LA

For the money, it's a great car – I bought a demo model in 2018. 5 years later with 50,000 km on the odo, I haven't had any issues at all. For the price, the features it has, and its reliability, you really can't go past it. A couple of things to note: - have the tyre pressure up to 38 instead of the recommended 36 - it helped the drive quite a bit (a tyre place put me onto this).… Read more

- use the B (brake) on the CVT auto to help slow down the car so you don't chew through the front brake pads (a tip from a dealer).

paul
paul114 posts
  LA

Lovely small car – This is our second Mirage & as trouble-free as our 2013 model was. It was classed as the most economical car in Aus, when it came out in 2013 & it's light fuel consumption is really appreciated now with $2 a litre plus prices around. It will fit 4 adults or 2 adults & 3 children in it, plus a case or 2 in the boot. Very reasonable 2nd hand prices now. Show details

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Mia D.
Mia D.
  LA

Reliable cheap to run – Purchased a sedan in jan 2014 new just for local ruuning around. Gets good economy 6l/100km around town, 4.8l/100km open road. The sedans are longer and wider than the hatch so quite roomy for a small car. Now done 80,000kms with no issues. Show details

Reviews with attachments

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paulhags
paulhagsWA4 posts
  Mirage

Such a good car – I use it as a work car I bought it new 2013 now done 130000km so far one set of brake pads and a set of tyres bloody unbelievable I get 4.2 to 5 liters per 100km Show details

In-depth reviews

domw
domwWA41 posts
  LA

Small car good for shopping – With the present car shortages, it has become impossible to negotiate the fixed RRP, but it will still pay to contact several dealers for the same model. It took several visits to Southside Mitsubishi over six months to ask if stock had come into the yard for sale as every car salespersons in Perth wants a signature on the contract without stock… Read more

being available, which then gives the dealer three months to deliver during which time the price increases up to a max. of 5% of the factory price, a figure which is not available to a retail customer. Plus if you have a trade, that trade has become three months older and magically "cheaper".

What made Mitsubishi the winner was the ten year warranty and fixed price servicing every 15,000km or one year compared to other brands. It is five years plus another five years if services are done by Mitsubishi. The RAC warns of making sure every dealer is trying to get around fixed-price servicing (if offered) by claiming "that was found" or "this was found" and that then costs extra.

What is annoying is getting an email five months after delivery from Southside Mitsubishi (AHG) claiming the car is booked in for service on a certain date for an oil and filter change for $199. This I consider to be a scam as it will not frighten me into complying, but will be accepted by some other older person, who does not know that present day's oils will last for 15,000km and the company will hardly change the oil and filter after 3,000km as in my case.

With the screen coming on intermittently, I might just accept the suggested date of the service, but use it for a warranty repair instead.

An "Eco" warning light will indicate if the vehicle is driven without "lead foot" and when lit assists in driving economically. A collapsible walker will not fit into the boot space, but will fit behind the rear seats. Found it to be a bit cheap for hooks to be available for a rubber mat on the driver's side, but no mat to be installed or available anyway. One disadvantage we found were the head rests, which jut just too far forward and are not comfortable.

Otherwise at $19,000 for a white base model with CVT automatic transmission it becomes an inexpensive small shopping bag in city traffic.

Tomas T Gadea
Tomas T Gadea VIC2 posts
  CE

Great little car. I love my little mirage :) – I bought a 1997 mirage last year and I love it. I do mostly highway driving and it has been a great little economical car. Perfect for a first car or learner. If you want a mirage with central locking, airbags and a better sound system, go for the 2001-2003 model as the 1996-2000 models did not have central locking, airbags and only had 2 front… Read more

speakers. The 2001-2003 models had 4 speakers and a cd player instead of a cassette player

Pros: small on the outside, plenty of room on the inside. Is economical Costs around $35-40 to fill tank Still looks great on the roads for a 90s car Cheap to buy Cheap to repair. Had a little accident and needed a new headlight which was $30 from a wreckers Japanese engineering. Tough little engine can take a beating, my mirage did 600k kilometres (which is very very high for a little 1.5) before the engine died. I ended up getting a new engine installed and she's good again :)

Cons: The 1.5 auto engine isn't very powerful. Manual ones do go much better. No central locking. Back pillars are big which are a bad blindspot Manual wind down windows

Colin M.
Colin M.2 posts
  CE

Great very cheap car, much better than expected – Bought my Mirage in early 2020 for $1,000 as a car to leave at the train station, sometimes for a couple of weeks at a time, and it's been great for this purpose. Because some paint is missing from the bumpers and it has a few scratches and dings, nobody messes with it in the car park. It's also been fine to drive on the freeway for ~120km at a… Read more

time when necessary, although it does struggle to maintain 110 km/h up some of the longer inclines.

I've used it to cart furniture, big printers and other equipment around and it carries a surprising amount of stuff, particularly with the back seats down. Being based on the Lancer and hence being quite wide with a low centre of gravity, it's actually not too bad to drive either, even though my other car is a sports car!

It's been dirt cheap to service and keep on the road too - tyres were $65 each, servicing was less than $200 and (touch wood) nothing has gone wrong with it since I got it earlier this year.

Recent reviews

kourosh n.
kourosh n.2 posts
  LA

Not a good car – Test drived a new one in 2018. The guy wanted to sell me a demo for $12990. I can tell you the only good thing was the low price. No good acceleration. Large amount of engine noise. The car felt very underpowered. Better cars around if you are happy to pay a little more money. Suzuki or Honda much better Show details

Jacquie
JacquieQLD6 posts
  LA

Affordable, cheap and reliable little car – I have had this car since 2013 and it has been great. Nothing major has gone wrong with it and has so far only needed regular maintenance. It’s very cheap to run and actually a bit punchy considering it’s size and cylinders. The dash is a bit cheap and not great plastic and the engine noise can be a bit loud at times. Other than this it is a great little car.  Show details

Joy
Joy
  LA

This is is a perfectly safe car which I bought a few years ago & I love driving EVERY DAY – Every review from USA is rubbish, MY Mitsubishi PINK HATCH has given me & my family in Sydney Australia nothing but safety & pleasure! The steering is unbelievable, the breaks in an emergency lock immediately! I feel save in my MM which I drive every day of every year on local town roads, highways, motorways! I use my car everyday, I service it… Read more

every 6 months with the same mechanic who also advises on any replacement tyres etc. Latest from the mechanic was that SHE was in good condition, so keep up the regular services & "SHE" will last me a long time!

b19ckr9bb1t
b19ckr9bb1t9 posts
  Verified LA
Build Quality
Value for Money
Noise Level

Cheap cheerful car to get you from A to B – Overall driving experience is nothing to shout about. Main thing is it's a cheap car to buy on the second hand market. I think the suspension is pretty appalling but for the price I suppose I cannot expect top quality. Cheap to run from rego, insurance and fuel efficiency basis.  Show details

Geoff_H
Geoff_HVIC13 posts
  Verified LA

Good value when bought 2nd hand – My Mirage has 52000km on it, I bought it 2nd hand for $7000 with 29,000km on it. It is a 2014 manual. I normally get 6 litres/100km on the highway at 100-110kph and about 5 litres/100 km around town. The stock head unit and speaker are poor and I had 4 new speakers and a different head unit fitted which made a huge difference. The car has good… Read more

space in the front for a larger guy like me and is ok in the back for short trips (much better than the Alto my ex had). The handling is... soft and it leans a fair bit which is ok on smooth roads but not good on rough country roads (the Alto handled better). The engine is best described as adequate, it is fine with 1 person or 2 but it struggles with 4 people in the car. Realistically if your budget is $7000 to $9000 and you're looking for a car with low kms and some warranty left then this IMHO has to be on your list.

Catharina Strydom
Catharina StrydomQLD4 posts
  LA

Most economic and reliable car I've had – My manual Mitsubishi Mirage use n fraction of the petrol my previous car used. Services are reasonable and it's a reliable car with built in Bluetooth, and ample space. When back seats are folded down, a washing machine fits inside. We have transported many bulky things in this little car. I recently replaced tyres and they were cheap. Great car! Show details

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Mohamed sekek
Mohamed sekekVIC2 posts
  CE

!!! Best car Ever !!! – I bought this car in 2014, never had a single problem, in 3 years ran like a bullet, cheap to run, very easy to drive. Buy it your will never lose. Show details

Manda
MandaNSW23 posts
  CE

The best little car! – My first car was a Mitsubishi Mirage 2003 model second hand that I learnt to drive in I’ve only had my licence for about 6 yrs and I am also a bit older and had no idea how to drive! Never had one problem whatsoever! Excellent on fuel. I got my Mitsubishi Mirage 2003 serviced every 10,000kms and never had 1 problem. A bit small was my only issue… Read more

and also being a 2 door was a bit hard to get in and out of the back. I would highly recommend this beauty of a car to anyone that is learning to drive, so so easy.

K O
K OWA6 posts
  Verified LA

Great little car – I've had my Mirage for almost five years, it was bought as a second smaller car but gets driven more often around town. I first tried the manual gbx but didn't like it before trying out the CVT auto and was sold. The CVT works so well to get the best out of the small engine. Good Points -Surprisingly zippy for such a small engine -Goes well… Read more

in the city and on the freeway

-Inexpensive to buy and insure

-Economical to run, I get around 5 L/100kms (45 mpg US)

-Only needs a service once per year or at 15,000 kms

-Reliable

-Really comfortable seats

-Compact, easy to drive and park in the city

-Quiet, the design must be very aerodynamic as there's hardly any wind noise when driving

-Simple and effective integrated hands free phone system

Things to be aware of

-It's a light car using high strength steel for the body panels to keep the weight down and increase the power to weight ratio. This means that you can feel a sidewind when it's blowing.

-The high strength steel panels can be be dented easily but car doors etc

-The three cylinder engine will burble when cold but once it's warm is very smooth

-Sometimes there's a lack of torque between the fixed 1st gear and when the CVT kicks in, for example when starting at the lights and immediately turning sharply

-The fan could be more powerful, and the windscreen demister could do a better job on cold mornings

-No boot (trunk) light as standard

-Auto Gbx selector not illuminated (although the selection is shown on the LCD display below the speedometer

All in all I'm very happy with my Mirage and it's well worth a test drive if you are in the market for an affordable and comfortable compact car.

Chris
Chris35 posts
  LA

I love my mirage... but – I was looking for a cost effective used vehicle to use for uber. My criteria: Excellent fuel economy A cvt transmission timing chain rather (no time belt replacement) cheap price I bought a two year old Mitsubishi Mirage for $8k. If you are looking for a used vehicle with similar criteria, you will not find a better one for the price.… Read more

You will not see another brand of car that is two years old with similar criteria until you hit about $12k.

That being said, if you are buying a new vehicle I do not recommend the mirage because at ~$13k driveaway, you are far better off paying an extra $1k to $2k to buy a similar but far more refined and more importantly **much safer** vehicle such as the Honda Jazz.

The Mitsubishi Mirage disintegrated in the small overlap crash test. The newer Mirage performs slightly better, but not much.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1BGtbKOAOM

Honda Fit (Jazz) small overlap test

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkob_YajtXM

A list to small overlaps test for small cars (only some of which are sold in Australia)

http://www.iihs.org/iihs/ratings/v/class-summary/minicars

I have driven my Mirage for one year.

Pros:

consumption 5.0l/100k real world, similar to my last prius. I do have to drive lightly though, or it will be 6.0l/100k+.

reliable

cheap tyres

The cvt transmission makes the underpowered engine a nonissue by pegging rpms to a level that maximises power (I have driven the manual and do not recommend it)

The transmission includes an engine brake - which saves your brake pads if you use it to slow at lights

handles well, fun to drive, great turn circle

surprisingly roomy

hatchback utility

Cons:

3 cylinder engine is rough and noisy - the car very noticeably vibrates at idle

poor sound insulation

soft suspension - car regularly bottoms out on rough roads with five people

crash test scores are appalling

skinny tires sometimes cause poor tracking on highway

light - wind and semi-truck air turbulence buffet vehicle on highway

resale value is awful - don't buy a new mirage, instead save a bundle on a used one

paper thin sheet metal - I have a few dents just from leaning against the car

poor resale value

**Please**, if you are buying a new car... don't buy this one. Half of traffic deaths are from small offset crashes, and very few manufacturers are able to build a safe small car. The Honda Jazz Toyota Prius C achieve ratings of "acceptable" on this test. The Kia Rio and Hyundai Accent achieve a "good" top rating. Be aware many of these models from prior years failed this test appallingly, which is why they were re-engineered. Only the USA tests small overlap, so unfortunately we simply have know idea of the performance of vehicles in Australia that are not also in the USA market. The vast majority of vehicles fail the small overlap test unless they have been specifically designed to pass it.

I bought a two year old mirage because it was $4k cheaper than the competition and achieves Prius like efficiency for a fraction of the price. However the fact that a two year old mirage has depreciated so much more than the competition says a lot about how much more you get for spending an extra $1k to $2k when buying a new vehicle. This car has been great for uber, however I am risking my life as this car disintegrates in crashes.

Sorry
SorryNT6 posts
  LA

Aircon blows hot air within 11 months in my new mirage – The noise levels are a major concern. It rattles on the highways which is a bit scary. Car manufacturers should be honest in providing good quality cars even if the prices are higher. Such cheap cars should not be allowed legally to be sold. It is not worth it. I don’t recommend this car to even my worst enemy  Show details

nfaruqi
nfaruqiNSW12 posts
  LA

Great car ! – I have owned Mirage 2016 (sedan) LS LA, 1.3 L, for more than a year. Its been a great car, excellent fuel efficiency. Leg room in the rear is unbelievable. Engine is not so powerful considering its a 3 cylinder, it makes a bit of noise but thats normal for a 3 cylinder engine vehicle. Great value for the price. Built quality is not so good,… Read more

interior is OK but body is not so sturdy, you can easily make a dent if you smash a punch, but you get what you pay for.

Overall, I would give it 4 stars. Mirage is a great car for local day to day commute. Servicing is reasonable at 12 months interval unlike other brands. Top of the range Mirage LS LA comes with loads of features at a reasonable price such as button start, automatic boot release, auto lights (turns off automatically), climate control air conditioning etc. Fuel efficiency is good, but it would have been great if the fuel tank capacity would have a a little bit more.

I would recommend it to anyone who is looking for an affordable, reliable car.

Carolynne Beazley
Carolynne Beazley2 posts
  LA

awesome car - couldn't ask for more for the price! – Performs really well, nimble on the road. Haven't noticed much noise. Interior does look cheap but functional Legroom surprisingly amazing - we actually fit in 4 adults quite comfortably and we're all over 6'1"!! We were shocked. Really cost efficient to run - slow to go through petrol Not very powerful up the hills, but really does the job well enough nonetheless.  Show details

GeeJay
GeeJayQLD17 posts
  LA

Very good for a short work commute – Those criticising the Mirage's looks should compare it to the Nissan micra. My Mirage had to have the manual gear box replaced at 24000 km. A vibrating sensation was noticeable through the pedals. The dealer said Mitsubishi had changed manufactures and the replacement shouldn't give me any bother. Has anyone had this problem, or know whether… Read more

the replacement gear box is of better quality than the original. To their credit Mitsubishi replaced it under warranty, but if it fails again within say 25,000 km, the cost could ruin me.

Jani
Jani4 posts
  LA

Very fuel efficient! – This car is a great value car! Very cheap on petrol, 4.6L/100km, and hence the running costs are very low. The overall driving experience was positive, except the fact that the engine is a little loud when you have to accelerate. The interior is about right for the money you are paying for it. As a tall 6 foot man, I could fit comfortably inside.… Read more

However, one thing is that the interior looks a little cheap, with plastic used in most places. Apart from this, the design is perfect.

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Find out how Mitsubishi Mirage compares to other Cars

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Tim L
Tim L4 posts
  LA

Good car - especially for the price – If you are paying less than $15 grand for a car then you have to expect some trade offs. However after driving the car for a while, the highway noise can be a little loud but not overly so and handling is great. The bluetooth has had some issue with Android phones but only happens in a blue moon. The voice recognition is great with a 90% match on… Read more

the names i say. You do have to keep manually importing the phone contacts into the car for any changes.

Service is cheap with fixed price servicing every 15k kms and super cheap to run. I get about 5L/100 on my daily commute

Eric
EricNSW9 posts
  LA

Great fuel efficient small car – This car is extremely well in fuel efficiency. It cost me about $35 for a full tank of fuel. Even though this is a lower end small car, it still equipped with a great Bluetooth system. I can play my favourite music in the car connecting to the spotify app from my iphone.  Show details

Lky
Lky3 posts
  LA

Great car for short distance – Compact car that saves fuel, small and easy to park. I only need to pump once a fortnight and it only costs my about 30 dollar. Easy maintenance as well as sleek design. I would recommend for a short distance drive around town. Very comfortable and spacious as the back seat can be adjusted to lie flat.  Show details

nic
nic6 posts
  LA

OK first car – I don't mind this car, it gets me from A to B, but it is a bit noisy and I'm not a huge fan of what it looks like. Petrol is affordable which is good and when I'm driving around a lot it'll usually last me 2 weeks even with a small tank. It fits a lot more in it than it appears which is handy.  Show details

Caroline
CarolineNSW7 posts
  LA

I love my purple Mirage – This car is very fuel economical. I use it for work and considering the size of the car, I get all my work equipment in with no problems. We've had no mechanical problems after nearly 3 years. The dashboard is simple but easy to use. Legroom is ok for all the family. My only complaint and it's a small one, due to the size of tyres they need to be changed more frequently than on a bigger car. Reliable, economical and a big bang for a small buck.  Show details

aziz
aziz8 posts
  LA

Perfect car – Great little car very easy to manage i like driving it beautiful colour and looks. It is very economical on fuel. Air conditioner could have been better. Bluetooth connectivity is also a plus point. Usb connectivity. Full tank that costs around 30$$ can easily do 370 -390 kms which is pretty good.  Show details

Emily Victoria Bridges
Emily Victoria Bridges3 posts
  LA

Good first car – Driving experience is enjoyable, suits my needs perfectly as a single person living in the city. Handles well, is kind of noisy but not any different to other cars in the same price range. I don't like that the car doesn't have a centre console, but again this seems to be usual. Legroom is perfect for me (167cm). It's tough fitting three adults… Read more

in the back comfortably, but can be done!

Thus far it's been extremely reliable and cheap to run. I fill up usually for around 20 bucks and a full tank lasts around 500kms

DGD
DGD6 posts
  LA

AWESOME – Admittedly this is my first car that wasnt 10 years old, so I may have low standards, but oh my god I love this car so much. I have had it over 3 years now and have had zero issues except for a flat tyre. It uses almost no fuel and it easy to fit in little spaces and can turn on a penny. If anyone is after a nifty little car this may be the one for you!  Show details

b19ckr9bb1t
b19ckr9bb1t9 posts
  LA

Cheap to run, suspension is quite soft though – I bought this car used at 3 years old with approx 55k on the odometer. It's cheap to run. The suspension is quite soft so it's quite bumpy on rides. If you need a car to get you from A to B , cheap to run, city driving, and you are not fussy about the ride comfort - this is a great car!  Show details

paulhags
paulhagsWA4 posts
  LA

best car for the money – I bought the 2013 mirage new I've done 100000km now not one thing gone wrong with it only replaced tyres at 76000 I get 4.1 -5.2 lt per 100km it's fantastic on fuel will be buying another one when I've done 200000km it's very light car so can get blown around a bit in a storm but fantastic value for the money  Show details

Bailey
Bailey
  LA

This is the best first car to have – To drive this is like a dream cheap to run would go buy another one. Best first car money not in your pocket all the time. So smooth on the road. It's better than Holden Astra. I bought because it was cheaper to run. The space on the inside is bigger than I through going to be. Just love it.  Show details

Diana0777
Diana0777TAS21 posts
  Verified LA

Definitely great value for the price you pay and what you get! – I purchased a 2016 Mitsubishi Mirage ES automatic car brand new at the 2016 plate clearance in January 2017. It only had 45kms on the odometer and was never a demonstrator model so my 5-year warranty started the day I bought it. I got an excellent price due to the dealer wanting to get rid of 2016 models to make room for the 2017 models, so I… Read more

essentially paid the price of a second-hand car but got a new car. Best time to buy a new car is January.

I wanted a small car that is very fuel efficient, it is definitely one of the most fuel-efficient cars on the road. It had three-quarters of a tank in it when I bought it, this lasted me a week and a half and took me over 200kms (most of which was even slow, peak hour traffic). When I went to fill it up (when the fuel light started flashing), I only spent just under $30.00 filling the tank to full. So definitely not a strain on the hip-pocket! When the fuel falls below a certain level, the fuel sign alerts you by continuously flashing till you fill it up, however, it seems to still show just under a quarter of a tank of fuel. I would have preferred it to have the estimated number of km's left so I could decide how urgent filling up is. I eventually found that you have to go into a menu to find this information….would have preferred this to appear near the odometer and stay on instead of having to press a button and go through a menu to locate this information.

The front seats are nice and high in that as the driver, you have a good view of the road and everything around you. It is a little deceiving how far you are to the car in front of you as the front bonnet dips down so that when you are in the driver’s seat you don’t even see your bonnet at all. I guess it’s something you’d eventually get used to. Being small, it is really easy to park, however inside, especially the driver’s seat and front passenger seat, it is actually rather roomy for a small car. There are three holders for cups near the gear stick and lots of little compartments in the doors etc to put things, however, it does not have pockets behind the driver and front passenger seats which is a shame. I found it strange that it has this little shelf at knee level under the steering wheel. I don’t know what you would store there, but accessing it would be difficult while driving. The glove box is actually quite roomy and I can fit a street directory (a good sized one), a hardcover novel and a newspaper and still manage to close it.

The front seats are very comfortable, however, I don’t like how the headrests push your head forward (as most cars do). Luckily I was able to reverse the headrest and it still was able to fit into the slots securely, once I did this it no longer pushed my head forward and I felt very comfortable, not all cars let you reverse the headrest and still slot in securely, so I find this is a great advantage. The front seats are completely adjustable with slide and recline, the driver’s seat is also height adjustable. I went and got some tailor made good quality sheepskin covers for the front two seats. Now the car feels extra super comfortable and luxurious.

The voice recognition I must say is hopeless. My son and I spent about 10 minutes trying to get it to dial one mobile number, it kept trying to dial 000 and a whole bunch of random numbers and symbols no matter what we said or how clearly we spoke. At least we got a real laugh out of it, especially when I made the statement..…” by now you’d end up having a crash trying to get it to dial that number”, then it said “pardon?” and we both roared with laughter. Luckily my son recorded the whole ordeal and then uploaded it onto his YouTube channel for a laugh. There is the option to do voice training which I will do and hopefully, it will work better once I do the voice training. What’s funny is that there have been a few times while driving (without having done the voice training) that it did end up getting the number correct, then other times when it gets it totally wrong. There is an option to add numbers to the car’s address book which then makes it much easier when you want to make a call. You just need to have your blue tooth switched on your phone and all the buttons you need are on the steering wheel to make a call. The car will even warn you if your phone battery is low.

The boot is very small but still quite useable. I was pleasantly surprised how much extra room can be obtained by rolling the back seats down. We managed to fit an enormous 121cm tall, 4 level cat scratching post/palace into the boot with the seats rolled down which was great. Otherwise if it had not have fitted in we would have missed out on that treat for our cats (we had found it at the side of the road in a council clean up in an area far away from home). I like the fact there is only one button that both unlocks the car doors and the boot, then to open the boot you just need to pull the handle (similar to the car door). I prefer this setup as opposed to a separate button for the boot as I found in my previous car this would sometimes fail and was expensive to fix.

I like the way the car is not low to the ground, it does not scrape when you go up or down driveways of bumps, I used to hate when my previous car scraped on driveways and bumps because it was too low.

The steering is really light and reacts to the slightest turn, very easy to maneuver.

I find that having a very small engine does mean the car will strain going up a hill when the air-con is on and/or there are many passengers in the car. I also find that it can be a little slow off the mark when waiting for a gap in the traffic to turn into a street…you have to ensure there is a large gap, otherwise you won't get through in time. It's no good putting your foot hard down on the accelerator or it will hesitate and jump. Likewise, the engine is a little noisy when going uphill or accelerating from a stopped position, other than that you can't really hear it. The air-con vents are only in the front, there are none for the passengers in the back which is a shame, but the air-con does work well and will cool down the whole inside of the car after a while. What’s interesting is that the air-con is fitted with a pollen filter which is great for those suffering seasonal allergies.

I noticed the plastic panel covering the steering column was open and when I tried to click it closed again, it would soon click open again later. I called the dealership where I purchased the car from “Brookvale Mitsubishi” and they were very accommodating and said that they would fix that up when I come in for the car’s 1500km complimentary service. That’s the only thing I’ve noticed so far that needs attention. I must say I found the whole purchase experience very pleasant and would definitely recommend Brookvale Mitsubishi as they not only gave me a great deal but were not pushy or high pressure and treated me like a very special customer. There was even a lovely little ceremony when I came to pick up the car.

The car comes with ANCAP five-star safety as it has 6 SRS airbags and Reinforced Impact Safety Evolution body so you can have complete peace of mind you are driving one of the safest cars on the road.

I like the black cloth seat trim and black/charcoal interior colours as it not only looks modern and sport, but is very practical in that it doesn’t show the dirt.

I don't like the way the interior windows really fog up in the rain (even with the air set on outside) and the fact the only way to clear them is by using the air-con on the window setting. Luckily you can set it for heat as well as cold and it still clears the windows equally as well, otherwise you'd freeze to death on a rainy winter day. My previous car didn't need the air-con on to clear the fog, instead, I could just blast it with normal air (even hot air) on the window setting and it would work. I tried that in this car but it just got foggier. The back demister works really well, within seconds of turning it on, the whole back window will clear.

I found the USB Port in the glove box which I thought was a strange place to have it but at least it does have one. There is a slight indent for a cord to protrude out from the glove box so you can have it closed while using the USB port. The radio turns on by pressing a button, however, to turn it off you have to press the same button for at least 2-3 seconds otherwise, it will not turn off. I would have preferred it to be a simple press on and press off.

Unfortunately, the horn is not "angry" enough, it is a mere “cute” little beep which sounds like Road-Runner from the old Road-Runner and Coyote cartoons from the 70's. When I am using my horn I am telling someone off, I don’t want to sound "cute".

The side mirrors fold in completely which is great for when parking on a narrow street and you don’t want your mirror to be side swiped by moving traffic.

For a micro car, I think it is attractive, sporty and very well fitted with all the extras, it is comfortable and surprisingly roomy in the front. Easy to park and maneuver, a little slow off the pace and struggles a little going uphill especially with many passengers and the air-con on, however that’s the trade-off for excellent fuel economy which will no doubt be of great benefit to the hip-pocket in the long term. Definitely great value for the price you pay and what you get!

James O
James OQLD6 posts
  LA

Poor fuel economy, noisy interior – We bought this car primarily based on the fuel consumption figures. Supposed to be 4.6L/100k combined but in reality on a good day on a highway it gets 5.5L. A massive difference and when questioned on a service, Mitsubishi just say it is within tollerances. Yeah, right. I had a Toyota Echo years ago that had a stickered 5.5L but I consistently… Read more

got 5.3L and that was when I lived up a mountain. Very unimpressed with the Mirage. I also had to sound proof the front and rear of the vehicle because people in the back couldn't hear people in the front with the noise. With low cost sound proofing it is so much better. Ultimately at 5.5L+ for level highway driving and an excessively noisy cabin, I vote that this will probably be the last Mitsubishi I will own. Our previous car was a Lancer and again it was a thirsty beast. I have one comment for Mitsubishi - don't lie about your figures! They are just plain wrong and I look forward to returning to Mazda or Toyota soon. If you're looking for a small cheap car avoid this one. It is cheap but it does not deliver on what was promised.

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