Thanks to the new Mirage, Mitsubishi Motors will be the first brand in the UK market to launch a car range in which every variant delivers a sub-100g/km CO2 average.
Unlike its Dutch-made Colt predecessor, the Mirage is being offered only as a five-door hatchback. Cars for all global markets are manufactured in Thailand.
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A four-door sedan bodystyle is set to follow in 2014, as previewed by the G4 concept, which will be revealed imminently at the Bangkok motor show. Mitsubishi Motors is unlikely to offer this car in the UK.
The standard engine in the British market’s Mirage is the same 71PS (52kW) 999cc three-cylinder MIVEC unit as has powered all variants since the model was first launched in Thailand last year.
A second three-cylinder MIVEC unit makes its debut with the Europe-wide launch of the model. This 1,193cc unit produces 80PS (59kW) and comes with AS & G, Mitsubishi Motors’ name for stop-start. Both five-speed manual and CVT gearboxes are available with this engine.
Mitsubishi is playing up the new car’s weight, which tips the scales at a claimed 845-865kg. The nearest rival is the Chevrolet Spark (864kg, according to Mitsubishi), while others, such as the Kia Picanto are said to weigh 920-1,035kg.
The official CO2 numbers for the new car range from 96g/km (base 1.0 variant) to 100g/km for the 1.2 manual. Perhaps surprisingly, the 1.2 automatic has the lowest number of all, emitting just 95g/km.
“Mirage has been designed from the ground up with emissions in mind. It’s going to be the only model on sale in the UK where every car in the range emits 100g/km CO2 or less, meaning no road tax or London Charge on any Mirage,” said Lance Bradley, the MD of Mitsubishi Motors in the UK.
Bradley told just-auto that he envisages around 4,000 units of the new model being sold by year-end, but that this figure “could easily double” in 2014.
Csutomer deliveries of the new Mitsubishi Mirage will commence on 1 May.
Author: Glenn Brooks
