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05/03/2010
By EWAN KENNEDY in Geneva
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Nissan has gone back to basics with the most important model in its range – the Micra. During a series of technical briefings surrounding Micra's world debut at the Geneva Motor Show we have learnt a lot about Micra, though we have yet to drive one.
The Japanese giant set itself the extremely difficult task of designing a car that's not only spacious, kind to the planet and simple to drive, but also one that's affordable. A bonus is that the styling is something out of the ordinary, but without going to radical extremes.
At the front the little Nissan has a cute look, but the really interesting feature is the shape of the roof. Carrying the roofline a long way to the rear has been done principally to give headroom – more about interior space in a moment – but it also makes the 2010 Micra stand out from the crowd.
Inside there's ample space for four adults with plenty of headroom and legroom for all. A fifth can be carried in the centre rear, but that will create some shoulder rubbing between big Aussies, though the kids will fit in with room to spare. Boot space is also good, with easy access to the well-shaped space being offered by way of a hatch that opens high.
The Micra's dash area is as striking in appearance as the exterior, with a funky modern look achieved by using a bold circular theme. Those in the know will realise the simplicity of the design is there to minimise costs, others will simply enjoy sitting in this car.
Vision out is good thanks to a slimmer windscreen than those in current cars. This is not only a good safety feature, but will also make it easier to drive the Micra in its natural habitat of the city and suburbs.
The seats are large and comfortable and feel as though they will provide good support during cornering. Nissan's engineers tell us they have gone for the firmer European feel, rather than the softer Japanese one, in this Micra, which should suit Australian drivers nicely.
Extensive engineering throughout the Micra has resulted in significant weight reduction. Nissan claims the car is about 30 per cent lighter than it would have been had the designers used conventional methods. Yet this has been achieved without resorting to aluminium or other expensive materials.
Less weight was part of the design program right from the start. For example the shape of the roof means it gets its strength from the boomerang shape rather than from additional strengthening braces. The dashboard consists of far fewer components than normal to significantly reduce the number of joins and the fasteners required. This has also resulted in higher levels of quality. Then there's an exhaust system with fewer mufflers, and many other mass reducing techniques.
Though a four-cylinder 1.5-litre engine is likely to be the bigger seller in Australia, again the engineers have gone back to basics and have come up with a clever three-cylinder unit. Displacing 1.2 litres, this engine produces only 115 grams of carbon dioxide (C02) in its standard format. But Nissan is working on a supercharged version of the 1.2 engine that will bring the emissions to as low as 95 grams per kilometre mark. This is a remarkably low figure for a petrol engine.
Manual and automatic transmissions will be offered in Australia. Initially all Micras will be five-door hatches, but other bodies will follow, with a four-door sedan likely to lead them.
Australian imports of the Micra will come from Thailand, a country that is building quite a few of our imports these days. Build quality in other Japanese cars we see from that country is virtually as good as in cars built in Japan. But we will have to see the initial imports in Australian conditions before we can fully comment on this matter.
We have mentioned affordability several times in this introductory article on the Nissan Micra. It's still too early for the company to publish numbers, but when we spoke to Nissan Australia CEO, Dan Thompson he said local imports may not cost a lot more than the current Micra. This could see the spacious Nissan on the market with a starting price as low as $15,000 for the five-door hatch. Thompson anticipates sales of around 12,000 to 15,000 per year.
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