Faults:

Mostly because of human error.

Crankshaft pulley had to be fixed due to the ineptness of the previous mechanic.

Water pump needed replacing because I did not use enough concentration of coolant.

Windscreen cracked and needed replacing. O'Briens gave a great service for this.

Wheel camber went due to bad Sydney streets.

Oil leaks fixed; probably gaskets replaced without overhauling.

General Comments:

Solidly reliable despite a raft of human errors servicing it.

Short distance driving economy is horrible; 300km from one tank. Long distance is great at 600km from one tank of RON91 ethanol.

Rubber bits like seals and bushings are starting to go.

Never had to worry getting stuck on the streets.

Safety is a concern because it locks quite easily on greasy surfaces, and it probably cannot challenge heavy Aussie cars in a head on collision.

Overall an excellent car for budget minded people who are seasoned drivers, and drive from time to time.

Faults:

Started to get engine knock at 110,000km, however it's just timing; very easily fixed and only appears on startup when cold.

General Comments:

The Mirage is an excellent little gem. Reliability is awesome, keep up with oil and water like usual and this car will reward. Never had a problem since the day it was bought.

The car's performance is slightly better than average for other manufacturers of the same capacity. My car does not have air-con or power teering; however other than that the Mirage is very comfortable and feels sporty as the car sits so low. Mirages sit very low.

For any people buying a first car, definitely go with the Mirage.

Installation of stereo/speakers/amps etc is very easy, with the front components being easy to remove.

Faults:

Nothing, just general maintenance of battery, tyres and brakes in 5 years, and a replacement cam belt - our choice to do this.

General Comments:

We bought this car just for Dad to go to work in. It has been extremely reliable and economical to run. OK it's small and not a family vehicle, but has been brilliant for what we wanted.

Car has now been passed onto our kids; one thinks it's a little bit under powered, but the other thinks it's a great town car and easy to park.

Tiptronic gears are a bit jerky, but this could be our sons driving!

We found it to be a speedy little car, but struggles when fully loaded.

Mitsubishi's are an underrated brand, but drive one and you'll be surprised at how great they really are.

Faults:

Randomly my dash lights stopped working after my power steering belt snapped doing 110kmh around a sweeper bend... exciting stuff though...

General Comments:

This car, for how inexpensive it is, is unbelievably quick.

Timed the car doing a 7.1 second 0-100kmh run (0-62mph) with only basic modifications!

Great interior, MOMO steering wheel, Recaro racing seats, short shift gearbox, white dials, good speakers.

I4 and V6 slayer; haven't really raced a turbo yet, so looking forward to that!

Faults:

Idle control motor was faulty soon after purchase; covered under dealers second hand warranty. Motor would stall at traffic lights.

HT Leads were worn and needed replacing, due to misfire under load.

Rocker cover seems to have developed a small leak; possibly needs a new gasket as it has been re torqued by dealer in past.

Oxygen sensor not cycling correctly. It will work intermittently, but doesn't have a great effect on performance. Sometimes will run a little rich.

General Comments:

I purchased this car in late 2004 and it has served me well. It comes standard with a 1500 EFI DOHC 16 V Motor. This is hooked up to a four speed tiptronic transmission and is front wheel drive.

Since owning the vehicle I have replaced the factory sound system with a Pioneer Head unit and speakers, which is much better than the factory version.

I have also upgraded the tyres to Firestone Firehawkes, which are superb tyres in the wet over the factory Bridgestones.

I also fitted a towbar (not for huge boats!!), and have been running it on 98 octane fuel.

The headlights and fog light bulbs were replaced with Narva Arctic White bulbs, which has given slightly better night visibility.

So far this car has been a great little run around, which sees of much larger cars in both straight line performance as well as handling.

Fuel consumption on the open road averages 6.0L/100 KM, while in town you can expect 7.5-8.0L/100km.

Negatives: The air conditioning drains much of the cars power, especially up hill.

The car lacks torque, so you really have to nail your over-taking moves carefully to get the most from the engine.

Brakes are very easy to overheat after several hard applications.

Carrying passengers really hurts the car's performance.