10 Things You Need To Know About The 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage

The 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage doesn’t try to be anything other than basic transportation. This inexpensive, four-door hatchback relies on a thrifty three-cylinder motor, a lightweight design, and a simplified ordering structure to offer buyers a cheap way to get from point A to point B. In a world where even subcompact hatchbacks have been gifted with a surprising number of luxury and (expensive) comfort features, the Mitsubishi Mirage remains resolutely old school in its approach to entry-level customers seeking to stretch their dollars as far as they can go. Let's take a look at 10 things you need to know about the 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage.

1. The 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage Features Hatchback Practicality

The 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage is offered in a single body style: a four-door hatchback that combines an easy-to-park subcompact footprint with the additional practicality inherent in a long-roof silhouette. There are 17.2 cubic feet of cargo space offered inside the Mitsubishi Mirage when it is carrying a full load of passengers, and folding down the rear seat reveals 47 cubic feet of total room. This keeps the Mirage competitive with other subcompact models in its class and, in fact, is on par with a number of larger, compact hatchbacks that are pricier than the Mitsubishi.

2. The 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage Offers Reasonable Interior Room Up Front

As with most subcompact cars, passenger room in the 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage is a tale of two distinct seating positions: front and rear. From the driver's perch, the Mitsubishi Mirage is relatively generous with its headroom and legroom, with the front passenger enjoying a similarly comfortable arrangement. The rear seats, however, are much tighter, especially when two individuals are asked to share the back bench. Shoulder room is not expansive in this area of the Mirage, and there are headroom restrictions that could make riding along somewhat of a challenge for taller people.

3. The 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage Blends In

The 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage has been criticized for exterior styling that is blander than that of several of its rivals, but really, the subcompact hatchback isn't all the much more plain than similarly-priced fare. The Mitsubishi Mirage offers a simple first impression that again reminds you that you are purchasing a basic automobile rather than a sporty or technologically-advanced hatchback. It's a design that blends in well with other vehicles in a parking lot, which means you might want to make sure to memorize a few landmarks when walking away from your Mirage at the local mall.

4. The 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage Is Somewhat Spartan Inside

The 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage keeps things simple on the inside, which is both a positive and a negative, depending on your perspective. Although the interior of the Mitsubishi Mirage is loaded with plastic, piano black trim does a good job of keeping the dashboard and center console interesting to the eye. Where the Mirage's less-is-more philosophy starts to wear thing is the lack of armrests for the driver, which can be tiring over time, and the hard nature of most cabin plastics make them somewhat intrusive to the riding experience on longer trips.

5. The 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage Features Two Trim Levels

The 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage comes in a pair of trim levels. The base Mitsubishi Mirage DE offers keyless entry, power windows and door locks, 14-inch steel wheels, automatic climate control, a CD player, and a folding rear seat. Moving up to the Mirage ES installs keyless ignition, cruise control, Bluetooth connectivity for mobile devices, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, and 14-inch alloy wheels. There are only a couple of options packages available with the hatchback: the Navigation package (self-explanatory, with the inclusion of a rearview camera to boot), and the Park Assist package (parking sensors front and back).

6. The 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage Is Motivated By A Three-Cylinder Engine

The 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage joins the growing number of very small cars that feature three-cylinder engines. The 1.2-liter mill under the hood of the Mitsubishi Mirage generates 74 horsepower and 72 lb-ft of torque, numbers that make it the least mighty automobile on the modern American market. You can choose a five-speed manual gearbox to stir the three-cylinder, maximizing performance, or you can opt for a continuously-variable automatic transmission that is intended to improve efficiency at the expense of acceleration. Regardless of which gearbox you choose, the Mirage's power plant has to be worked hard to keep up with the flow of traffic.

7. The 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage Is The Most Fuel Efficient Non-Hybrid In America

The upshot of the 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage's tiny three-cylinder engine is exceptional fuel economy. Without the need for advanced technologies such as automatic engine start/stop, or a hybrid gasoline/electric design, the Mitsubishi Mirage returns fuel efficiency figures of 34-mpg city and 42-mpg highway when equipped with its five-speed manual transmission. Pay a little more for the car's continuously-variable automatic transmission and you'll see those numbers climb to 37-mpg around town and 44-mpg during highway cruising. That translates into 40-mpg combined, which is the ultimate in gas-only frugality in the United States.

8. The 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage Surprises With Lightweight Handling

The same lightweight design that helps ensure that the 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage returns sparkling fuel economy also informs how the car handles. Tipping the scales at just over 2,000 lbs - making it one of the least hefty automobiles available - the Mitsubishi Mirage is relatively nimble when negotiating traffic and narrow urban streets. It would be a mistake to think that the Mirage is in any way a performance car, and its low-mass platform sees it easily disturbed by bigger bumps in the road, but it's definitely not a chore to steer.

9. The 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage Delivers No Advanced Safety Equipment

The 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage doesn't come with any advanced safety technology - no blind spot monitoring, no forward collision assistance - and as such it's a step behind several other subcompact cars that have begun to deploy this type of active equipment. Still, the Mitsubishi Mirage does come with dual forward airbags, side curtain airbags that deploy along the entire length of the cabin, seat-mounted side impact airbags for those riding up front, and a driver's knee airbag. Electronic traction control and stability control are also standard with the car.

10. 10. The 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage Is Cheap, But Not The Cheapest

The 2015 Mitsubishi Mirage is inexpensively priced at $12,995 for the entry-level model - but it's not the cheapest new car you can buy in America. That honor goes to the Nissan Versa sedan, which retails for $11,990. Other notable, and affordable, subcompact offerings include the Chevrolet Spark (MSRP $12,270), the smart fortwo (MSRP $14,650), and the Kia Rio (MSRP $14,165). The Mitsubishi Mirage hatchback's fully-loaded, all accessories accounted for price tips the scale at $19,060, at which point several larger, almost as frugal, and better-equipped automobiles start to slide into view.