1999 Mitsubishi Mirage problems & reliability
57 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 1999 Mitsubishi Mirage, alongside 3 safety recall campaigns. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
7 complaints report injuries (8 injured).
Federal crash records (FARS 2020–2023): 1999 Mitsubishi Mirage vehicles were involved in 2 fatal crashes with 2 occupant deaths. Involvement counts are not adjusted for how many are on the road and do not imply fault or a vehicle defect.
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Engine and Engine Cooling → | 13 | 23% |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic → | 13 | 23% |
| Structure → | 10 | 18% |
| Air Bags | 9 | 16% |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 5 | 9% |
| Power Train | 4 | 7% |
| Steering | 3 | 5% |
| Electrical System | 2 | 4% |
| Suspension | 2 | 4% |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 1 | 2% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
All 15 reported components →Common symptoms owners describe
Keyword analysis of complaint narratives; one complaint can describe several symptoms.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“Tl*the contact owns a 1999 mitsubishi mirage. While stopped, the contact's vehicle was struck on the driver's side by another vehicle. The air bags failed to deploy and the front end was damaged. The contact sustained injuries. The insurance company stated that the vehicle was destroyed. The contact called the…”
Air Bags · filed Mar 13, 2008
“1999 mitsubishi mirage air bags deployed inadvertently.***no answer required***. *mr the incident occurred while in a service station parking lot. This incident caused damage to the windshield and the left side of the vehicle. *sc *jb”
Air Bags · filed Jul 6, 2005
“Engine stalls without warning and shuts off. The defect is intermittent and does not give a check engine alarm. As a consequence you may end up without power when passing to other vehicles or going accross intersections. Have not yet identified cause. Was rear ended do to this defect”
Electrical System · filed May 31, 2005
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Technical service bulletins
39 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 1999 Mitsubishi Mirage. The 10 most recent:
This Technical Service Bulletin was sent to dealers to explain the difference between normal dew condensation, which is a natural phenomenon, and water penetration caused by improper sealing or a defective/broken part.
TSB-22-54-003 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Apr 7, 2022
This Technical Service Bulletin was sent to dealers informing them a shock absorber oil leak may result in replacement of absorbers unnecessarily when trace amounts of oil are noted to have adhered to the shock absorber.
TSB-21-34-001 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 3, 2021
Technical Information Notice to dealerships. Due to the increased occurrence of Mirage/Mirage G4 vehicles exhibiting faulty air conditioning systems caused by low/high refrigerant levels; MMNA would like to remind all…
TIN-20-55B-001 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Sep 22, 2020
This is a service newsletter (Tech Talk) that was sent out to dealers.
TT253 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Nov 26, 2019
This is a Technical Service Bulletin sent to dealers. This bulletin supersedes TSB-18-00-003, issued April, 2018, to add updated information for Carrying Capacity Reduced Label.
TSB-19-00-008 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jul 30, 2019
This is a service newsletter (Tech Talk) that was sent out to dealers.
TT237 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 26, 2018
This is a service newsletter (Tech Talk) that was sent out to dealers.
TT218 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 28, 2015
This TSB contains troubleshooting steps for diagnosis of various customer complaints relating to the audio system speakers in Mitsubishi vehicles equipped with original equipment audio components.
TSB-15-54-004 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jul 29, 2015
This is a service newsletter (Tech Talk) that was sent out to dealers.
TT217 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jul 22, 2015
This is an index of Tech Talk newsletter articles released in 2012.
TTIndex12 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 5, 2013
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
The 1999 Mitsubishi Mirage has 3 NHTSA recall campaigns — recall repairs are free at franchised dealers regardless of the vehicle’s age.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 1999 Mitsubishi Mirage?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.