{"id":34155,"date":"2025-02-20T19:45:28","date_gmt":"2025-02-20T23:45:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/?p=34155"},"modified":"2025-02-20T19:51:14","modified_gmt":"2025-02-20T23:51:14","slug":"payne-last-dance-with-the-tiny-affordable-mitsubishi-mirage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/2025\/02\/payne-last-dance-with-the-tiny-affordable-mitsubishi-mirage","title":{"rendered":"Payne: Last dance with the tiny, affordable Mitsubishi Mirage"},"content":{"rendered":"

Naples, Florida<\/em>\u00a0\u2014 In the Dollar Store corner of the auto shopping mall is the wee Mitsubishi Mirage. At $17,965, it is the most affordable new car in the U.S. market.<\/p>\n

But you had better act fast; the Mirage is about to disappear.<\/p>\n

The 2024 model year is the last for the subcompact, leaving only one car available under $20,000 (destination included) \u2014 the $18,330 Nissan Versa. The demise of the Mirage is the latest evidence of an unaffordable U.S. car market with the average transaction price of new vehicles pushing $50K and automakers flooding the market with pricey EVs to meet government mandates. We\u2019ll miss you, Mitsu.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The Mitsubishi Mirage is the most affordable new car in the U.S. market and 2024 is the last model year – leaving the Nissan Versa as the only new car priced under $20,000.<\/em><\/div>\n
Henry Payne, The Detroit News<\/em><\/div>\n

In ritzy downtown Naples, I wheeled the Mirage into the National Pickleball Center\u2019s jammed fenced parking lot. Spying an opening between hulking Cadillac Escalade and Lincoln Nautilus SUVs, I maneuvered the hatchback around a tree, between a row of tightly-packed cars and slotted into the space like a magazine into a bookshelf of encyclopedias.<\/p>\n

I love subcompact hatchbacks and have sadly watched the Chevy Spark, Honda Fit and Ford Fiesta be let out to pasture. These pint-sized bargains were not only easy on the wallet, they were clever toys that immediately engaged customers with their brands. Heck, the Fiesta even had a performance ST version that still terrorizes autocrosses across the country.<\/p>\n

Not Mitsu. Like the (also discontinued) Toyota Yaris, Mirage is basic transportation. The auto equivalent of Wonder bread. Tap water, vanilla ice cream, generic drug. It will get you from point A to B.<\/p>\n

<\/figure>\n
\n
The wee 2024 Mitsubishi Mirage can park anywhere – a nice attribute in urban America.<\/em><\/div>\n
Henry Payne, The Detroit News<\/em><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

I rented the Mirage for a week in Naples, where it shuttled Mrs. Payne and me between the beach, racquet sports, shopping centers, meals.<\/p>\n

At a stoplight on Tamiami \u2014 aka Tampa-to-Miami, aka Route 41 \u2014 I lined up next to a Porsche 911, one of many in this playground for the rich. The light turned green and the 911 disappeared. Zero to 60 mph? 3.5 seconds. The Mirage uses a different metric: Zero-to-someday.<\/p>\n

With just 78 horsepower under the hood \u2014 half that of a $21K Toyota Corolla compact \u2014 Mirage is built for fuel sippin\u2019, not asphalt burnin\u2019. I swear the Mitsu was powered by a gerbil wheel, though a check under the hood revealed a 1.2-liter three-cylinder connected to a droning CVT transmission. DROOOOOOOONE! The Mitsu went down Tamiami. DROOOOONE! It went up the I-75 on ramp. DROOOOONE! It went around a 90-degree turn.<\/p>\n

Mirage is not much more exciting standing still.<\/p>\n

<\/figure>\n
\n
The 2024 Mitsubishi Mirage comes standard with cloth seats, CVT automatic transmission, front-wheel drive, and steering wheel.<\/em><\/div>\n
Henry Payne, The Detroit News<\/em><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Where I was once smitten by the Spark\u2019s big insect-eyed headlights and Fiesta\u2019s sleek snout, Mirage is a wallflower with blocky headlights and squared-off tail. Square taillights, plastic wheel covers, not even a high rear-door latch like the Spark. Inside, the Mitsubishi was bare bones as well with standard digital infotainment display set in acres of plastic dashboard. No clever-folding Magic Seat like in the ol\u2019 Honda Fit.<\/p>\n