Nissan Versa Drops The Manual in 2017

[Bill B]

Drove an Versa and it reminded me of my 78 Chevette. The Elantra seems like a luxury car in comparison. They are yet another model dropping the manual for 2017.

http://blog.caranddriver.com/off-note-r ... he-manual/

Probably should post this in the video section, but this is an amusing video for the bicyclist. It shows how cycling courtesy and etiquette has gone way down hill since riders started using Strava and other GPS based speed and distance trackers.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJm1y0o7MHc

[tankinbeans]

I drove an autotragic Versa in 2011 and, though I'm not a power junkie, I felt wholly uninterested. The damn thing had 2 speakers if I recall correctly. I would much rather have owned the Ford Festiva, a Mazda 323 built for Ford by Kia, my dad had 15 years prior.

An interesting side note is that I walked out of that dealership with a Forte, which while a decent car in most respects (power, perceived solidity, build quality at its pricepoint, fuel mileage) had a few major niggles that I couldn't get past in the 16 months I had it; it locked me out of 4th gear on the reg; I couldn't really get used to the clutch; never went more than a week without stalling. I dropped that thing like a hot potato at the first opportunity, but I won't necessarily recommend against them.

[Rope-Pusher]

I dropped that thing like a hot potato at the first opportunity, but I won't necessarily recommend against them.

Sure, let others suffer with one until they cant stand another mile behind the wheel - it builds character.

[AHTOXA]

I think in the case of the Versa it makes sense. It's a car that's designed to be some of the cheapest new wheels around. So, it would make sense just to have one trans and since the percentage of folks buying manuals is low...we know where this is going.

[tankinbeans]

If I ever found myself in a situation where I needed the cheapest new wheels on the market and my options were this or the Mirage, I would take this, my prior comment notwithstanding.

[AHTOXA]

If I ever found myself in a situation where I needed the cheapest new wheels on the market and my options were this or the Mirage, I would take this, my prior comment notwithstanding.

I would buy used any day over buying the cheapest new car on the market. 10k gets you pretty nice, reliable used ride.

But yeah, if the choice was between the two, it would be Versa over Mirage all day.

[potownrob]

If I ever found myself in a situation where I needed the cheapest new wheels on the market and my options were this or the Mirage, I would take this, my prior comment notwithstanding.

I would buy used any day over buying the cheapest new car on the market. 10k gets you pretty nice, reliable used ride.

But yeah, if the choice was between the two, it would be Versa over Mirage all day.

i saw a mirage on the road for the first time in years (decades??) a couple of weeks ago. had to look for the badges to see what it was. didn't look bad. are they unreliable??





awwww, it's cute*

*according to its mom

[Teamwork]

I remember when this car first showed up in the US they pushed marketing for it pretty hard with actual television ad's, magazine prints, and internet stuff. The thing I remember most was they were selling the back seat space that a full size adult (6'2) could sit in the back with his legs crossed, holding a cake on his lap. I can't even make this stuff up. The first gen wasn't really selling lower price point or reeked of cost cutting but everything after that basically did. I think that's kind of Nissan's M.O. on a whole though. I actually clicked the C&D link and aesthetically the redesign wears the exterior and interior pretty decently. I think Honda and Chevy misfired on there's for the Fit (looks like a mini-mini van) and Sonic (sapped any character the first gen had and recycled the interior which was the weak point).

The Hyundai accent in this segment usually bides well with me but it seems like forever since that's been redesigned. For two generations now of that vehicle they've offered manual transmission and have had a B&M short shifter option.

[AHTOXA]

If I ever found myself in a situation where I needed the cheapest new wheels on the market and my options were this or the Mirage, I would take this, my prior comment notwithstanding.

I would buy used any day over buying the cheapest new car on the market. 10k gets you pretty nice, reliable used ride.

But yeah, if the choice was between the two, it would be Versa over Mirage all day.

i saw a mirage on the road for the first time in years (decades??) a couple of weeks ago. had to look for the badges to see what it was. didn't look bad. are they unreliable??



awwww, it's cute*

*according to its mom

Plenty of them around here. I see them nearly daily, seems like.

They are fine, mechanically. Built to a specific (read: very low) pricepoint, and to do that they are seriously underwhelming in every category except fuel mileage. That's about the only thing they have going for them.

Then again, they were built to compete as one of the cheapest new cars, period. When it comes to this class of cars, Mazda 2 was a definite winner, if a bit more expensive.

Overall, Mistsu's presence in US long-term is questionable.The Mirage and the Outlander (mostly the Outlander Sport) are seemingly the only two models that are still being bought. Do they even make the Lancer still? If they do, that Lancer platform is about a decade old now and it hasn't aged well at all. The Evolution is gone. Every once in a while I see a Raider around, but those are nearly hen's teeth status in Truckland, USA, and I don't know if they make new ones still.

EDIT. Went to Mitsu's site.

Wow - they are still selling the Lancer and the Lancer Evo. That car is so old...
Double Wow - never even seen the Mirage G4 (the sedan) in person
Holy Shit - the I-Miev is still being sold! That thing... has never done well and really can't even compete with the Volt or even the Leaf. Not a chance.

For the most part, Mitsu here has the sub-prime credit market locked down. Seems like if you have a pulse, they will finance you.

[theholycow]

Apart from a few years of Lancer Evo (and maybe another model or two) riding the coattails of the sport compact/rally fad and a few years here or there for other models/fads (Montero in the SUV fad's fledgling phase comes to mind), Mitsu's questionable presence and market bottom-feeding has been their MO for decades. Gotta give them credit for outlasting (or, perhaps, winning the market against) Isuzu, at least.

[Teamwork]

Plenty of them around here. I see them nearly daily, seems like.

They are fine, mechanically. Built to a specific (read: very low) pricepoint, and to do that they are seriously underwhelming in every category except fuel mileage. That's about the only thing they have going for them.

Then again, they were built to compete as one of the cheapest new cars, period. When it comes to this class of cars, Mazda 2 was a definite winner, if a bit more expensive.

Overall, Mistsu's presence in US long-term is questionable.The Mirage and the Outlander (mostly the Outlander Sport) are seemingly the only two models that are still being bought. Do they even make the Lancer still? If they do, that Lancer platform is about a decade old now and it hasn't aged well at all. The Evolution is gone. Every once in a while I see a Raider around, but those are nearly hen's teeth status in Truckland, USA, and I don't know if they make new ones still.

EDIT. Went to Mitsu's site.

Wow - they are still selling the Lancer and the Lancer Evo. That car is so old...
Double Wow - never even seen the Mirage G4 (the sedan) in person
Holy Shit - the I-Miev is still being sold! That thing... has never done well and really can't even compete with the Volt or even the Leaf. Not a chance.

For the most part, Mitsu here has the sub-prime credit market locked down. Seems like if you have a pulse, they will finance you.

I see a fair share of Mirage's in NY/LI area also- but from what I've heard is these things can actually be had at 10k. Like realistically they can be out the door a little above 10k. Evo X is dead now- and regular Lancer has a niche to fill by offering AWC and probably being the cheapest car in America with some sort of AWD system. The Outlander is probably there best seller though but I mean they are essentially offering extremely niche market vehicles aside from that. I'm surprised they haven't dissolved from the US already which is sad because in the 90's and even early 2000's they were turning out attractive products that were actually competitive.

My Ex bought a 2003 Mitsubishi Galant based off of my recommendation which actually had a V6 and it was probably one of the best cars she ever owned (coming from a slew of 80's-90's GM products). In comparison of my families 2001 Camry it was basically identical in function and form. Absolutely no issues with it for 70k (we bought it 2nd hand with 30k on the odo) and it was given as a hammy down to her sister.

I would probably splurge 4-5k more to try and get into an Accent, Fit, or Sonic- I think that money would go along way if you're planning on keeping this for anything more than 2 years and driving it daily.

[AHTOXA]

Yeah, a mid-trim Sonic with non-turbo 1.8 can be had for 14-15 easy. And there are probably better deals out there.

[tankinbeans]

I think I used the builder tool to kit up a Mirage with something resembling the stuff I'd want and it was in Fiesta/Focus territory. And the mileage really isn't anything to write home about.

[Teamwork]

Yeah, a mid-trim Sonic with non-turbo 1.8 can be had for 14-15 easy. And there are probably better deals out there.

That's generally my problem with "cheap" sub compacts. 3-4k extra can get you in something noticeably better, more refined, and with actual up to date technology. I'm not talking about like blu tooth in a vehicle but something that doesn't use rear drum brakes...

And then if you couldn't splurge an extra 3-4k- 10-12k on the used market could get you something pretty decent.

[potownrob]

saw new chevy cruze in parking lot yesterday morning. looked nice. looked like a much nicer car.