{"id":19248,"date":"2016-09-15T18:20:12","date_gmt":"2016-09-15T22:20:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/henrypayne.com\/?p=19248"},"modified":"2016-09-17T18:24:46","modified_gmt":"2016-09-17T22:24:46","slug":"2-payne-fiesta-vs-mirage-3-cylinder-face-off","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/2016\/09\/2-payne-fiesta-vs-mirage-3-cylinder-face-off","title":{"rendered":"2 Payne: Fiesta vs. Mirage 3-cylinder face-off"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"mirage-fiesta_rr3-4\"<\/p>\n<\/div>

Threesomes aren\u2019t always\u00a0as fun as they sound. Sure, there was the sexy BMW i8 I tested last year with its turbocharged three-cylinder electric hybrid making instant, all-wheel drive power. And the 2015 1-liter Ford Fiesta with its overachieving 123-horsepower three-banger was Usain Bolt in a bottle.<\/p>\n

But there was also Fiesta\u2019s classmate, the 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage … three cylinders of disappointment.<\/p>\n

If the Fiesta was the subcompact class valedictorian, Mirage was the kid who showed up for class in his pajamas carrying last year\u2019s textbook. He obviously didn\u2019t care if he got a failing grade. Mirage was a dud. So the wee Mitsu did the sensible thing: He took a year off to get his act together.<\/p>\n

For 2017 Mirage is back in school, redesigned as a sportier GT model and prepped for the exam. Groomed and fit? You bet. Where the old model looked like a toaster with headlights and a rear spoiler glued on, the \u201917 Mirage has spent some time in front of the mirror.<\/p>\n

Swept headlights and a coiffed, chrome-lined grille give the Mirage presence. The spoiler is properly integrated into the rear hatch and the wheels \u2014 wow, Mirage is that really you?<\/em> \u2014 are sculpted, multi-spoke jobbies that would make more expensive Honda Civics proud.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s bring out the subcompact class stud for comparison: the 2016 Fiesta 3-cylinder. Bolt in a bottle. The holy trinity.<\/p>\n

Before you judge me for leading a Mirage to slaughter, let me reassure you that this is a fair contest. It wasn\u2019t easy. In fact, finding a three-cylinder Fiesta in Southeast Michigan is harder than finding a four-leaf clover. In these days of under-$3 a gallon gas, 3-cylinders aren\u2019t in favor. I found \u2014appropriately \u2014 only three on Metro Detroit dealer lots. Thanks to Bill Brown Ford of Livonia for letting me take their tike out with Mirage for a play date.<\/p>\n

Both my testers go for under $18 grand. The Mirage for $17,330. The Fiesta: $17,670. For the price, the Mirage is well-equipped, indeed.<\/p>\n

There are those Mirage wheels I mentioned. Very classy. And the GT gets pushbutton start. The key-operated Fiesta, meanwhile, is stuck with base wheels that look out of place on a car with a face modeled after Aston Martin. It\u2019s like Cinderella showing up at the ball in army boots.<\/p>\n

Fiesta has a choice of better wheels. But they will cost you. As will Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, the fashionable smartphone app twins. Mirage has \u2019em, base Fiesta does not. Ford offers the combo in its excellent SYNC 3 console unit \u2014 a $995 upcharge.<\/p>\n

Though both subcompacts offer similar interior dimensions, cloth interiors and hard-plastic dashes, Fiesta\u2019s attention to detail makes it the more livable space. The Ford is 400 pounds heavier for a reason: better interior quieting and engineering. And it has soft-material elbow rests and center console storage that the Mitsu lacks. Only on console knee-room did the Mirage feel more comfortable, which I discovered while taking both three-bangers to the limit.<\/p>\n

I flogged them across interstate and rural real estate, because what you really want to know is whether three is enough. Can you really live with just half a six-pack?<\/p>\n

Both cars deliver on the three-cylinder\u2019s core premise: fuel economy. Mirage gets 39 mpg combined, Fiesta 36. But Mirage lags badly in other metrics.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s because Mitsubishi stubbornly sticks to its old, normally-aspirated 1.2-liter three with just 78 horsepower. That\u2019s four more than the last go-round, but I think my leaf-blower has more horsepower. And sounds better.<\/p>\n

Mated to a CVT transmission, the Mirage\u2019s triad sounds like a bloodhound howling at the moon. HAWROOOOOOOOOOO!<\/em> No stepped upshifts like Nissan or Honda CTs. Just one, continuous drone when you stomp the pedal. HAWROOOOOOOOO!<\/em><\/p>\n

That said, the Mitsu\u2019s fun factor has improved considerably thanks to GT suspension tweaks. I took the Mirage to my favorite roads outside Hell, Michigan, expecting it to topple over like a fridge on rollers. But its short wheelbase was a hoot to throw through corners. Coming out was a different matter. With just 74 pound-feet of torque and a CVT, I had to bury the throttle just to keep from going backwards. Which destroys that vaunted fuel economy \u2014 I recorded just 30 mpg.<\/p>\n

The trip back to Detroit on the I-96 race track \u2014 the closest thing this metropolis has to high-speed Autobahn \u2014 reminded me of a trip to Germany years ago. I rented a Porsche 944 to fully enjoy the Autobahn (and a side trip to do Nurburgring laps, of course) \u2014 and found myself being drafted in rural areas by Fiats, Renaults and other tiny tin cans. With their foot to the floor, they were determined to use my Porsche to help them maintain 90-plus mph speeds over the rolling countryside.<\/p>\n

With traffic on I-96 moving along at over 90 mph, I tried the same trick here. Drive any other car with your foot screwed to the floor in top gear and you\u2019ll get arrested. Do it in a 3-cylinder Mirage and you\u2019ll just be keeping up with Detroit traffic.<\/p>\n

The Fiesta, by contrast, needs no help in the power department. Unlike the Mirage, this 3-banger isn\u2019t the subcompact\u2019s base engine (a mere, 1.6-liter I-4 is). I rowed this 1-liter, turbocharged delight with a manual. You can get an auto, but it\u2019ll cost you ($1,095). With 8.3-second 0-60 time and 148 pound-feet of torque, you\u2019ll want to take it out just to beat up on bigger fish. Merging onto I-96 near Brown Ford, I apologize to the three sedans I laid tire tracks over.<\/p>\n

For all its pep, the 1-liter Fiesta won\u2019t wow you in the handling department. If cornering is your game, then take a stroll over to Fiesta\u2019s own GT \u2014 the so-called ST, a hot-hatch carnival ride. But once again, it\u2019ll cost you. The Fiesta ST starts at $22 grand.<\/p>\n

So applause to Mitsubishi for saving the Mirage from ignominy with its affordable, drivable \u201917 makeover. At under $18 grand, the Mirage finally belongs in the U.S. market. Just be sure and speak up when you have a passenger \u2014 so they can hear you over the leaf blower.<\/p>\n

2016 Ford Fiesta 1-liter<\/strong><\/p>\n

specifications<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
VEHICLE TYPE<\/strong><\/td>\nFRONT-ENGINE, FRONT-WHEEL DRIVE,<\/p>\n

FIVE-PASSENGER SEDAN OR HATCHBACK<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

Power plant<\/strong><\/td>\n1-liter turbocharged 3-cylinder<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Transmission<\/strong><\/td>\nSix-speed manual or automatic<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Weight<\/strong><\/td>\n2,537 pounds (manual as tested)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Price<\/strong><\/td>\n$17,670 base (as tested)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Power<\/strong><\/td>\n123 horsepower, 148 pound-feet torque<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Performance<\/strong><\/td>\n0-60 mph, 8.3 seconds (Car<\/p>\n

and Driver); top speed: 120 mph<\/p>\n

\n\n\n\n
uel economy<\/strong><\/td>\nEPA 31 mpg city\/48 mpg highway\/36 mpg<\/p>\n

combined<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

report card<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\n\n\n\n
HIGHS<\/strong><\/td>\nTHE 3-CYLINDER MOUSE THAT ROARED; EASY ON THE GAS<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Lows<\/strong><\/td>\nBase wheels don\u2019t match upscale styling<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

Overall:<\/strong>\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

2017 Mitsubishi Mirage<\/strong><\/p>\n

GT 3-cylinder<\/strong><\/p>\n

specifications<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\n\n\n
VEHICLE TYPE<\/strong><\/td>\nFRONT-ENGINE, FRONT-WHEEL DRIVE,<\/p>\n

FIVE-PASSENGER HATCHBACK<\/p>\n

\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Power plant<\/strong><\/td>\n1.2-liter 3-cylinder<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Transmission<\/strong><\/td>\nContinuously variable automatic<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Weight<\/strong><\/td>\n2,117 pounds<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Price<\/strong><\/td>\n$17,330 base (as tested)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Power<\/strong><\/td>\n78 horsepower, 74 pound-feet torque<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Performance<\/strong><\/td>\n0-60 mph, 12.8 seconds (Car and Driver<\/p>\n

estimate); top speed: 100 mph (estimate)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

Fuel economy<\/strong><\/td>\nEPA 37 mpg city\/43 mpg highway\/39 mpg<\/p>\n

combined<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

report card<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\n\n\n
HIGHS<\/strong><\/td>\nMUCH-IMPROVED STYLING; SMARTPHONE CONNECTIVITY<\/p>\n
\n\n\n\n
Lows<\/strong><\/td>\nUnderpowered; droning CVT<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

Overall:<\/strong>\u2605\u2605\u2605<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Threesomes aren\u2019t always\u00a0as fun as they sound. Sure, there was the sexy BMW i8 I tested last year with its turbocharged three-cylinder electric hybrid making instant, all-wheel drive power. And the 2015 1-liter Ford Fiesta with its overachieving 123-horsepower three-banger was Usain Bolt in a bottle. But there was also Fiesta\u2019s classmate, the 2015 Mitsubishi […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,87],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19248"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19248"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19248\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19249,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19248\/revisions\/19249"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19248"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19248"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19248"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}