Day in the life of a mechanic...

[Alex_V]

My customer pool and willingness to work on older, even classic vehicles means it takes me a while to get much hands-on time with cars of about 10 years of age or newer. Even though I specialize in 70s/80s Mercedes and currently have an air cooled Beetle, FJ40, and BMW E28 at the shop I shy away from most late 90's-up European cars. Two jobs in the last two weeks just give me more resolve to keep driving the rigs in my sig, even if it means hunting harder for parts and factoring in some down time for cosmetic maintenance and simply, age-related repair.

2015 VW Passat TDI, 185K. Front-rearward LCA bushings shot, and replaced timing belt (first time, yikes). All seems fine until three days later when it goes into limp mode on his way to work. After borrowing a scan tool that can actually talk to the VW, I find both the DPF pressure sensors melted into a glob – connectors to the main engine harness included. Also misfire codes showing the exact same odometer reading and identical RPM across all four cylinders. The moment I googled the right keywords I found the rabbit hole with tons of identical events soon after timing belt service - apparently the sensors get so brittle that the slight movement required to move its hose aside to remove the timing cover, cracks it, which allows heat from the DPF to travel up to the sensor and destroy it. Theory on the simultaneous misfires is that the melting sensors shorted a common circuit that shut the whole thing down momentarily. Sensors are $200+ each from the dealer (in stock at the cost of a 1.5 0hr. drive) ~$160 online for genuine, or ~$200 for both (aftermarket) through parts house or fast-ish shipping online. Customer opts to cheap out and wait for shipping.

2016 Hyundai Tucson 1.6 T-GDI, 76K miles, oil changed 1500 mi. ago and it's already 2.5+ qts. low. Customer is from out of town, about 90 miles from arriving here it developed a dead miss so they had it towed the rest of the way, called me on recommendation of family here. Disconnecting #4 coil makes zero difference, swap coils and plugs to no avail, then formulate the theory that one injector has failed, which seems common according to the Interwebs. Before paying for fast shipping on injectors and related parts I do a compression check which reveals exactly 0 compression on that hole. Can't find any damage to the piston or cylinder with a bore scope, just a ton of gas. Add oil, still zero compression. Add compressed air and can still freely rotate the engine while the compressed air flows out the other spark plug holes on intervals as the respective valves open. Remove valve cover to check for broken valve spring, etc., but find nothing. Then turn to the interwebs to find many occurrences of catastrophically burnt valves on this family of engines at even lower mileage, which all the symptoms align with. Call owner to break the news that there's no way this car is what's taking them 600 mi. back home this weekend.

Close up shop on Christmas eve-evening, crank up my 220K-mile Mercedes 300D, drive home and park next to the 376K-mile CRV, behind the 331K-mile Suburban. Life could be better but at least I'm not stranded by parts that were never designed to last in the first place.

 

[Wrenchturner44]

Merry Christmas! Thanks for sharing your experiences with these vehicles so that others might learn from your efforts.

 

[Alex_V]

Merry Christmas! Thanks for sharing your experiences with these vehicles so that others might learn from your efforts.

I appreciate that. On an almost daily basis I'm at the convergence of intentionally poor designs coming to bear on the unsuspecting owners that - with some level of ignorance, it is true - just tried to buy good transportation. In this case the big picture with the Hyundai is just inexcusable, absolutely drinking oil and blowing chunks out of the valves at 76,000 miles. Last month some friends of mine lost the motor in their '14 Equinox 4 cyl. (second one, vehicle was at ~250K but engine had much less) while three states away on a trip. They just sold that hunk of junk for scrap and rented a car back home. But as long as pieces like these keep selling, manufacturers will keep making them, so the real root cause is people knowing nothing about the meaningful aspects of what they're buying or just crossing their fingers, signing the paperwork, and hoping these inherent flaws won't happen to them because it's cheaper than other options or has some cooler feature.

 

[Jim Rogers]

My customer pool and willingness to work on older, even classic vehicles means it takes me a while to get much hands-on time with cars of about 10 years of age or newer. Even though I specialize in 70s/80s Mercedes and currently have an air cooled Beetle, FJ40, and BMW E28 at the shop I shy away from most late 90's-up European cars. Two jobs in the last two weeks just give me more resolve to keep driving the rigs in my sig, even if it means hunting harder for parts and factoring in some down time for cosmetic maintenance and simply, age-related repair.

[...]

Close up shop on Christmas eve-evening, crank up my 220K-mile Mercedes 300D, drive home and park next to the 376K-mile CRV, behind the 331K-mile Suburban. Life could be better but at least I'm not stranded by parts that were never designed to last in the first place.

I enjoyed this post and am of the same mindset.

I just retired early (i.e., zero income for a few years until SS) and by necessity do all my own repairs-- even major ones. All my vehicles are older, low-tech models with virtually no bells or whistles. All were selected specifically and strategically based notably strong reputations for both good reliability and ease of repair.

I bought all but one of them used-- on average more than a decade old-- but with unusually low mileage.

Given my financial restraints, the need to do my own repair work, and the increasing complexity of modern vehicles, I plan to keep my current fleet for literally the rest of my life.

So, I'm with ya, brother!

Glad I'm not the only one.

 

[Alex_V]

I enjoyed this post and am of the same mindset.

I just retired early (i.e., zero income for a few years until SS) and by necessity do all my own repairs-- even major ones. All my vehicles are older, low-tech models with virtually no bells or whistles. All were selected specifically and strategically based notably strong reputations for both good reliability and ease of repair.

I bought all but one of them used-- on average more than a decade old-- but with unusually low mileage.

Given my financial restraints, the need to do my own repair work, and the increasing complexity of modern vehicles, I plan to keep my current fleet for literally the rest of my life.

So, I'm with ya, brother!

Glad I'm not the only one.

Here here. What's in your garage?

 

[Chris142]

Now that I am working at the shop that only does Euro cars customers often ask me/Us what we drive Expecting us to drive some fancy or vintage euro cars

They look at us funny when we point to the corner where we employees park. 3 Chevy trucks, my jeep,3 Honda's, and the only euro a Jetta.

They don't think it's funny when we say we need cars that will start every morning to get us to work

 

[zulf200]

I appreciate that. On an almost daily basis I'm at the convergence of intentionally poor designs coming to bear on the unsuspecting owners that - with some level of ignorance, it is true - just tried to buy good transportation. In this case the big picture with the Hyundai is just inexcusable, absolutely drinking oil and blowing chunks out of the valves at 76,000 miles. Last month some friends of mine lost the motor in their '14 Equinox 4 cyl. (second one, vehicle was at ~250K but engine had much less) while three states away on a trip. They just sold that hunk of junk for scrap and rented a car back home. But as long as pieces like these keep selling, manufacturers will keep making them, so the real root cause is people knowing nothing about the meaningful aspects of what they're buying or just crossing their fingers, signing the paperwork, and hoping these inherent flaws won't happen to them because it's cheaper than other options or has some cooler feature.

This!!

People dont care whats going on under the hood or under the car itself, they only care about some feature like self parking coz they cant park (complete with memes in adverts to bank on it) or if a car has some weird cheap vacuum installed in the back to clean it. The list is endless.

Or just saying to buy some additional warranty to stay safe.

Warranties are trash mostly and the owner is usually left holding a sign.

E.g. we all know that the nissan cvt fail like clockwork, I tell buyers to keep about 3-4k as a reserve to finance that repair because it WILL happen. The warranty places only allow certain units to be installed and those certain are usually garbage to begin with. Even worse when you have to take over some other shops half baked work like the original rom chip in the unit missing.

 

[Jetronic]

Now that I am working at the shop that only does Euro cars customers often ask me/Us what we drive Expecting us to drive some fancy or vintage euro cars

They look at us funny when we point to the corner where we employees park. 3 Chevy trucks, my jeep,3 Honda's, and the only euro a Jetta.

They don't think it's funny when we say we need cars that will start every morning to get us to work

When I worked at the Hyundai dealership, none of the mechanics drove Hyundais. The sales people had one though.

What does the shop owner drive?

 

[fantastic]

Good story.
With wife/kids I learned I had to keep my old/used vehicles in top shape to keep them longer. Repair or have a shop repair anything that needs fixed (stay on top of things). Of course the customer knows nothing and I'm often treated that way but I'm often correct in diagnosing vehicles. 40+ vehicles I've learned some things. I've been poor financially my whole life so DIY was/is mandatory most of the time and learned to deal with anything faulty or known issues for as long as I can bear it. I'm sure you can relate. You know with your older equipment it is wise to have a fleet of them for reliability.

 

[Jim Rogers]

Sorry for the delay-- was doing holiday dinner with the family!

As for my vehicles, the following are what I currently own. I'll give the backstories on each of them as they fit nicely with the philosophy you laid out in your OP:

-- 2 x 2017 Mitsubishi Mirages that are the daily drivers for the wife and me. Both CVT, so have the highest MPG of any non-hybrid sold in the U.S. The Mirage has technology and simplicity at about the level of Japanese econoboxes of the '80s and '90s and the reliability/ease of repair of Mirages really reflects that fact.

Specifically wanted 2017 models as an upgrade occurred after the 2014/15 models (that was desirable), but in 2018 the dashboard screen became standard (which was undesirable to me). Bought them both in 2023-- with diligent searching over a 500 mi radius, I found one with 15K original miles, and another with 7.5K original miles. Bought 'em both! Paid ~12K for each, which is a bit high, but given the mileage, condition, and the fact that I wanted 2017's specifically, I ponied up and got them.

The shortened block size that comes from omitting a cylinder (these are 3-cylinder cars) allows for a surprising amount of space in the engine bay. This makes everything (even on the front and back of the engine) very easy to get to without removing much of anything.

The Jatco CVT7 is very reliable in this car (it was designed for applications up to 150 hp, the Mirage has 78 hp), is very easy to remove, and surprisingly simple to tear down and rebuild. When the time comes, I'll do that myself.

These cars are well-documented to go 180-200K miles with little maintenance and few repairs, and even after that even the major repairs are pretty easy and straightforward. As I said, I plan to have these cars the rest of my life and will repair as needed rather than ever replace.

-- 2002 Ford F-150 XL, regular cab, 4x4, 4.2L V6, 5-sp manual. Old-school, pushrod V-6, manual transfer case. This is the one vehicle I bought new (cheap, left-over stock at the dealer since it was such a stripper). Not a single option on it other than 3.55 rear end (which was no-cost). Very spartan (e.g., rubber floor coverings) but dead reliable, and dead simple. It's never broken down on me in over 20 years.

I have a small hay operation and use it regularly for hay hauling. Here it is, loaded at payload limit (which it sees on a regular basis):

--2009 Dodge Grand Caravan C/V, 3.3L V6, 41TE auto. I like vans for non-farm types of hauling, and this is about the smallest vehicle that will carry 4x8 sheets flat. It's a cargo version, so everything is super-simplified compared to the passenger versions. E.g., no rear seat climate control and single zone front climate control (rear and front dual climate control systems are notoriously buggy on these vehicles) and virtually no tech amenities.

The 3.3l pushrod V6 is as simple and old school as the Ford V6, and the similarly old school 4sp auto is pretty reliable as most of the bugs had been worked out by 2009.

Because this is a 5th gen GC, the engine bay is large (designed to handle the OHC V6s that were coming in 2011) but the old pushrod V6 that carried over for the first three years of this generation is very compact. That means that there is a surprising amount of open space, making repair work (even on the back cylinders) very easy if you get the 3.3L.

As an example, in this video, these guys change both head gaskets in a gen5 3.3L in a parking lot. Note that at 9:40 in the video, the say it took 45 minutes to get both heads off, and almost nothing else (e.g., PS pump, alternator, etc.) needed to be removed to do the job. Note that removing the rear head was no more difficult than the front-- impressive!

This type of information is what convinced me to look for a low mileage, gen5, 3.3L (i.e., 2008-2010) DGC C/V. In 2022, I found one with 46,000 original miles on it. It was an absolutely pristine time capsule, owned from new by the FBI in Arlington VA, and perfectly maintained. Not a spec of rust on the undercarriage-- looked like it had just rolled off the assembly line. Got it for $13K, and will own it the rest of my life, as with the others will be repairing any problems that come up rather than ever replacing it.

Here it is the day I got it home:

--2 x 1985 Corvettes, L98 Gen I SBC. Bought both used in 2011. Both are two-tone bronze and are only 12 numbers apart on their VINs. They would have been within sight of each other as they went down the assembly line!

Didn't intend to buy two, but I found one that was all original, well-maintained and had 56,000 miles on it. Made a bit of a low-ball offer, the seller said they'd think about it, but didn't hear back for over a week. As I was waiting, I found the other one-- perfect condition Z51 with only 29,000 miles on it. Made the same low-ball offer as the first, the seller accepted immediately, and I brought her home.

The next day, the first seller responded that they would accept my offer. I was in the middle of typing a "sorry, you snooze you loose-- I already bought one!" type of email, then it dawned on me-- it's a great price on a great car, why not treat myself to both? So, I did! Paid $7K for each. Not a killer-good price, but well below what the sellers were asking. I specifically wanted 1985s, so, as I did with the Mirages, I ponied up and got 'em.

Why 1985s? Well, that gets to the heart of your OP. I am a totally captured member of what is known as the "1985 cult" in Corvette communities. Members of this cult are totally taken by the fact that 1985 was a very special, one-off year for Corvettes as they did not have any of the features of modernity such as: ABS, auto climate control, VATS, electronic transmission, pre-cats, air bags, or even a center high brake light! Tech-wise, it was very similar to any Chevy V8 car in the 1970's, and parts are fairly reasonable (cost and availability) as there is huge parts overlap with the 1985 Impala. The 1985 Corvettes are known for being simple and reliable.

So, all Corvettes before 1985 lacked those new-fangled technologies-- what makes the 1985 special? Beyond the last year to have forged (rather than cast) pistons and a stock 2050 rpm torque converter (pre-EPA requirement and a perfect match for the TPI intake), it has port injection-- the one nod to modernity that actually has performance benefit, is more reliable than a carb, and in many ways no more complicated to troubleshoot in the rare instance it has a problem.

1985's are the only model year of Corvette that has this combination of port injection and no other modern features, and that's what us cult members love about them. I have two, I love to drive them, they're easy to work on and, like the others, I'll own them the rest of my life! Here's a pic of one, taken the day I got it home (the other looks identical, so no need to show it):

So, there you go-- every vehicle I own was a carefully selected model (and low-mileage used examples were purchased after an extensive search) specifically chosen to get all the simplicity and reliability that you nicely summed up in your OP.

Note that the effort I put into acquiring these vehicles and the long-term plans I have for keeping them are specifically why I have been active on this forum learning about oils/filters and have been fairly picky about which I'll use.

Given my new retirement financial situation and the strong desire to keep all these vehicles running for several more decades, I need to find the best oil change materials possible at the best prices I can get.

Thanks again @Alex_V for your OP-- as you can see, I really understood where you were coming from with it!

 

[ctrcbob]

My customer pool and willingness to work on older, even classic vehicles means it takes me a while to get much hands-on time with cars of about 10 years of age or newer. Even though I specialize in 70s/80s Mercedes and currently have an air cooled Beetle, FJ40, and BMW E28 at the shop I shy away from most late 90's-up European cars. Two jobs in the last two weeks just give me more resolve to keep driving the rigs in my sig, even if it means hunting harder for parts and factoring in some down time for cosmetic maintenance and simply, age-related repair.

2015 VW Passat TDI, 185K. Front-rearward LCA bushings shot, and replaced timing belt (first time, yikes). All seems fine until three days later when it goes into limp mode on his way to work. After borrowing a scan tool that can actually talk to the VW, I find both the DPF pressure sensors melted into a glob – connectors to the main engine harness included. Also misfire codes showing the exact same odometer reading and identical RPM across all four cylinders. The moment I googled the right keywords I found the rabbit hole with tons of identical events soon after timing belt service - apparently the sensors get so brittle that the slight movement required to move its hose aside to remove the timing cover, cracks it, which allows heat from the DPF to travel up to the sensor and destroy it. Theory on the simultaneous misfires is that the melting sensors shorted a common circuit that shut the whole thing down momentarily. Sensors are $200+ each from the dealer (in stock at the cost of a 1.5 0hr. drive) ~$160 online for genuine, or ~$200 for both (aftermarket) through parts house or fast-ish shipping online. Customer opts to cheap out and wait for shipping.

2016 Hyundai Tucson 1.6 T-GDI, 76K miles, oil changed 1500 mi. ago and it's already 2.5+ qts. low. Customer is from out of town, about 90 miles from arriving here it developed a dead miss so they had it towed the rest of the way, called me on recommendation of family here. Disconnecting #4 coil makes zero difference, swap coils and plugs to no avail, then formulate the theory that one injector has failed, which seems common according to the Interwebs. Before paying for fast shipping on injectors and related parts I do a compression check which reveals exactly 0 compression on that hole. Can't find any damage to the piston or cylinder with a bore scope, just a ton of gas. Add oil, still zero compression. Add compressed air and can still freely rotate the engine while the compressed air flows out the other spark plug holes on intervals as the respective valves open. Remove valve cover to check for broken valve spring, etc., but find nothing. Then turn to the interwebs to find many occurrences of catastrophically burnt valves on this family of engines at even lower mileage, which all the symptoms align with. Call owner to break the news that there's no way this car is what's taking them 600 mi. back home this weekend.

Close up shop on Christmas eve-evening, crank up my 220K-mile Mercedes 300D, drive home and park next to the 376K-mile CRV, behind the 331K-mile Suburban. Life could be better but at least I'm not stranded by parts that were never designed to last in the first place.

 

[ctrcbob]

Like reading a book.

 

[Exhaustgases]

Nice stories. Please keep posting them. So funny a 2014 disposable car, how much was spent on that in that year.

 

[CarbonToast]

How is the Mirage on the highway at 75-80mph? What is the fuel economy at speed?

 

[Jetronic]

Sorry for the delay-- was doing holiday dinner with the family!

As for my vehicles, the following are what I currently own. I'll give the backstories on each of them as they fit nicely with the philosophy you laid out in your OP:

-- 2 x 2017 Mitsubishi Mirages that are the daily drivers for the wife and me. Both CVT, so have the highest MPG of any non-hybrid sold in the U.S. The Mirage has technology and simplicity at about the level of Japanese econoboxes of the '80s and '90s and the reliability/ease of repair of Mirages really reflects that fact.

Specifically wanted 2017 models as an upgrade occurred after the 2014/15 models (that was desirable), but in 2018 the dashboard screen became standard (which was undesirable to me). Bought them both in 2023-- with diligent searching over a 500 mi radius, I found one with 15K original miles, and another with 7.5K original miles. Bought 'em both! Paid ~12K for each, which is a bit high, but given the mileage, condition, and the fact that I wanted 2017's specifically, I ponied up and got them.

The shortened block size that comes from omitting a cylinder (these are 3-cylinder cars) allows for a surprising amount of space in the engine bay. This makes everything (even on the front and back of the engine) very easy to get to without removing much of anything.

The Jatco CVT7 is very reliable in this car (it was designed for applications up to 150 hp, the Mirage has 78 hp), is very easy to remove, and surprisingly simple to tear down and rebuild. When the time comes, I'll do that myself.

These cars are well-documented to go 180-200K miles with little maintenance and few repairs, and even after that even the major repairs are pretty easy and straightforward. As I said, I plan to have these cars the rest of my life and will repair as needed rather than ever replace.

-- 2002 Ford F-150 XL, regular cab, 4x4, 4.2L V6, 5-sp manual. Old-school, pushrod V-6, manual transfer case. This is the one vehicle I bought new (cheap, left-over stock at the dealer since it was such a stripper). Not a single option on it other than 3.55 rear end (which was no-cost). Very spartan (e.g., rubber floor coverings) but dead reliable, and dead simple. It's never broken down on me in over 20 years.

I have a small hay operation and use it regularly for hay hauling. Here it is, loaded at payload limit (which it sees on a regular basis):

View attachment 255771

--2009 Dodge Grand Caravan C/V, 3.3L V6, 41TE auto. I like vans for non-farm types of hauling, and this is about the smallest vehicle that will carry 4x8 sheets flat. It's a cargo version, so everything is super-simplified compared to the passenger versions. E.g., no rear seat climate control and single zone front climate control (rear and front dual climate control systems are notoriously buggy on these vehicles) and virtually no tech amenities.

The 3.3l pushrod V6 is as simple and old school as the Ford V6, and the similarly old school 4sp auto is pretty reliable as most of the bugs had been worked out by 2009.

Because this is a 5th gen GC, the engine bay is large (designed to handle the OHC V6s that were coming in 2011) but the old pushrod V6 that carried over for the first three years of this generation is very compact. That means that there is a surprising amount of open space, making repair work (even on the back cylinders) very easy if you get the 3.3L.

As an example, in this video, these guys change both head gaskets in a gen5 3.3L in a parking lot. Note that at 9:40 in the video, the say it took 45 minutes to get both heads off, and almost nothing else (e.g., PS pump, alternator, etc.) needed to be removed to do the job. Note that removing the rear head was no more difficult than the front-- impressive!

This type of information is what convinced me to look for a low mileage, gen5, 3.3L (i.e., 2008-2010) DGC C/V. In 2022, I found one with 46,000 original miles on it. It was an absolutely pristine time capsule, owned from new by the FBI in Arlington VA, and perfectly maintained. Not a spec of rust on the undercarriage-- looked like it had just rolled off the assembly line. Got it for $13K, and will own it the rest of my life, as with the others will be repairing any problems that come up rather than ever replacing it.

Here it is the day I got it home:

View attachment 255776

View attachment 255778

View attachment 255779


--2 x 1985 Corvettes, L98 Gen I SBC. Bought both used in 2011. Both are two-tone bronze and are only 12 numbers apart on their VINs. They would have been within sight of each other as they went down the assembly line!

Didn't intend to buy two, but I found one that was all original, well-maintained and had 56,000 miles on it. Made a bit of a low-ball offer, the seller said they'd think about it, but didn't hear back for over a week. As I was waiting, I found the other one-- perfect condition Z51 with only 29,000 miles on it. Made the same low-ball offer as the first, the seller accepted immediately, and I brought her home.

The next day, the first seller responded that they would accept my offer. I was in the middle of typing a "sorry, you snooze you loose-- I already bought one!" type of email, then it dawned on me-- it's a great price on a great car, why not treat myself to both? So, I did! Paid $7K for each. Not a killer-good price, but well below what the sellers were asking. I specifically wanted 1985s, so, as I did with the Mirages, I ponied up and got 'em.

Why 1985s? Well, that gets to the heart of your OP. I am a totally captured member of what is known as the "1985 cult" in Corvette communities. Members of this cult are totally taken by the fact that 1985 was a very special, one-off year for Corvettes as they did not have any of the features of modernity such as: ABS, auto climate control, VATS, electronic transmission, pre-cats, air bags, or even a center high brake light! Tech-wise, it was very similar to any Chevy V8 car in the 1970's, and parts are fairly reasonable (cost and availability) as there is huge parts overlap with the 1985 Impala. The 1985 Corvettes are known for being simple and reliable.

So, all Corvettes before 1985 lacked those new-fangled technologies-- what makes the 1985 special? Beyond the last year to have forged (rather than cast) pistons and a stock 2050 rpm torque converter (pre-EPA requirement and a perfect match for the TPI intake), it has port injection-- the one nod to modernity that actually has performance benefit, is more reliable than a carb, and in many ways no more complicated to troubleshoot in the rare instance it has a problem.

1985's are the only model year of Corvette that has this combination of port injection and no other modern features, and that's what us cult members love about them. I have two, I love to drive them, they're easy to work on and, like the others, I'll own them the rest of my life! Here's a pic of one, taken the day I got it home (the other looks identical, so no need to show it):

View attachment 255787

So, there you go-- every vehicle I own was a carefully selected model (and low-mileage used examples were purchased after an extensive search) specifically chosen to get all the simplicity and reliability that you nicely summed up in your OP.

Note that the effort I put into acquiring these vehicles and the long-term plans I have for keeping them are specifically why I have been active on this forum learning about oils/filters and have been fairly picky about which I'll use.

Given my new retirement financial situation and the strong desire to keep all these vehicles running for several more decades, I need to find the best oil change materials possible at the best prices I can get.

Thanks again @Alex_V for your OP-- as you can see, I really understood where you were coming from with it!

About the mirages: they actually have more ecu's than the Lancer ever did. We counted them up once when I worked at the dealership. But they are reliable, as are Lancers.

 

[IndyIan]

How is the Mirage on the highway at 75-80mph? What is the fuel economy at speed?

Probably the mileage is still pretty good with the CVT, but I imagine a bit noisy at those speeds?
My Focus is pretty good to drive at 65mph or below, but above that its no fun for the extra engine and wind noise, and starts using gas. Fortunately I don't regularly drive above 60 as we have no roads above 50mph within 30 miles, and TBH I don't mind going 65 on a longer road trip. Even in the Subaru, 65-70mph is fine, as physics starts to get a bit serious much above that. Also our trucks here are governed to 65mph so I can always find open space in the right lane and just go that speed.
If the Mirage was a wagon and had double the cargo space, I might give a manual one a try.

 

[Jim Rogers]

How is the Mirage on the highway at 75-80mph? What is the fuel economy at speed?

[Note: An "old-guy yells at cloud" type of rant to follow-- not directed at specifically you and I do appreciate the question.]

I see this type of question all the time-- in fact, one just came up this morning. I understand that I'm old and probably out of it, but I just don't get these types of questions.

First, I'll answer you directly: The Mitsubishi Mirage does great at over 80 mph, something I confirm on a regular basis as interstates in my area have 75 mph speed limits and I regularly see 80 when passing. They have good pickup from 75, and they handle fine over 80. Absolutely no problem.

I've never calculated actual mileage, and I don't drive with the transmission at the high-mileage setting (see below), so I'm sure I don't get the EPA rating (but I don't know what I'm actually getting for mpg)

To answer another common question (that you didn't ask), they are absolutely not "slow" (in any reasonable sense of the word). They are quite peppy in town (at least with the CVT), and that peppiness in town combined with the good performance at speed on the highway makes the Mirage a surprisingly satisfying (and even fun!) car to drive under any condition.

[Side Note: One way to wake the CVT version up is to aways drive it in "Ds" setting. That allows it to run at significantly higher rpm in all conditions and gets rid of the constant low-speed lugging that you get when driving in "D" mode. Performance (and fun!) is greatly improved in "Ds." People test driving the Mirage in "D" might account for much of the reporting that they are "slow."]

The only negatives I've found are that I live in the windy upper plains, and they really suffer badly from buffeting in strong winds. This is more a reflection of the low weight (a great benefit for economy) than an inherent design flaw.

Also, plenty of engine noise in the cabin. This is generally a negative, but to me it's fun: that 3 cyl. sounds to me like a DD 6V71-- and I mean that in a good way! Love listening to that thing "roar!" To me, that sound beats the sound of a Fit any day of the week!


More generally speaking, and I guess this is because I grew up in a different era, but I just don't get all the sneering I see today at cars that don't have some huge hp number.

In the early 1980s, the Honda Accord was really making a name for itself as a nimble, peppy, flickable, satisfying, fun-to-drive car that would still serve as the family truckster.

HP in those early '80s Accords? 75-- three less than the Mirage in a car that weighed over a hundred pounds more and had more frontal area to contend with.

A 1982 Cadillac Cimmaron-- at the time reviewed as a decently sporty offering from Cadillac (despite the J-car roots) made 85 hp. The base Cavalier made 90 hp.

The new BMW 318i made what us young guys thought was crazy-good hp: 101! We were pretty impressed that it "broke a ton!"

Regardless of what anyone might think today about the performance or desirability of any of those cars, could you imagine anyone in those days asking, "will an Accord do ok on the interstate?" "Is a Cavalier or Cimarron too underpowered to drive in town?"

Anyone in those days would have responded "uh... yeah... an Accord will go on the interstate just fine, duh!" and "What are you talking about? Yes, of course the Cimmaron or Cavalier have perfectly adequate power for in-town driving!"

I suppose today the same questions would have been asked of the 101 hp 1982 BMW-- "is it even drivable? Sounds like it would be a total dog! Would it even go 80 mph?" It's just nuts...

To me and my experience driving many, many cars that were under 100 hp yet well-respected performers in their day, I'm just blown away by the curiosity of today's whippersnappers as to whether a 78hp, 2,073 lb. car is even drivable.

Ugh... it's not only drivable, it's actually a hoot to drive-- in the go kart/hooligan/rural stockcar short-track sort of way!

I've driven a Fit many times-- totally different (and very good) experience, like a beautiful string quartet playing Beethoven. That's fine, but it's not the punk rock-type of fun you get in a Mirage-- and I'll take The Clash over Beethoven any day!

I generally don't respond to questions about the Mirage because everyone tends to jump in and immediately confirm that it's painfully slow, loud, a horrible performer, and basically a car to avoid if you can find anything else.

I'm in such disagreement with those sentiments (and so far out of the norm on automotive performance opinion) that I generally just keep out of it let everyone have at it. While I don't dispute that the Fit is objectively better than a Mirage, I don't agree that a Mirage is some sort of disaster. I actually prefer the Mirage over the Fit.

I understand that few will agree with me on that last point, and that's fine with me. I'll just keep quiet and enjoy the Mirages I have!

 

[fdcg27]

Nothing wrong with a Mirage as a daily driver, although my HAH has more than twice the power and delivers better fuel economy.
Back in the day we had lots of cars with well under 100 bhp that were fine and even fun to drive.
Things like our '67 Corona, '76 Civic, '76 MGB, '81 Vanagon, brace of '86 Civic Wagons and a couple of diesel W123s.
These all had sufficient power for any use and I think that the focus on acceleration is misplaced. Better to have a good driver than a quick car.
Sadly, few these days seem to agree.

 

[Jim Rogers]

About the mirages: they actually have more ecu's than the Lancer ever did. We counted them up once when I worked at the dealership. But they are reliable, as are Lancers.

Yeah-- I consider the Mirage to have a similar vibe that I described for the 1985 Corvettes: very low-tech, old-fashioned-ness in every respect except for one-- port fuel injection.

Since to me that's a nod to modernity that is worth it, I'm ok with it.

1985 Corvette, 2017 Mitsubishi Mirage = Two peas in a pod.

Who'd of thunk it?

 

[Jim Rogers]

Nothing wrong with a Mirage as a daily driver, although my HAH has more than twice the power and delivers better fuel economy.
Back in the day we had lots of cars with well under 100 bhp that were fine and even fun to drive.
Things like our '67 Corona, '76 Civic, '76 MGB, '81 Vanagon, brace of '86 Civic Wagons and a couple of diesel W123s.
These all had sufficient power for any use and I think that the focus on acceleration is misplaced. Better to have a good driver than a quick car.
Sadly, few these days seem to agree.

Wait-- are you telling me that a 1986 Civic Wagon would actually-- gasp!-- attain 80 on the highway? Be drivable in town?

With only 76 hp!?

Saints preserve us!

j/k. All of the cars you mention are great, and, in their own way, would be very fun to drive. I really prefer that type of car, and the Mirage definitely carries that sort of old-car vibe (at least imo).

One thing to note, twice the hp in the HAH is nice, but would it be easy to pull the tranny and rebuild it? Change a head gasket?

Until we got the Mirages, the wife was driving a 2018 Civic Sport. Great/fun car, but, man, that engine bay was so packed it would have been hard to even get your hand down in there. Never did any repair work on it myself, but it didn't look like working on that thing would have been easy.

For that specific reason, I'll trade that double hp for the wide-open engine bay of the Mirage anytime!