[Rudra Sen]

Great review as usual. Pictures are really nice (read as they should be for a review of this quality).
I've a feeling this car will gain popularity as they go. Only question mark is their service support. Hope that improves.

[nkrishnap]

Fantastic review there GTO. A Five star rating for each of the teambhp review.

"Lock the car and the mirrors fold in automatically". That's a neat feature. Can make me lazier

[salbin]

Excellent review GTO!
As usual, you have covered everything.

Does it lock automatically if you move away from the vehicle with the key fob?

Originally Posted by GTO

- What if the battery dies out? Well, we tried . We made a Nissan engineer remove the unit's battery. Even then, the ECM detected the presence of the key fob and the engine started. .

Is it like - the proximity sensing for the keyless start, it does not require the battery power?
May be the battery is required only for the lock/unlock using the remote buttons?
So if the remote battery drains out, we can use the skelton key to physically unlock the door and still use the keyless start?

[MuraliR]

OK, so you have the Key Fob in your pocket, sit in, press the button to start, and if you get down from the car without switching off, the Engine still remains ON - even if you move away.

What if in that situation somebody tries driving the car. Will it move?

[good.car-ma]

Great review. Would you buy the car?

[deepakhon]

Excellent review, as always. This could give Nissan a head-start into the Indian market in the real sense. They seem to have got it just about right, ticking all the boxes. This seems like a typical jack-of-all-trades kind of car.

[bottle]

Originally Posted by GTO

• I actually preferred the seat upholstery of the base variant (vis a vis the XV). It's jet black and has a nice soft feeling to it.

Any pictures of the base variants interiors ?

[GTO]

Thank you for the 5 star thread rating, gentlemen!

Originally Posted by AvonA7

Hows the leg space (rear) compared to i10, Beat.
b. Noticed the GC 154mm, did the under body of the car scratched in your test drive, in our city roads, considering our speed breakers, what is your view on this?

Hello, I would much appreciate your reading the review in its entirety. These two questions have already been answered / covered in the test report. Thanks.

Originally Posted by blackasta

Nissan is bigger than Suzuki in Japan (and in the world) - and they should leave no stones unturned to catch up and overtake Suzuki in India.

Originally Posted by amulu10

Overall i see this average 4000-5000 month .Its got all the basics covered ( except for the diesel that is!) and once they expand the dealer network i can see another Maruthi like sales in the making

Well, having one city hatchback isn't enough. Suzuki holds a dominating position today, thanks to 25+ years of toiling, offering multiple cars under 5 lakh rupees, a VFM reputation and taking care of its customers. While competition is great for the customer at the end of the day, we'd be jumping the gun to expect Nissan to match Marutis volumes over the coming decade.

The Micra will be enough to keep Nissan's 20 dealers busy though.

Originally Posted by Dr.AD

I believe this car can have a huge impact on Indian automotive scene (especially low end of the cost spectrum) because of this impressive features list. It may force others, as GTO pointed out, to introduce these features in small and low priced cars as well, and we all will benefit from that.

Good point there! As they say, to know what features small cars will have 10 years down the line, just look at the S Class today. The Mercedes S Class was the first production car to be equipped with airbags, ABS, electric folding mirrors, seat belt pretensioners, traction control, anti-pinch windows et al (over the last 3 decades). Most of these are common place with 6 lakh rupee small cars today.

Cars like the Micra improve the equipment benchmarks not only for their own segment, but even those right above. I can tell you that the Hyundai i20 has had every C segment car maker reworking the equipment list list for their next launch.

Originally Posted by theragingbull

How does the Micra's 3-pot engine fare against the Polo?

The Polo 3 pot has better low end torque; thus, it offers way superior driveability within the city. In terms of performance, the Polo engine scores over that of the Micra. The only advantage that the Micra engine has (vis a vis the Polo petrol) is refinement.

Originally Posted by carfanatic007

i wanted to know that any idea of spare costs and service intervals? Also are there no steering mounted controls even in the top end?

No steering mounted controls, not even on the top end. Service intervals will only be announced at the time of launch. The Micra is a Japanese car, and thus should be hassle free to own. Nissans are known for their durability worldwide.

Originally Posted by sidindica

When I went to see the car, I just fell in love with its unconventional quirky design. Now that orange colour is not so good, I still like it in red.
This is a no nonsense, practical and optimized city runabout which does many things right and very few wrong. I too loved the retro dashboard and that "paisa vasool" push button start/stop feature (keyless go).

I can tell you are a fan of the car. Someone from Nissan actually mentioned your "V" picture

The car did not have a driver's seat height adjuster when I saw it.

GTO, will they provide the same in production cars?

No seat height adjuster for now.

Originally Posted by selfdrive

also, you mention that Nissan plan to launch 8 more cars - any idea what segments these are in?

A C+ segment sedan (Altis / Civic) category will for sure come our way. Next year, you can expect a Micra sedan.

Originally Posted by StarrySky

Great review!

But somehow I get the feeling that GTO is not too excited about the car.

For me to get excited, the car needs a really good engine under the hood. The Micra's 3 pot is its weakest link. The engine is very ordinary...low end torque is below average, and performance is mediocre. For sheer driving pleasure, the Swift remains king.

Originally Posted by aargee

I couldn't understand the above? Can someone help me pls?

Simply put : Even if the key's battery dies out, you can still start the engine.

Originally Posted by xingamazon

Did they also give you opportunity to test drive a diesel vehicle?

Unfortunately not.

Are you saying there is no rubbered gum which sticks the glass to the steel panes.

All other cars have a rubber beading (strip) between the hatchback's metal frame and the glass (from the inside). The Micra doesn't.

Originally Posted by aditya116

One question though-do you have press for a tad longer to switch off the car or a simple tap would do?

One tap is enough.

The intial concept for micra emphasising weight saving strategy had advertised a small fuel tank.But good to hear its a reasonable 41 liters.

It's a lighter fuel tank. I remain amazed as to how the newer generation is lighter than the outgoing. Some of their points on weight-saving were fascinating.

Originally Posted by extreme_torque

The tall gearing is almost ridiculous! 2nd gear 100 kph for a 1.2 liter hatch! Driveability within the city will definitely suffer for sure, especially in Delhi where you have flyovers almost every kilometer.

Surely will, Extreme Torque. The 2nd gear is too tall, and feels "flat" at certain rpms.

[FlyingSpur]

Not just boring, the car looks terrible in black IMO. Liked the maroon. Actually, I don't think the styling is something I like at all. Very interesting dashboard layout though.

Overall, great review again GTO. Comprehensive and informative as usual.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by prince_pervez

Great review. The dashboard looked nice. The Orange color is also cool. The exteriors I did not like. Electronically adjustable mirrors, nice. Hope they price it correctly to succeed and create a market share, or whatever is left in this segment.

Pricing is going to be key (as is for every other car in the price sensitive hatchback segment). The Chennai plant is going to serve as an export hub; thus, Nissan has the advantage of scale efficiency from day one. UK despatches start in August / September.

The Chevrolet Beat, Ford Figo (especially) and the new WagonR have ensured that every new hatchback will be competitively priced. Only one person benefits from fierce competition : I, the customer .

Originally Posted by vigneshA

Where exactly is this Lock Switch?

The central locking switch on the driver's control panel (where the 4 power window buttons are placed). You need to press this button to lock all doors.

Merely locking the drivers door (from the switch next to the door handle) will lock only the driver's door (unlike in other cars).

Taller gears will only keep the top speed lower but torquier.

Nope, that's a shorter gear ratio you have just described. Think of it this way : The 1st gear of your car is shorter than the 5th. What gives you better torque (pulling power) at lower speeds?

2. Gear shift lever - plain. Upgrades in production car?

No change in the gear lever was mentioned.

Originally Posted by tj123

This car looks quite cute, girlish and might be be quite appealing to feminine users. Yet to see it in flesh to conclude on looks.

A fellow Moderator's wife has already gone completely ga-ga on the Micra!

Originally Posted by ph03n!x

GTO - If this test drive was done anytime in the last week or two, then Chennai ain't hot at all!!

Sunday morning was H-O-T! I actually had the air-con running while shooting the interior pictures. Even 10 minutes outside had the back of my shirt all wet. Either it was really hot, or Chennai's definition of summer heat differs from that of Mumbaikars!

And there you go, without calling for a T-BHP meet on another one of your quick Chennai dashes!!!

Really sorry. But believe me, the schedule was tightly packed.

Originally Posted by aargee

From the test drive, its apparently visible that there're quite a few first to offer features such as air bags in all variants, anti pinch on small car, start/stop button etc. This shows the commitment & seriousness of Nissan in Indian market. If the service interval is also more than 5-10K, then this will be the killer in this segment.

Full marks to Nissan for the equipment list & some first-to-come features. What they needed was a key differentiator in the crowded hatchback market. The gizmos serve just that purpose.

Originally Posted by sajo

As a drivers car, how do you rate it against its (direct) Japanese competition , the Swift Petrol ? Can it match the practicality of the Ritz ? Or the dynamics of the Figo ?

1. Swift is way better to drive

2. Micra is more comfortable than the Ritz

3. Figo dynamics are class-leading (along with the Punto).

Originally Posted by quadmaniac

Features look good though... even if the mill is nothing to write home about, it might sell decently.

That's the thing about the Indian market : As long as the motor is fuel-efficient, it'll gain popularity. Leaving aside the ordinary performance, low end torque...

Originally Posted by Rudra Sen

Great review as usual. Pictures are really nice (read as they should be for a review of this quality).

Thank you, Rudra. Coming from you, its saying a lot.

Originally Posted by salbin

Does it lock automatically if you move away from the vehicle with the key fob?

No. You have to press the "lock" button on the key fob.

So if the remote battery drains out, we can use the skelton key to physically unlock the door and still use the keyless start?

Yes.

Originally Posted by MuraliR

and if you get down from the car without switching off, the Engine still remains ON - even if you move away.

What if in that situation somebody tries driving the car. Will it move?

Yes. Though the car gives out a fairly audible warning beep, you better remember to switch that engine off!!

Originally Posted by good.car-ma

Great review. Would you buy the car?

No. But neither am I the target market for this car.

The engine & driving experience matter more to me than features. You could say I'm more the Swift (chuckability + sweet engine) and Punto (solid, stable, steering to die for) kind of guy.

[jacs]

Well detailed review. GTO rocks.

I really liked the interior design compared to its competitors. As GTO said, only bright colors look nice on this design. Anyhow we can expect the promising NISSAN effect, i'm sure it will pull a good share from NRI segment as a second car or ladies car.

[holysmoke]

• XE: Rs. 3,75,000
• XL: Rs. 4,25,000
• XV: Rs. 4,65,000
• (from http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian...14th-july.html)

i20 base = 4,55,000
i20 asta = 5,75,000

So they've priced it at around a lac lesser than the current market favourite, the i20.

What more do you get for a lac from the i20? More space, more features (alloys, foglamps, usb port, music controls on steering, etc) and hyundai reliability.

The pricing is closer to swift territory. With the new swift coming soon, I dont think this has any big market shaking factor other than the keyless entry. I dont think it will do that well.

[mjothi]

I have not read this review fully. but the moment I see this, I cant stop myself from appreciating Nissan.

Originally Posted by GTO

• Driver airbag standard across the range (including base variant)

Yes. First of its kind. Great entry by Nissan.

Now back to review.

[BMW-X5]

Thanks GTO. Awesome review.
I'm a great fan of Nissan, I always loved the TIDA and Sunny (I can’t re collect the US name though) over a Corolla though Maxima is still my favorite Nissan. Hope they would launch the Maxima not Ultima in India.

I started dreaming of a Punto after reading your review and it was you confirmed when I was in confusion to go for it against a used Innova. Thanks a lot now I drive Sliver Punto EIV MJD Emotion pack and loving every bit of it.
I have liked everything in Micra except lack of remote boot release and alloy wheels and of course the MRFs.

[anekho]

Great review, GTO!

I can't decide whether I like the Micra's looks or not until I see it in person but so far I leaning towards the negative pole.

Feature wise, no complaints. Engine wise, I guess it'll suffice but the enthusiast in us will always want more

btw, contrary to most I thought black looked nice on the Micra!!!