2022 Mitsubishi Mirage — Should You Buy One?
Typical asking price: $11,000–$15,000. This is one of the more reliable vehicles in its class — here's what to watch for anyway.
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Kestrel Take
Two complaints on the entire model year and no recall campaigns, which is about as empty as NHTSA gets on a car that actually sold. We will not dress that up as a clean bill of health — it is a measure of how few 2022 Mirages exist and how few owners write in, not of the engineering. One filing is a radio that switches itself on with the key, the other a brake warning lamp the dealer could not reproduce. Neither is a reason to walk. Buy this one on condition, on service records, and on what the transmission does when you drive it, because the public record is not going to decide it for you. It is still the cheapest new-ish car in America and it still drives like it.
What we checked
Checked against public records, 2026-09-25
NHTSA holds 2 owner complaints for the 2022 Mitsubishi Mirage, and no recall campaigns.
That is too small a record to read a pattern from, so we are not going to pretend otherwise — with numbers this low one owner moves the percentage by a lot. What has been filed is grouped under electrics and electronics (1), the brakes (1). Treat those as things to look at, not as the vehicle's known weaknesses. A thin file usually means few of these were sold or few owners filed. It is not evidence the vehicle is trouble-free, and the issues below are our own research rather than a reading of this record.
Counts come from the NHTSA complaint and recall database — free, public, and worth checking yourself.
Known Issues for the 2022 Mitsubishi Mirage
Ranked by wallet impact. These are documented, recurring problems — not freak accidents. How we decide that.
The only electrical filing on this year is an owner who turns the radio off before shutting the car down and finds it blaring again the moment the key goes in — they report it daily and call it a distraction while reversing. It is a head-unit behaviour rather than a fault in the usual sense, and Mitsubishi dealers have addressed cases like it with a software update or, failing that, a replacement unit. Worth ten seconds at the car: switch the radio off, shut it down, restart, and see what the speakers do. If it annoys you on the test drive it will annoy you every day.
Repair cost (estimate): $0–$200 for a software update, more only if the head unit itself is replaced
Source: NHTSA complaints filed under electrics and electronics (1).
Not one transmission complaint was filed against this model year, and on a record of two complaints total that means nothing either way. It still deserves the most attention on your test drive, because a Mirage's CVT is replaced whole and the bill comfortably exceeds what the car will be worth in a few years. Warm it up first, then drive a route with three or four stop-and-go pulls and one steady 45 mph stretch. What you want is even, seamless acceleration; what should worry you is a judder as the car takes up drive, or revs that climb while the speedometer does not follow.
Repair cost (estimate): $3,000–$4,500 to replace the unit; $150–$250 for the fluid service on Mitsubishi's interval — about 35% of what this car is typically worth
Source: not yet checked against public records.
Walk-Away Red Flags
- ✗Radio that comes on by itself the moment you turn the key
- ✗Judder through the pedal or floor as the car takes up drive from rest
- ✗Engine revs climbing at a steady throttle while road speed stays flat
- ✗Brake fluid that is dark brown rather than straw-coloured in the reservoir
Good Signs
- ✓Radio that stays off after a restart, or a dealer software update on the invoice
- ✓Seamless pull from 0 to 45 mph with revs tracking road speed
- ✓Brake fluid at the full mark and light in colour
- ✓Dealer service history showing the first scheduled visits actually happened
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Found a specific Mitsubishi Mirage?
This page covers what goes wrong on the 2022 Mitsubishi Mirage in general. The Kestrel report covers this specific car— the asking price vs. market, the photos, the seller's description, and a BUY / NEGOTIATE / WALK AWAY verdict with a negotiation script.
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Known issues on this page are based on documented owner reports, NHTSA complaints, class-action records, and manufacturer technical service bulletins. Individual vehicles vary. A pre-purchase inspection by a trusted mechanic is always worth doing.
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