2003 Nissan Micra E review from UK and Ireland

Timing chain replaced at 37000 miles; cost over £1000 to replace.

Airbag sensor constantly coming on £40 a time to remove.

Plastic trim falling apart.

Gear box sensor needing replacing.

Battery constantly going flat due to faulty immobiliser.

Gear box whining, and needs replacing after 47000 miles.

I purchased this car because of its low mileage and full service history.

The car was purchased to ferry my daughter and her child around, because it had a small engine and large cabin, and was reputed to be economical and reliable.

However, after owning the car for a couple of weeks, things started to make me deeply regret my purchase.

The first sign of trouble was the car kept cutting out. Then after a couple of weeks, the engine management light came on. A visit to the local garage and a full service and a new sensor seemed to cure the problem. However, a week later the light came back on; this time the dealer told me the timing chain had stretched and it needed a new one at a cost of over 1000 pounds.

After having the above work done, all was well for a couple of months until the air bag light kept coming on, following more trips to the garage, and hundreds of pounds later the electrical problems were cured. Or so I thought.

The next thing to go wrong was the rear lights not working properly. Again after more expense at the garage, it was found to be a faulty sensor in the gear box.

The following months were thankfully trouble free. Until I heard strange noises coming from the gear box.

I have now been informed that the gear box is worn and whining, and will need replacing.

The car now frequently refuses to start because of a flat battery, due to a faulty immobiliser.

Nissan are aware of all of all the above faults. They are all common faults to the new Micra.

However, the dealer still insisted that I be charged to have the car put on a diagnostic machine each time I visited the garage.

All the dealer is interested in is maximum profit.