2002 Nissan Almera SE 1.5 petrol

Summary:

A good all rounder for family use

Faults:

The foot-brake has developed some play which seems to vary with the speed of the car (more play at slower speeds).

The plastic interior door handle on the driver door frequently comes loose, and on one occasion separated completely. A firm down-ward nudge will put it back into place, but to have to do this is irritating.

The rear parking sensor likes to beep even where there is nothing behind. This may be a calibration issue.

The drinks holder is basically two plastic rings which pop out just below the ashtray. It sounds good, but realistically can only be used if nothing is kept on the plastic surface just beneath. A better option would be to reshape the storage tray in the doors, as in the Micra Twister.

The front sun visors should be seen as for decorative purposes rather than for functionality - they are deep, but much too narrow.

The turning circle is large.

General Comments:

I cover a lot of motorway miles, and find the Almera to be very comfortable.

The driver seat has adjustments for the lower back and lower thigh, as well as the standard recline, so it is impossible to be uncomfortable!

Although the 1.5 engine seems to struggle a little at times, it is easily able to keep up with the speed of traffic on the motorway.

The engine is very quiet, but there is a bit of wind whistle when going faster than about 45mph.

Road noise might be a problem for some.

Transmission between the gears is smooth, and the clutch is very light.

With a size 8 foot, I find the pedal spacings between the gas and brake, and brake and clutch, to be adequate, but can envisage that there may be problems for larger feet.

Like the Nissan Bluebird, there is a plate to the left of the clutch which make it comfortable to cruise.

However, this is a bit too close to the clutch pedal.

The boot is not as large as you'd expect, but will easily carry a weeks shopping for a family of four.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 19th November, 2003

30th Oct 2008, 09:17

I got one last march, model 2002 SE. It drives smooth, reliable although struggles a bit to drive uphill. Recently I took my car to dealer as the airbag sign was blinking and they immediately sorted it out as it was wiring problem. Again they gave me free Headlight box replacements as original headlight boxes are faulty. So if you drive Nisaan almera 2001 onwards model, its worth to check with your dealer if you are eligible for free headlight box.

2002 Nissan Almera S 1.5 16v

Summary:

Excellent all round pocket rocket!!!

Faults:

Nothing.

General Comments:

Comfort and driving position of this car is excellent, I commute a long distance and I am very pleased with the drivers seat comfort.

Handling is out of this world compared to my old Punto.

Pace is not lightening, but it gives a real kick at 4000rpm, cruises at well over the 100 mark no problem at all and gives other cars a good run for their money. Ignore Nissan 0-60 times, absolute nonsense, there is no way this car takes 13 seconds to get to 60!!

Interior design is very thoughtful and sporty in appearance, with aluminium rimmed dials and splashes of it here and there.

Engine is fairly vocal, but nothing to moan about on the scale of things.

Equipment levels are fantastic on this car compared to rival brands.

Buy 6mths to 1 year old, great savings and trouble free motoring.

Over the moon so far with the car and could well become a loyal Nissan customer!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 28th October, 2003

25th Apr 2006, 16:39

I had one of these cars as a company car. I have to say it was a nice car to drive until things started going wrong once it hit high mileage. Driving extremely high mileage obviously the bosses thought a nice reliable car would be needed. Oh how wrong they were.

The gearbox became extremely difficult to use and very notchy from cold often finding it hard to select first gear, however once warm it became a very nice gearbox with smooth short shift movements. However at 116k the gearbox gave way due to a bearing failing causing the gearbox to collapse destroying all internals and the gearbox casing. Was replaced and car yet again felt nice to drive. I first noticed things were wrong when the car was struggling to reverse properly (kangarooing), despite all efforts to control it. Obviously this was expensive to fix as a new gearbox, casing, clutch and labour isn’t cheap.

Suspension was a very smooth ride, obviously this car is not designed for handling purposes and the amount of body role obviously suggests this. However I have thrown this car around and if you know what you’re doing it isn't that bad. However things started going wrong when the steering wheel started wobbling at motorway speeds, and also this became apparent under braking as well. This problem was never fixed, but in my opinion it can properly be placed to perished suspension bushes and ball joints.

Interior is pretty bland, although I did become used to it after a while. The driver’s seat and position are relatively comfortable. I drive 50k miles a year so the driver’s position was comfortable for me, others might strain a bit, but with general seat controls, movable steering wheel, I’m sure anyone can find a comfortable position.

Last, but not least the engine. The engine I had was a 1.5/6 16v. I found it very nippy through the gears, but however I found it to be very un-economical, often costing £50-£60 to fill up and only achieving over 400 miles to a tank.

On the whole this was a good little car and I would recommend it to people who do little or local journeys; however on long distance journey it can become a strain to drive. The engine eventually gave way the other day at 147k due to bottom end failure.

May I add that this was a company car, therefore it wasn't loved and it wasn't cherished. It wasn't serviced regularly and was only fixed when things went wrong. I'm sure if somebody cared and serviced this car on a regular basis then the life of the car would have been prolonged.