Used 2020 Mitsubishi Mirage

The 2020 Mitsubishi Mirage hatchback and Mirage G4 sedan are a bit of a head-scratcher. In a market crazy for SUVs, the Mirage is a tiny entry-level car, and one that can’t hope to compete with rivals like the Chevy Spark, Honda Fit, Hyundai Accent, Kia Rio, Nissan Versa, and Toyota Yaris. From its hard-plastic interior to its anemic 3-cylinder engine, the Mirage falls well short of the segment’s best.

For those undeterred, the 2020 Mirage can lay claim to a comfortable ride, good fuel economy, a large trunk (G4 Sedan), an attractive price, and a 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are also on board, but the advanced driver assists that are standard or available on the competition are nowhere to be found on Mitsubishi’s entry-level car.

During our time in the Mitsubishi Mirage G4 sedan, we found the driving experience to be pleasant, but nothing special. The ride is smooth, the brakes quick to respond and the continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT) more than capable of the job assigned it.

However, once the road begins to twist and turn, you’ll discover the Mirage’s weakness: steering response. Vague on-center feel made our editors manually return the steering wheel to the center position after a curve or correction, lest they risk drifting off in whichever direction the wheels were last pointed. The Mirage also leans noticeably when pushed into curves, and the suspension can get bouncy over uneven pavement.

Zero-to-60-mph acceleration (and we use that term loosely) takes nearly 13 seconds. Any sense of urgency requires you to peg the accelerator pedal to the floor at all times, resulting in a rather obnoxious sound from the 78-horsepower, 3-cylinder engine.

The trade-off for this tepid performance is fuel economy that’s near the top of the segment, with an estimated 41 mpg on the highway in the sedan and 43 mpg in the hatchback, when each is equipped with the CVT transmission.

The 2020 Mitsubishi Mirage comes with a 7-inch touch-screen infotainment system, Bluetooth connectivity, a rearview camera, and a conveniently located USB port. Unfortunately, there’s just one of those.

Supportive seat padding and cloth upholstery suggest comfort, and the available seat heaters are remarkably efficient. A standard height-adjustable driver’s seat helps improve overall driving comfort, but it can still be hard to actually get comfortable on long trips.

And there are cheap touches everywhere. Sadly, soft-touch surfaces aren’t among the Mirage’s features, and this car lacks padded elbow rests on the door panels, although it does offer a driver’s-side center armrest. Also, our test vehicle had numerous small defects and misaligned trim pieces.

While we wouldn’t call the 2020 Mirage ugly, it is a bit of a misshapen lump in comparison to its primary competitors.

Forward of the front doors, the Mirage looks modern and appealing. From the front doors back, the proportions are wonky, from the low door handles to the thick hindquarters. In particular, the forward-leaning hatchback looks as though it’s been reversed into a wall at high speed. The Mirage G4’s trunk gives the little car a more balanced look, and while the cargo area offers decent space, the rear seats don’t fold down as they do in the hatch. That leaves you with nothing more than a pass-through for longer objects.

The Mirage is available in a few eye-catching colors, such as Sunrise Orange Infrared, Sapphire Blue, and the purplish Wine Red of our test car.

APPLE CARPLAY/ANDROID AUTO
The young people who might decide to buy a Mirage want smartphone connectivity, so we’re glad to see that both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are on the Mirage’s equipment list. To get them, however, you must upgrade to the LE trim.

WARRANTY
Taking a page from the Hyundai/Kia playbook, Mitsubishi places a standard 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty and 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty on every 2020 Mirage. That’s added peace of mind for a car clearly made for people without much money to spend on repairs.

For 2020, the Mitsubishi Mirage comes in ES, LE and SE trim levels. Additionally, the Mirage hatchback is offered in GT trim.

Standard equipment includes 14-inch steel wheels with plastic wheel covers, folding power-operated side mirrors, a height-adjustable driver’s seat, automatic climate control, and an infotainment system with a 7-inch touch-screen display and a 4-speaker stereo. Bluetooth connectivity is also standard, along with a front USB port, cruise control, power windows, power door locks, and remote keyless entry. Safety features include hill-start assist, seven standard airbags including one for the driver’s knees, and stability control.

Clearly, the standard-equipment list is a little sparse, but that’s not surprising considering the low base price.

Foremost among Mitsubishi Mirage options is the CVT, which we recommend since the manual is hardly the best. Besides, chances are you don’t know how to shift your own gears in the first place.

Most upgrades are available as standard equipment in the higher-level SE trim. They include handsome 14-inch aluminum wheels, fog lights, nicer interior materials, passive keyless entry with push-button ignition, and an improved infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Curiously a stand-alone navigation system isn’t available; presumably Mitsubishi has decided whatever smartphone you’re using will suffice.

An unimpressive 1.2-liter 3-cylinder engine supplies power for the 2020 Mitsubishi Mirage and Mirage G4. Making just 78 horsepower and 74 lb-ft of torque, this engine is both noisy and full of vibration, making it somewhat of an irritant at high speeds. Paired with the rubbery 5-speed manual gearbox, the Mirage earns fairly decent fuel-economy estimates. But you should get the CVT automatic for the best results.

1.2-liter inline-3
78 horsepower @ 6,000 rpm
74 lb-ft of torque @ 4,000 rpm
EPA city/highway fuel economy: 33/40 mpg (manual, sedan) 33/41 mpg (manual, hatchback), 35/41 mpg (automatic, sedan), 36/43 mpg (automatic, hatchback)