SA Road Tests

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This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. I drive South African cars, SUVs and LCVs under real-world South African conditions. Most, but not all, the vehicles driven are world cars as well, so what you read here possibly applies to the models you get where you live.

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French kissed: 2018 Nissan Micra 900t

Hooligan instincts

Pics by Nissan@Motorpress
Posted: 5 August 2018

The numbers
Prices:
•    Visia – R233 500
•    Acenta – R257 400
•    Acenta Plus –R272 400
Engine: 898 cc, DOHC, three-cylinder, 12-valve turbopetrol
Power: 66 kW at 5500 rpm
Torque: 140 Nm at 2250 rpm
Zero to 100 km/h: 12.1 seconds
Maximum speed: 170 km/h
Real life fuel consumption: About 6.8 l/100 km
Tank: 41 litres
Warranty: 6 years / 150 000 km
Service plan: 3 years / 90 000 km at 15 000 km intervals
Roadside assistance: All Nissans, all day, every day

Previous generations of Nissan’s Micra were what your grandmother might have called “sweet little cars.” They were cute in a rounded kind of way, decently competent and offered solid value, but those who were unimpressed  sometimes called them “bland.”

Then came the 2016 Paris Motor Show and the fifth-generation, K14 version. The world sat up and took notice. That included the Irish, whose journalists voted New Micra their 2018 Car of the Year. Strong and sharp character lines, a poised and athletic silhouette and the Alliance’s 900 cc turbo-triple engine had changed its character completely.

Micra was no longer the “safe” work-day drone you used to know; it became the hot new number with which, or whom, one adjourns on lost weekends to places without cellphone coverage.

The primary reasons are its chassis, shared with Renault Clio lV, its looks and that little turbo-motor. Decently perky, it turns over at 3100 rpm for 120 km/h in fifth (top) gear and rolls-on nicely, as it obviously should, being turbocharged. It can also be driven lazily because it pulls quite strongly from 1500 rpm in top gear. But keeping engine revs above about 2500 and making it work for its living, frees its soul. It’s what personal cars with hooligan instincts are all about.

Further, the steering is nicely weighted; it points, it turns, the engine responds willingly and it brakes and handles – all without being noticeably antisocial. It’s too much fun for boring people.

We get three versions here; Visia, Acenta and an Acenta Plus option. This adds 17” wheels, leather covers for steering wheel, brake and gear knob and Energy Orange flashes on seats and dash.

Entry-level Visia provides most of what you need with 15” steel rims, electric front windows, powered mirrors with indicator repeaters and LED running lights. Comfort items include a tilt-and-telescope steering wheel with remote controls, manual aircon and a two-speaker sound system with the usual connectors. Safety kit takes the form of six airbags, remote central locking plus autolock, cruise control with limiter, automatic headlamps, ABS brakes with brake assist and force distribution, ESP and hill start.

Acenta adds 16” alloy wheels, front fog lights, some chrome trim and a four-speaker, seven-inch touchscreen infotainment centre with Apple CarPlay and a USB input that can handle WM4 files. All models use the same engine and five-speed manual gearbox. Suspension consists of McPherson struts in front and torsion beams at the back, while brakes are disc and drum.

Practicalities:
•    Will your luggage fit? For day-to-day use the boot swallows 300 litres below the hinged cover or 360 up to the roof. Tipping the split seatbacks down (catches can be reached from behind and they fold with a step) increases those numbers to around 837 and 1004 litres. The hatch opens down to 74 centimetres to reveal a 20 cm-deep well that measures 60 cm long by 99 wide. The space is lit and there’s a spacesaver spare under the floorboard.
•    Will your passengers fit? Provided everyone is no taller nor bulkier than average, they should. Our 6’1” tester, on the other hand, complained that when seated “behind himself” his head, knees and feet cried out for relief. The space is equipped with three belts, two head restraints, one seatback pocket and manual window winders. There are no door bins so passengers have access to just one cup- or bottle holder in the central console.
•    Will you fit? Tall drivers have it easier with a height-adjustable seat, lots more storage space, two cupholders, plenty of headroom and sufficient rearward adjustment to accommodate users up to 2.03 metres in height.
•    Instruments and controls are well marked and easy to use while items in the touchscreen menus are happily uncomplicated. The gearshift works smoothly and positively with easy reach to the odd-numbered ratios, the clutch is easy to use and there’s (just) sufficient space for big left feet to find the floor afterward. The parking brake is offset slightly to the left but it’s easily reachable and works nicely. A 10.3-metre turning circle means the car is easy to park and manoeuvre.

Nissan Micra has never been about shuttling five big rugby players. It’s for personal transportation, for young families and their possessions, for reliability, ease of use and economy. It still does all that. The only difference is that it now has hooligan instincts.

Test unit from Nissan SA press fleet


Acenta Plus with Energy Orange interior

What We Do

This is a one-man show, which means that every car reviewed is given my personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.

Every test car goes through real world driving; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads as well.

I do my best to include relevant information like real life fuel economy or a close mathematical calculation, boot size or luggage space, whether the space is both usable and accessible, whether life-sized people can use the back seat (where that applies), basic specs of the vehicle and performance figures if they are published. In the case of clearly identified launch reports, fuel figures are of necessity the laboratory numbers provided with the release material.

If ever I place an article that doesn't cover most things, it's probably because I have dealt with a very similar vehicle already, so you will be able to find what you want in another report under the same manufacturer's heading in the menu on the left.

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