I don't actually know? Excluding cars like Caterham or a Morgan 3 wheeler, what is the lightest fully homologated car on sale today in the US?
I don't actually know? Excluding cars like Caterham or a Morgan 3 wheeler, what is the lightest fully homologated car on sale today in the US?
I would have to guess the smart fortwo. The new one actually looks pretty interesting.
Mitsubishi Mirage.
Swank Force One wrote: Mitsubishi Mirage.
Or maybe Mitsu's electric golf cart-like vehicle
Of the ones mentioned, the Smart is "ece weight without driver"(curb weight?) 1,808lb.
The Mirage is a bit more at 1,973lb. Batteries on the I-MIEV bring it up to 2,500. I'm not sure where else to look.
neon4891 wrote: Of the ones mentioned, the Smart is "ece weight without driver"(curb weight?) 1,808lb. The Mirage is a bit more at 1,973lb. Batteries on the I-MIEV bring it up to 2,500. I'm not sure where elsve to look.
That's pretty impressive actually, especially when you consider airbags etc.
I was wondering after the Sonic vs Sentra thread how light a modern 'hot hatch' could be.
While the Mirage is apparently a woefully bad car stock, I wonder if it has potential due if nothing else to its light weight?
Chebby sparkler?
Rear sway bar and tires more than 4" wide go a long way on the Mirage.
The correct answer is "they are all bloated and things were better in the past".
I don't believe that but someone always says it...
Do you think the Mirage could be modded to be as enjoyable as the Mazda2? The Mirage base curb weight is about 1996lbs or so. The Mazda2 comes in at around 2300lbs but is a much better car in every aspect.
stanger_missle wrote: Do you think the Mirage could be modded to be as enjoyable as the Mazda2? The Mirage base curb weight is about 1996lbs or so. The Mazda2 comes in at around 2300lbs but is a much better car in every aspect.
Which brings the circle back to the Fiesta ST. Heavier again, but up to 200ish HP and more fun than you can believe. Where does the weight vs HP vs package vs size sweet spot lie?
chandlerGTi wrote: The correct answer is "they are all bloated and things were better in the past". I don't believe that but someone always says it...
If it needs more than 185 width tires then it fails as a car.
Knurled wrote:chandlerGTi wrote: The correct answer is "they are all bloated and things were better in the past". I don't believe that but someone always says it...If it needs more than 185 width tires then it fails as a car.
Drive my ms3 and tell me that. Its worthless on less than 225s.
Knurled wrote:chandlerGTi wrote: The correct answer is "they are all bloated and things were better in the past". I don't believe that but someone always says it...If it needs more than 185 width tires then it fails as a car.
forgive him father, for he knows not of which he speaks:
Mitsubishi mirage forum wondered the same thing.
I just wondered why there was a forum dedicated to them...
Heck, my 1200 lb Seven works better on 205s than 185s.
I remember looking this up around 1994, and the answer was a 1800-ish lb Geo Metro. I'm impressed there are still cars in that range.
So how/why is the Mirage so much lighter than everything else? Sure it's tiny, but so is a Yaris, Mazda 2, etc.
Because it's a cheap and scary rattletrap. The experience is remarkably akin to driving a brand new Festiva in the year 2015, just with E36 M3tier carpet.
stanger_missle wrote: Do you think the Mirage could be modded to be as enjoyable as the Mazda2? The Mirage base curb weight is about 1996lbs or so. The Mazda2 comes in at around 2300lbs but is a much better car in every aspect.
It will probably be counter productive regarding weight.
For example: Bigger tires ties and wheels may be heavier than stock and brakes make need upgrades to give good feel with increased rotating mass.
It's probably better to try to reduce the Mazda2 weight to get closer to the Mitsubishi weight, than to increase the Mitsu quality and performance.
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