We experience the refreshed Nissan Micra hatchback in Madurai, the temple city of India
THE NISSAN MICRA HAS been present in India since the second half of 2010.
That makes it an old car considering the pace at which the hatchback segment is progressing. But it is not a very old car and as such it doesn’t need to undergo a complete revamp. A mild re-design and some new features can revive its appeal and prolong the car’s life. That is exactly what Nissan
India have done and along with that they have also given it a new optional automatic transmission.
The car has the same fundamental design and proportions, but the cosmetic changes give it a new look, especially the front end, which shows influences of other Nissan cars. For example, the headlamp cluster remains the same, but the lens looks sharper due to the 370 Z-inspired fin. The front bumper is new and the two front grilles have a new shape and a honeycomb design. The upper one also has X-Trail-like chrome bars that flank the Nissan logo at the center. Triangular fog-lamp surrounds are also new and these elements together
give the car an aggressive look instead of the cute, chubby styling of its predecessor. At the rear end, it has a new bumper and the lip of the tailgate extends on it. The most noticeable change, though, is the rearranged tail-lamp cluster, which uses LEDs. Top variants also get a rear spoiler, wiper and defroster and the new eight-spoke alloy wheels with 15-inch tyres.
The cabin has been re-done as well and looks more premium due to the new black-coloured fascia with re-arranged switches and the twotone (grey-and-beige) interior. However, we didn’t find some of the chrome finished buttons on the fascia very tasteful and the lower variants of the car get an impoverished version of the fascia, but it looks better than that in the
previous car none the less.
There are a few additions to the functional features such as the reverse camera and front fog-lamps, but these are only found on the top variant of the diesel car while the front passenger and side air-bags and Bluetooth connectivity are available in the top variants of both petrol and diesel cars.
Engine options remain the same and also in the same state of tune. The 1.2-litre, three-cylinder, DOHC petrol engine produces 76 PS of power at 6,000 RPM and 104 Nm of torque at 4,000 RPM while the 1.5-litre, four-cylinder, SOHC diesel mill has a maximum power output of 64 PS at 4,000 RPM and 160 Nm of torque at 2,000 RPM. The engines are mated to a five-speed manual transmission as before while the new optional automatic transmission is only available with the petrol engine. It utilises Nissan’s XTronic CVT (continuously variable transmission)
that was recently added to their Sunny sedan. Power output of the petrol Micra with the CVT box is one PS more than the manual car’s and, according to Nissan, the stateof-the-art gearbox is more efficient than the manual transmission.
The Micra CVT is noisier than the manual car and feels slightly sluggish. The car starts thrumming the moment you step on gas as it revs higher than what the manual car would do with the same amount of throttle input, but that may appeal to some as a sporty characteristic. The gearbox also has a low-ratio mode, which can be helpful while driving down a steep slope or in heavy traffic, but it makes the car even noisier. The CVT box also has a sports mode, which is activated by a small button on the gearstick. The ECU increases the idling RPM in sports mode to overcome the initial sluggishness while accelerating.
The Micra CVT has sufficient braking power and remains stable under hard braking and the steering feels light like the manual car. The car handles quite well too and except for the sound of the engine, it offers a silent and comfortable ride inside the cabin.
The Micra is a roomy car with sufficient space for five passengers and has a boot space of 230 litres, which is good enough in its class. The Micra was available in the new olive green and dark green shades during the media drive in addition to the old colours, but it may become available with some more options.
The new Micra range has three variants with the petrol engine [XL, XL (O) and XV CVT] while the diesel car has four [XL, XL (O), XV and XV P]. No price details are available as of now and are expected to be announced only when the car is launched some time this month. Follow the Car India webite and Facebook and Twitter pages for updates.
Story: Piyush Sonsale
Photography: Rommel Albuquerque
