Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press |
I was in Manila recently, where the tri-diamond badge showed up on everything from taxicabs to delivery trucks, not to mention many Filipinos’ personal rides including my girlfriend’s brother’s brand new Mirage hatchback. While the Mirage feels small by Canadian standards, in the Philippines it’s average sized. Certainly they have large cars there too, even full-size pickup trucks, but most people drive subcompacts. Fuel prices are about the same as they are here and their household income levels are much, much lower than ours, hence the need to be thrifty, and what’s more the especially important requirement of making sure the car they’re buying stands the test of time.
Philippine
Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press |
In my hometown of Vancouver, which is one-tenth the size of greater Manila, driving is comparatively easy and there are plenty of snake-like two-lane roadways
Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press |
To be clear, the SE designation doesn’t allot for more power under the hood, but rather the same 1.2-litre three-cylinder engine drives the front wheels in both trim levels. Three-cylinder? Yes, you heard me right. The engine only makes 74 horsepower and 74 lb-ft of torque, so fully load up a Mirage with its maximum capacity of five passengers plus 487 litres of cargo (which incidentally is very good) and you’ll feel it. Fortunately when only one or two are aboard the featherweight 930-kilo (2,051-lb) mass of my fully loaded SE CVT tester made for decent performance off the line, although some might enjoy the five-speed manual more, and not just because it weighs 25 kilos less. It’s hard to knock the CVT, however, as shifts were nonexistent and therefore the transmission is incredibly
Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press |
We all know how efficient CVTs are too, my tester good for a Transport Canada EnerGuide claimed rating of 5.3 L/100km in the city, 4.4 on the highway and 4.9 combined,
Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press |
The SE model’s 14-inch aluminum wheels on 165/65R14 all-season tires would have looked impressive in my youth, but seem pretty small by today’s standards. They grip well enough through tight corners though, the Mirage hatchback’s tall, narrow body displaying a fair amount of body lean during the process. Again, it was
Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press |
And entry-level it is, with the lowest price tag of any 2014 model at $12,498 plus $1,450 for freight and pre-delivery prep in base ES trim. For that money you get a fairly rudimentary car as you might expect, but it’s not without amenities. You’ll have to lock each door individually and then slide the key into the door slot to lock the Mirage up, but when inside you won’t have to roll down the front windows; although on hot summer days you’ll need to power them down and those in back will have to rotate the classic black handle fixed to each door panel, as there’s no standard air conditioning. On the other hand there’s a standard 140-watt four-speaker AM/FM/CD/MP3 audio system with speed compensating volume and equalization, as well as auto-off headlamps
Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press |
Move up to the SE and the base model’s steel wheels with covers are replaced with the aforementioned aluminum wheels, while front fog lamps enhance the look, automatic climate control goes a step further than mere air conditioning, the rear windows are powered, power door locks with remote entry make unlocking and locking up a much easier task, the mirrors are powered, heated, folding and boast body-coloured caps, and the front seats are heated too, the driver’s of which is six-way adjustable.
Those seats really shouldn’t have been so comfortable in a car priced so low, and they looked great too, with attractive purple on black upholstery in a nice check pattern. The rest of the interior is pretty basic, but there’s some classy aluminum finished
Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press |
It’s true, you can option either the ES or SE model with parking assist sensors for $595;
Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press |
Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press |
As a final note, I like this car in the optional Thunder Grey Metallic it came in, an understated and classy shade, not the Kiwi Green Metallic we tested previously. I don’t want everybody pointing at me when I drive by saying, “Look! That guy just bought the cheapest car in Canada!” Then again that’s my overdeveloped ego, not yours. You might not care what anyone else thinks at all, or possibly get a thrill out of being seen as smart and thrifty, the person who bought a great little car that gets you where you need to go in a modicum of style and plenty of comfort, for a price that can’t be beat and running costs that are also wonderfully low. That it also comes with the best warranty in the business at five years or 100,000 kilometres of comprehensive coverage and 10 years or 160,000 km on the powertrain is a bonus that could otherwise cost you thousands from a third party warrantor.
If you need good, reliable, practical transportation that’s also plenty of fun in a classic, retrospective sort of way, take a ride in a 2014 Mitsubishi Mirage. Like my girlfriend’s brother Jun, it will likely put a smile on your face.
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