Mitsubishi’s little Mirage hatchback will get a whole lot of flack for being a nasty automotive, however I do not assume it is a dangerous automotive in any respect. The Mirage served a objective as one of many least costly vehicles on the highway, and so they’re fairly dependable rides for folk who want cheap wheels. That mentioned, I all the time believed Mitsubishi ought to have provided a efficiency model of the Mirage to play up the model’s important rally heritage. Think about if Mitsu had beat Toyota to the punch and delivered a Mirage Evo years earlier than there was ever a preliminary planning assembly in regards to the GR Yaris or Corolla. All the elements had been already within the Mitsubishi elements binwhy not sling them collectively and see what occurs? The world loves a scorching hatchback.
Rally driver Patrick Gruszka has been working principally that very automotive in the ARA rally sequence for a couple of years. The total drivetrain from an Evo X, together with the 4B11T engine and S-AWC all-wheel drive system, although the transmission has been changed by a correct motorsport sequential gearbox. With a full WRC-style widebody equipment and “a whole lot of one off customized in-house R&D stuff that I can not disclose or speak about” this factor seems like a full manufacturing unit racing effort, however in some way it is not. Why did not Mitsubishi race the Mirage? Why did not Mitsubishi construct us a road rally scorching hatch for the ages? Alas, for it wasn’t to be. We merely should console ourselves with this new rally video from Hoonigan that includes Gruszka and his Mirage.
The rally speedrun
After a number of seasons of competitors, it is simple to see that this Mirage is a little bit on the drained facet, and Gruszka will not deal with the outdated lady to a correct quiet retirement. Even because the automotive appears to collapse round him, he retains pushing it for every part it has. With the entrance differential not placing the facility down, the automotive nonetheless managed to be the quickest to this point round Hoonigan’s secret California rally take a look at facility. At full-send mode the engine lastly decides it has had sufficient and blows up simply shy of the end line, robbing the world, and Patrick, of a fair quicker lap time.
This can be a actually cool automotive and I hope it will get rebuilt many times to maintain the flame of hope alive {that a} Mirage is not only a boring commuter. Each automotive has potential, even the Mirage.
