This should help sweep every last thought of the Ford Mustang and its hip new sibling out of your mind.
Teased not long ago by an excited Mitsubishi, the newest Mirage is now ready for a round of eye feasting. Get your fill. And, while the subcompact model hasn’t adopted a new platform or anything like that, it has donned its largest grille to date, plus some additional finery to drive cost-conscious boys and girls wild.
Starting at $13,795 in the U.S. and $10,998 in Canada (both pre-destination prices are for 2019 models), the Mirage occupies a small but important part of the automotive food chain: The bottom. In other words, this vehicle is one the cheapest ways for a North American buyer to get into a new set of wheels. Its U.S. sales have grown year after year.
For the coming refresh, the Mirage hatch and Attrage (G4) sedan, the latter of which may not make it stateside, adopt the brand’s Dynamic Shield front styling — a design language that, in Mitsubishi’s words, “sweeps round from the sides toward the middle of the nose in a protective embrace.”
Squint a little, and it looks like a Lada Vesta.
LED combination lamps seen on this Thai-market model “makes the front look wider and more stable,” claims the automaker. We cannot disagree. While normally we’d say we’ll have to wait to see if those LED peepers become standard fare in America, the fact we’re looking at a Thai-market vehicle makes it seem pretty likely.
Inside, there are more soft bits where you might place part of your body, as well as a Smartphone Display Audio system with 7-inch display. The unit apparently “improves legibility and clarity.” Outside, in addition to the sporty vents and revised bumper seen out back, buyers can spring for a wild set of 15-inch alloy wheels.
Given that the automaker has nothing to say about the sort-of new Mirage’s potency, we have to assume it soldiers on with a 1.2-liter three-cylinder, good for 78 horsepower and 74 lb-ft of torque. Depending on trim, a five-speed manual or continuously variable automatic handles the shifting duties.
[Images: Mitsubishi Motors]
carsdotcom shows a bunch of very low mileage (under 1000mi) Corollas for around 14 grand. Unless the Mitsu financing is required to put the buyer in the game, the Toyota looks like a better plan.
They should have renamed the Mirage “Lancer Evolution City” because then it would have received roughly 900x the press coverage.
Not unless it is a fat crossover.
Is anyone still talking about the Eclipse Cross? I don’t think I’ve ever seen one in person.
I’ve seen a few. It’s better than something like a Toyota CH-R.
“They should have renamed the Mirage “Lancer Evolution City” because then it would have received roughly 900x the press coverage.”
Thank you.
Mitsubishi sold 24,316 Mirage in 2018. Mitsubishi had ambition to sell 7,000 Mirage annually. In 2019 Mirage will likely break the 2018 record.
I’m not a Mirage buyer. You probably are not. Point is the dealers are not having a difficult time finding Mirage buyers.
They are all over God’s Waiting Room, FL. Grandpa’s last new car… And they are certainly better than the ’77 Vega that my Great Grandfather drove for the last 20 years of his life.
Hey, the ’77 wasn’t bad. I drove a five-speed ’76 GT for 12 years (’80s into ’90s), and I sold it with 218k on it. It leaked oil rather than burned it, and my main complaint was the factory a/c was only marginal in Texas summers. The ’77 models added pulse air injection, and had all the improvements they’d added over the years, like hydraulic lifters, low coolant warning light, upgraded brakes, an improved rear suspension, etc.
I don’t know what is more distressing – seeing how far Mitsubishi has fallen, or having to watch anorexic guy from auto guide.
“Its U.S. sales have grown year after year.”
How many other nameplates can say that?
I had given Mitsubishi up for dead, but now I’m cheering from the sidelines. Heck, they’re outselling Volvo, and offer a more reliable car with a better warranty.
It’s remarkable, isn’t it? People keep saying this segment is totally dead.
With manufacturers abandoning the segment left and right, those sticking around are reaping the benefits. As others have said, not everybody needs a car in every segment.
Roughly $11,000 CAD$ for the base Canadian version?
That would be about $8400 U.S. , and the US version starts at $13,800 U.S.??
The Canadian version better be missing a lot of extras, otherwise Mitsu is taking the US buyer for a ride.
That was my first thought as well.
I assume the Canadian price does not include AC, since they often don’t have it standard, but I’m honestly not sure what other content could be pulled out of a base Mirage to account for a better than 60% price increase.
The base US mirage is basically the Canadian base Mirage with the Plus package (a 4000 $CAD option). Has the AC, 7” screen with CarPlay/Android Auto, cruise control, and power doors/windows, keyless entry. None of that is standard in Canada.
So $4000 CAD for… A/C, a $20 screen, CC, PW/PL, and keyless entry.
Cha-ching.
I bet that’s how Mitsu is making its money, the car’s margin is probably 10% or less.
For C$10,998 you get a Mitsubishi Mirage ES with no air conditioning, no cruise control, no rear power windows, no power locks, no touch panel audio system, and no keyless entry.
The base U.S. Mirage is more or less equivalent to the Canadian ES Plus which starts at C$14,998.
Give it crank windows and it would be perfect.
There will be exactly zero of these in Canada spec’d with no AC. That Canadian base price is the mirage.
$9600 for the base in Canada. And as stated in other posts no AC, cruise, etc.
Shame we did not have the Micra in the USA.
I don’t get it, either, considering that the US dollar sits at $1.32 CAD this morning.
But then it could just be Mitsubishi screwing the subprime buyers that flock to this thing.
I had an EclipseCross as a rental vehicle. What a horrible car.
That being said, I would buy one of these if they had a spec racing series.
I would rather buy Lada Vesta – at least more prestige.
If you’re in Canada then buy a Micra before they’re all gone. Production stops next month and we’re not getting the new one. Compared to the Mirage it has 1 more cylinder, 31 more horsepower and you won’t be a moving chicane outside of city limits. And per a previous comment it already has its own racing series. I bought one just for sh*ts and giggles knowing full well we may never see a car like it again.
I can’t believe the Mirage is $13K US. If I was shopping for a poverty spec city car I’d be running to Korea Inc. for an Accent or a Rio.
The facelift has made a rather homely car much more attractive.
This car may help Mitsubishi make a comeback. They just need to be
comfortable and dependable. The fuel economy is already outstanding.
This is a great way to get first-time buyers into the brand.
Mitsubishi needs to get the mediocrity out of the rest of their models to
keep their new conquests.
“ This should help sweep every last thought of the Ford Mustang and its hip new sibling out of your mind.”
This schtick is getting old fast, FYI.
What is wrong with cheap reliable transportation. This is something GM and Ford never figured out how to do. GM came really close with Saturn, then as usual they fouled that up.
Totally. I can think of a handful of cars whose existence bothers me more than this one.
“What is wrong with cheap reliable transportation. ”
It sucks.
Fingers crossed the G4 sedan gets this update. Though while I’m at it, might as well wish for a 2 door shooting brake hatch based off the longer G4 platform, with an updated 6 speed manual and either turbocharge that little 1.2 litre 3 cylinder, or mash two together to get a balanced, high revving 2.6 litre V6.
And yes, I remember when Mitsubishi made exciting, desirable vehicles.
Mitsubishi is ok with relatively low sales expectations. Given that & their success playing on the fringe markets that other brands are abandoning, they are the perfect, absolutely perfect brand to re-introduce the minivan with character back to the US market, the Mitsubishi Delica Tough Box: https://www.mitsubishi-motors.co.jp/lineup/delica_d5_standard/index.html?intcid2=top-recommendcar_02