USED Nissan Micra Hatchback (02 - 11)

My car

My girlfriend has had this car for two weeks now (The car is on Motability) This is her fourth Micra.

(Got it on the 6/12/04) 54reg

I have found the Micra to be very reliable, and good on petrol; I find it does about 40 to the gallon. Steering I have found is the best (very light ). Handling is fun, if not amazing, on account of its fairly skinny tyres.

It will hold on surprisingly well if pushed, but understeer can prove a problem in the wet. Whilst the 1.2 auto engine is eager and nippy around town, it can be noisy if pushed hard

They are very spacious fun to drive has very light steering.

Nice high driving position and comfortable seats. The auto gearbox is smooth

Might be the best supermini out there.

The Nissan dealer are very helpfull and do a good job

Will I have another? Yes, I would, but not the E grade.

My car

Bought as the "second car" and for commuting only, this has now become the preferred car to drive, and often battle with wife for usage.

Decided on SE version due to more toys fitted, plus dealer offer. Checked out used cars first and found quality of materials better on SE, for example better seating cloth and leather stearing wheel etc.

Key-less entry and ignition system wierd at first but turns into must-have when going back to other cars. Nice drive, nice high driving position, great length and turning circle for manouvering. Engine a bit sedate, but ecconomical.

Annoying bit of design is concerning back seats. The slide forwards and back is great for crating more or less boot space, but this mechanism stops the seats folding flat completely when I need loads of room.

Would I buy another? Yes (but not base model)

My car

I have now had the car about a month and it it used as a second car/runabout.

It is spacious, fairly comfortable and easy to drive. The turning circle is fantastic and it is fairly nippy for a 1.0-litre.

Although the quoted urban figure is 39.8, I am stuggling to get any more than 34mpg-35mpg round town. This is my biggest gripe about the car and I am going to get the dealer to check that aspect shortly.

The seats are a bit firm and as another reader has highlighted they do not inspire confidence in the long term for their durability. However, I have the darker version of the grey interior, where the seats and dash interior are noticeably darker than the early version of the grey interior. This interior not only appears to be more practical, but also appears to wear a bit better.

Other niggles - rear wiper squeaks (too much pressure on wiper arm), intermittent boot noise (from catch mechanism).

However, overall it is not a bad little car - better than most of its competitors

My car

I run my 18-month old Micra as a town car and find it near faultless mechanically.

It can be a little noisy and flustered on a dual carriageway (it I has never actually been on a motorway) but performance is surprisingly good for the size of the engine.

My only issue is with the seats. I have had repeated failure of the cables working the tilt and slide mechanism, this is despite a modification issued by Nissan.

The dealership's attitude is – why worry, it is under warranty, just bring it back and we will fix the cable! The quality of the seat material is also very suspect – the seats fabric was replaced at 2500 miles due to fraying and bobbling on the outside seat edge of the drivers seat.

The car has now done 6000 miles and the fabric again is again frayed and looks more like a car that has done 60,000 miles. The fabric clearly is not able to withstand the friction of the driver rotating on the seat to get out of the car – although I have been told this is my fault for wearing a particularly abrasive suit !