Firstly, the photo Ciao have issued is not a Nissan Micra.
It’s an anniversary probably no one knew much about, 25 years is a long time & a milestone worth celebrating. However, this anniversary in the middle of a recession was only probably celebrated by a handful of marketing people & ... Read review
Perrys Motor Village - Preston Vauxhall approved Nissan Micra Hatchback 1.4 SX 3dr manual ... more
in Blue.The car has covered 24,790 miles and has a manufacturer recommended combined MPG of 44.80.Additional Info: Insurance Group 4. Emission Count 154g/Km, What...
Sherwoods Vauxhall Darlington approved Nissan Micra Hatchback 1.4 SE 5dr Auto automatic in ... more
Silver.The car has covered 19,200 miles and has a manufacturer recommended combined MPG of 41.50.Additional Info: Insurance Group 3. Emission Count 163g/Km, What...
Howards Nissan approved Nissan Micra Hatchback 1.4 SVE 5dr manual in Black.The car has ... more
covered 37,989 miles and has a manufacturer recommended combined MPG of 44.80.Additional Info: Insurance Group 4. Emission Count 154g/Km, What Green Car Rating of 41...
Benfield Motors Renault approved Nissan Micra Hatchback 1.4 SE 5dr Auto automatic in ... more
Gold.The car has covered 26,279 miles and has a manufacturer recommended combined MPG of 41.50.Additional Info: Insurance Group 3. Emission Count 163g/Km, What Green C...
Hills Of Woodford Automobiles Toyota approved Nissan Micra Hatchback 1.4 SE 5dr Auto ... more
automatic in Blade.The car has covered 22,000 miles and has a manufacturer recommended combined MPG of 41.50.Additional Info: Insurance Group 3. Emission Count 163g/Km...
West London Motor Group - Slough approved Nissan Micra Hatchback 1.4 SVE 5dr Auto ... more
automatic in Coral Blue.The car has covered 57,262 miles and has a manufacturer recommended combined MPG of 41.50.Additional Info: Insurance Group 4. Emission Count 163g...
Wessex Garages approved Nissan Micra Hatchback 1.4 SVE 5dr Auto automatic in Blade.The car ... more
has covered 18,378 miles and has a manufacturer recommended combined MPG of 41.50.Additional Info: Insurance Group 4. Emission Count 163g/Km, What Green Car Rati...
Wessex Garages approved Nissan Micra Hatchback 1.4 Spirita Luxury 3dr manual in Silver.The ... more
car has covered 31,231 miles and has a manufacturer recommended combined MPG of 44.80.Additional Info: Insurance Group 4. Emission Count 154g/Km, What Green Car ...
NISSAN approved Nissan Micra Hatchback 1.4 Spirita 3dr Auto automatic in Red.The car has ... more
covered 18,401 miles and has a manufacturer recommended combined MPG of 41.50.Additional Info: Insurance Group 4. Emission Count 163g/Km, What Green Car Rating of ...
Startin Skoda approved Nissan Micra Hatchback 1.4 SVE 5dr manual in Blade.The car has ... more
covered 21,000 miles and has a manufacturer recommended combined MPG of 44.80.Additional Info: Insurance Group 4. Emission Count 154g/Km, What Green Car Rating of 41.
Hatchback - Front (FWD) - 5 Speed Manual, 4 Speed Automatic, 5 Speed Manual Gearbox - 1240 cc - Max Speed: 104, 96 mph - 80, 65 bhp - Petrol - Available Trims: E, Sport, Tekna, Visia, Acenta, SE, S
Advantages: Package, to drive, nippy, economical, relaible Disadvantages: To many, its looks will put people off
...have issued is not a Nissan Micra.
It’s an anniversary probably no one knew much about, 25 years is a long time & a milestone worth celebrating. However, this anniversary in the middle of a recession was only probably celebrated by a handful of marketing people & the odd factory worker. What am I on about?
Well the 25th anniversary of the humble Nissan Micra recently happened; did it have much effect on you? No I thought ... ...& reliable.
NISSAN MICRA
If there is one single thing that may put you off buying the new Micra it will probably be its looks. Although a subjective matter looks are important & the new Micra is certainly different against normal small cars.
It’s the ‘bug eyed’ headlamps that do it for most, those lamps are not fitted like most cars at the very front of the car but they are placed back into the bonnet line close ... more
Firstly, the photo Ciao have issued is not a Nissan Micra.
It’s an anniversary probably no one knew much about, 25 years is a long time & a milestone worth celebrating. However, this anniversary in the middle of a recession was only probably celebrated by a handful of marketing people & the odd factory worker. What am I on about?
Well the 25th anniversary of the humble Nissan Micra recently happened; did it have much effect on you? No I thought not, much the same with me. The Mini will celebrate 50 years of motoring with a big national party but I doubt if there will be street parties for the Micra, life is like that I suppose!
When it first came to the UK it hardly became a household name, Datsun as they were called then released it as a three door hatchback with a 1000cc engine. It was a bit tinny & non descript to look at it but as time would prove it would make a big impact on the UK buying public.
It was cheap to run, easy to drive & thus became popular with motoring schools & best of all it was extremely reliable & built in Japan. Ten years later a new Micra emerged, this time built in the UK & this time it was so far ahead of the competition that it won the Car of the Year award in 1993. It’s cutey looks did wonders for sales & best of all it remained cheap to run, reliable & kept British workers in a job.
Ten years later the third version came along & the subject of this review. Even cuteier looking this time & still ahead of some of the competition the British built Micra still sells in big numbers & is still cheap to run & reliable.
NISSAN MICRA
If there is one single thing that may put you off buying the new Micra it will probably be its looks. Although a subjective matter looks are important & the new Micra is certainly different against normal small cars. It’s the ‘bug eyed’ headlamps that do it for most, those lamps are not fitted like most cars at the very front of the car but they are placed back into the bonnet line close to the windscreen. It does give the Micra a cuddly look, fine if you’re a woman but us men like our cars to be……………..well, butch & manly!!
The roof line is rounded as is the rear making the Micra tall, wide & a little short, its profile looks quite good despite those ‘bug eyed’ lamps. It does mean that room inside despite its short dimensions is actually quite good with decent leg room, loads of headroom & shoulder room. Life is made easy thanks to the engineers placing the rear seats on runners giving the owner a choice between a decent sized boot with little leg room, or decent rear leg room & a smaller boot.
The front seats are raised to allow rear passengers to place their feet under the front seats where there is ample room.
Stepping into the Micra for the first time I was quite impressed with the amount of space up front & how it is utilised. Despite having a conventional dash arrangement Nissan have made good use of the space available. The passenger’s front seat base (where your bum goes) hinges forward & underneath is a nice sized plastic box that would hold dirty trainers or a pair of ‘killer’ heels if necessary. The box can easily be removed & cleaned if required & it’s a nice attention to detail. The glove box is of a generous size & there are loads of cubby holes all over the car so you can hide away odd & ends that we all carry around these days.
This 1.4 Micra I drove had a decent level of equipment including, alloy wheels, front spot lamps, climate control, a decent radio CD with ipod connector & lead & electric mirrors, electric tinted windows & parking sensors.
Five people will fit into a Micra at a squeeze & the boot is of a decent size for such a small car which incidentally is much shorter than a Fiesta, Corsa or Clio.
DRIVING THE MICRA
It’s easy to get a comfy driving position, the seat has a decent level of adjustment & steering column also adjusts. The chunky steering wheel feels good in your hands; the pedals are perfectly placed as is the gear lever, so far so good. The view from the front is a bit strange at first, like most modern cars you cannot see the end of the bonnet, however what you do see form the drivers seat are those ‘two bug eyed’ headlamps.
They make positioning the car on the road just that little easier & doesn’t look as bad as it sounds.
The engine is smooth at idle but as drive the car the engine noise increases more than you would expect at higher speeds. Performance is brisk as you would imagine for such a small lightweight car with a 1.4 engine under the bonnet. The cable gear change is very smooth & a pleasure to use as is the light & smooth clutch pedal. It is easy to drive the Micra in a spirited way as it’s so much fun driving it even in congested city streets. It is a doddle to park thanks in part to its short body, parking sensors & those ‘bug eyed’ headlamps that guide your every move.
The Micra is not just a city car, it’s a real blast to drive on the open road & keeps up with motorway traffic without much effort. Handling is safe & secure & steering effort at all speeds is just perfect thanks in part to the chunky looking steering wheel which is just the right size. Despite its short wheelbase the Micra can soak up rough road surfaces in its stride. Brakes are safe & secure with a progressive pedal feel no matter how many people are in the car.
Driven over rough services didn’t create any squeaks or rattles from inside the Micra, it gives you the impression that this little car is well & truly bolted down properly & not likely to cause you any concerns.
The information screen in the instrument panel recorded 44mpg during a spirited drive through a busy city centre & some country driving. Ease off the throttle & I would confidentially say the Micra would record nearly 50mpg. Added to that the Micra has low emissions so road fund licence costs will be low & reliability is among the best on the market so running a Micra would cost very little.
MICRA v YARIS
The Toyota Yaris is the Micra’s main competitor, as a Yaris owner it gave me a good chance to compare them. On looks alone there isn’t much between them. The Yaris is more boxed shaped & thus gets the space advantage inside. Both make good use of space, both have sliding rear seats, the Yaris has more air bags & both have equipment levels that are very similar.
The Yaris engine is more refined & the gear change just that little more slick but the Micra is quicker & slightly more economical. Both are ultra reliable, both hold their value well & it would be a real headache trying to figure which one is best for you, they are both very good but I’ll stick to my Yaris as it looks less cutey.
CONCLUSION
The Micra has always been a winner in the small car market, cheap to run, easy to drive, easy to park & ultra reliable. If you can live with its odd looks I would highly recommend one.
...recent 'Which Car' for 2009 Nissan were in the average section for owner satisfaction with 81% satisfied. The ones in Very good were Porsche, Daihatsu, Lexus, Skoda and Honda with satisfaction in the 90%s.- If you are curious In the very poor category came Renault, Chevrolet and Jeep with satisfaction in the 70%. Nissan micra came 18th in supermini reliabilty behind Honda Jazz which was first but some of the sample sizes of some of the models was ... ...truly fair comparison. According to 'Which' a new model is due soon so there could be bargains to be found. Ownership rating 82% satisfied with 877 owners responding . 'Which' Road' test result: Ride and handling **** Drive performance**** brakes *** Noise and refinement *** Behind the whell **** Visibilty and parking **** getting in and out *** Seat speace and comfort ** Boot and storage *** Heating and ventilation ** That is from 'Which' magazine ...
catsholiday 17.07.2008 (21.09.2009)
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Ciao members have rated this car review on average: very helpful Review of Nissan Micra 1.4 16v
Advantages: Climate control. Easy to drive. Easy to use. Reliable. Disadvantages: Driving position left me uncomfortable.
...range Mercedes C-Class into a Nissan Micra, I thought this would be a bit of a basic car.
I was wrong.
This car had climate control, automatic headlights, automatic windsreen wipers. It is quite a well spec'd car to be honest.
The driving was easy. The clutch was a doddle, the gearbox smooth as silk. No crunching gears from me. And I hadn't driven anything other than an automatic for about 3 years. No wonder learners often are seen in these.
... ...figures suggest this is a bit slow, around town it is really a good car.
The petrol gauge didn't seem to move. This made me happy. Very economical.
I never really liked the look of this car, but I knew it should be reliable. Now I have driven one, I can see the appeal a bit more.
One critism though, I never did find a comfortable driving position. The seat made my back ache. I never really worked out if the steering wheel moved, but if you want ...
NegativeG 21.08.2008
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Ciao members have rated this car review on average: helpful Review of Nissan Micra 1.4 16v
Advantages: Petrol and Insurance costs very low Disadvantages: Lacks in speed.
This car is elegant and reliable. My one personally cost around £30 to fill petrol wise. It was very nippy in gears 1-3, but can be rather sluggish in the higer gears unless timed well. But also their is the automatic gear change function that can solve that problem.
The insurance on this car is very low, and nissans are known to be very safe cars.
Very handy in and around town, and due to their size, they are easy to park. The handling is exeptional, ... ...modern, and im sure you can select what type of interior you can have, or just add on seat covers like I did.
In conclusion, id reccomend this car to someone who is looking for a reliable car, that saves on petrol and on insurance costs (at all ages). My 17 year old son now drives it as his first car, and pays a little over £1000. ...
Denne 30.01.2008
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Ciao members have rated this car review on average: helpful Review of Nissan Micra 1.4 16v
Advantages: V.Light pwr steering, 45+mpg, elec windows & mirrors and CD player Disadvantages: Noise from rear of cabin when driving in wet conditions
...that I spoke to recommended Nissan as they are very reliable.
I LOVED this car, and kept it for 3.5 years all together. The 1.4 engine was extremley nippy and could beat quite a few bigger cars off the line (believe me). The turning circle in it is the smallest of it's class, and this makes driving much more comfortable and fin, as with the power steering being so light making parking a breeze.
The only thing I'd say to watch out for is if you ... ...an eye on the front seats that should tip forward for entry into the back seats. The driver and passenger seat both broke whilst I had the car and had to be replaced under warranty. If your car is out of the 3 year warranty I think that they charge £40+ to fix this. Also another minor fault I picked out with the car was that when driving around on wet raods, there was a lot of 'spray' noise generated in the cabin (that come from the back of the car). ...
chalkncheese01 20.05.2007
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Ciao members have rated this car review on average: helpful Review of Nissan Micra 1.4 16v
Advantages: Because it's so compact, it makes it very convenient to park. Disadvantages: Because im short i find i need a cushion to see the front of my car.
I've had my car for three years now and in that time, it hasn't caused me any major problems. I've had only two punctures in this time, both of which were due to major roadworks and not the quality of the tyres (however, my standard of driving could be at fault).
The fact that my car is gold, means that even when it gets quite dirty, the dirt does not show up as much as it might on other colours or cars. In regards to this, i find washing my car ... ...to wash other cars. This may be because it is low, which means that i can thoroughly wash my entire car, including the top.
One of the things i felt were important when puchasing my car was the sound system. I have AM, FM radio and a CD player which plays a a variety of cd formats. Those compiled by individuals on the computer also play very well i found.
The Micra is my first car after passing my driving test, and i found it to be excellent in ...
Nureen 13.03.2007
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Ciao members have rated this car review on average: somewhat helpful Review of Nissan Micra 1.4 16v
