Mitsubishi Mirage safety has been awarded four stars in Euro NCAP crash tests. It scored 90 percent for adult occupant protection, 72 percent for child occupant protection and 73 percent for pedestrian protection.

In recent US crash tests the Mirage’s performance in a ‘small overlap front crash’ scenario has been criticised.

The car is built around a body structure Mitsubishi has dubbed ‘RISE’ – Reinforced Impact Safety Evolution – which, as with most road cars, is designed to combine a very rigid cabin area with a deformable front end to absorb the energy of an impact.

Front, side and curtain airbags are fitted as standard alongside the usual suite of electronic safety systems such as ABS, traction control and EBD (Electronic Brakeforce Distribution) which varies the amount of force sent to each wheel’s brakes according to load.

An Emergency Stop Signal System triggers the hazard lights automatically if the driver brakes exceptionally hard.

Although it’s short in length, the Mirage is designed to accommodate five people in reasonable comfort. Its interior length makes up 65 per cent of the overall length of the car as the engine compartment has been made as small as possible to increase cabin space.

As a five-door car, access isn’t a problem. At 235 litres the boot isn’t huge, although it’s more accommodating than some rivals such as the Kia Picanto and Suzuki Splash, for example. This increases to 600 litres with the rear seats folded.

There are decent-sized door-bins in the cabin to stow odds and ends in along with a conventional glove-box, although this isn’t lockable. Visibility is very good, making the Mirage easy to park. The top ‘3’ trim level also benefits from parking sensors which are body-coloured to blend in with the front and rear bumpers.

The turning circle is usefully small too, the Mirage able to chase its own tail in the space of 9.2m.