1997 Nissan Primera GT from UK and Ireland - Comments

Starter motor just beginning to screech on cold starts.

Rust appearing on boot where the spoiler is mounted.

This car has great handling and sticks to the road like glue, much better than my Citroen ZX I had previously.

It's a good looking car with the body- kit and larger wheels, although inside is a bit dull - grey plastic everywhere.

Performance for a big car is reasonable with 150bhp, but you have to keep it above 4500rpm to get the best out of it, otherwise you get left behind (got obliterated by a Mercedes Sprinter van on the motorway the other day and by a VW Polo diesel on a hill!)

Does anyone know if it is easy to modify this type of engine, needs more torque.

Beaten by a Sprinter van? That is very unusual- I know your car isn't the quickest in it's class, but with 150bhp it should be able to smoke a van with relative ease. Your engine may need checking if it's not dishing out the performance it should, because it is a quick car. My friend has a standard GT and it almost keeps pace with my Mercedes E320 when driven properly.

Just to comment from the previous message, I agree that the Primera over a distance will pass a Sprinter van with ease, purely because of higher top speed, however, for outright pulling power over a short distance the van literally left me behind - don't get me wrong I don't drive this thing 'softly' but with so little torque it is easy to be outdone. With regards to your friends GT he must drive its socks of to keep up with your E320.

I got a P10 GT and can say very nice car, i love it. i also agree about the lack of torque under 4000rpm.i also been left behind by a Ford Galaxy Tdi due to their low down torque.I've think about it and realise that if I had drop one gear, this would not happen, but too late now. Last week I was behind a Seat Leon tdi and this time I selected the right gear and no way he could leave me behind, i even got pass him, thanks to it high rev. This car will take lots of abuse and amazing handling,0-60 7.9sec calculated by performance meter and top at 138mph.

I have a standard GT and love it. Done 110k miles. Can be more fun than my 200sx. Wish they made something vaguely similar now...

Iv got a primera GT LE, its w reg and I just recenlty brought it, its done 76000 miles with no service history, but the condition of it is fantastic, the engine is a beauty, I've heard that the later ones e. g after t reg are a lot faster than the original ones, is this tru does anyone know???

I think mine is very fast as I have left a lot of cars standing in races, including fords, honda's and I even raced an Almera gti which I was slower than in fisrt gear, but caught up in second and third. I paid £1750 for, do you think this is too much??

Sounds like an absolute bargain for a W reg. I have to admit I thought the P11 shape finished in 1999, so it surprised me to see you have a 2000 W reg Primera. Anyway, going back to the performance side of things I would say that your edition produces the same bhp than the 'older' version although it probably has improved torque figure, which it so desperately needed. Make no mistake this is not a 'performance' car as a mark 3 Golf GTI 16v would wipe the floor with it... and a Sprinter van up a hill!!!

I have recently bought an R reg Primera GT with 53000 miles and full dealer service history. It's a lovely car, but the interior is has an awful pattern. I owned an SRi primera before this GT and that had no problem beating a mark 3 golf gti purely down to the handling and the GT handles better and is faster so no probs there. The lack of performance at low revs in the primeras returns excellent mpg when your just pottering around or on long distances. When your on the motorway and someone tries to overtake, simply slip it into third and put the peddle to the metal, these cars do 100mph in third. If your doin 70mph then it will take 2 seconds to get to 100mph! Does a Mercedes Sprinter do 100mph?? I have owned a lot of cars and the Primera is different to all the usual sporty motors, it has shockingly good handling, excellent reliability and in a race it will beat all other cars of its class!

What!!! 70mph to 100mph in just two seconds. Get real, that's supercar performance. Also, you say that your previous car was an SRI Primera and claim that you could thrash a Golf GTI 16V, I don't think so. Think about it a Golf GTI has 150 bhp, your SRI, assuming it had the 2.0 engine, only 130 bhp, add that with soft suspension and you would never keep up. I had a race with a GTI Golf on some B roads once and although I could just about keep up in the bends it left my Primera GT for dead on the straight bits. 0-60 in 8.zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz, top speed (if you can find a road long enough) 130 at best. Don't get me wrong it's a good car, but its more for the sedate driver.

I got primera gt 94,i had no problem to beat Golf mk3 gti. In fact no many can keep up around corners in its class. the top speed is 137mph according to Parker book and 0-60 in 8.2sec for the p10 model. max speed in each gear,2nd=62,3rd=100,4th=125,5th=around 138mph.To the above comment, i think the driver in the golf was better than you, not the car.

I think the P10 Primera is a faster and more agile car than the P11, so I would agree that a well driven mark 3 Golf GTI 16v can indeed beat a P11 Primera. I have a P11 and also agree with previous comments about the lack of performance, so I am now on the look out for a P10 Primera. To the above comment, I think you misunderstood what they said. I don't think he was any less of a driver than the person in the Golf because they said they kept up in the bends, it was on the straight where they were left behind.

Just an update on the GT. Unfortunately the starter motor did give up the ghost. I had to bump start it to get it going. Looking around to see how much a replacement was and the news is not good. Nissan dealer wanted £290 plus fitting! Eventually found one for £110 and is presently being fitted. Anyway, I was given a Mondeo TDCI 115 as a courtesy car and although it has 35 bhp less it felt so much quicker than the GT. Agreed, the GT has a higher top end, but in the real world the Mondeo would leave it standing. Might just be thinking about selling the GT, don't know, any opinions would be appreciated.

I have a 97 GT and find the performance frustrating because you have to always keep it above 4000rpm. Consequently you will get left behind by many other cars in this sector, including many diesels. By the time it gets over 4000rpm you are left in the dust of other cars overtaking you. Still, its reliable.

I've Just bought a Primera GT 1995. Lovely car, but suprisingly sluggish in the low range for a 2.0litre. Handling is suprisingly sharp for such a big car, but has a loose back end and will often step out on the sharper corners if pushed too hard! Love the seats aswell. p. s mercedes sprinter vans are rapid and would probably keep up with most family cars.

Sprinter vans are rapid, but didn't keep up with my P10 EGT. This car is all about how you drive it.

Wrong wrong wrong your all buying gt's when you shouldent egt's are considerably faster.