Road tested By Hugh Maguire.
Pros:
Distinctive stand out styling.
Premium design & feel to interior.
Excellent level of standard equipment.
Cons:
Firm jittery ride over poor road surfaces.
Space in the rear is tight for adults.
Max of 110 DC charging lags behind some rivals.
Renault and Nissan have a strategic alliance which means that for certain models they share research, development, design and indeed platforms and underpinnings.
A good example of this is the Renault Captur and the Nissan Juke. They both share a huge amount of their components despite externally looking quite different.
More recently Renault and Nissan worked together and developed a completely new electric supermini. For Renault it became the new Renault 5 and for Nissan it became the new Nissan Micra.
It is worth pointing out at this stage that in this case apart from some minor specification differences both the R5 and the Micra are almost identical. They share the same overall body profile, same floorpan, same electric motors, same batteries. In all but their exterior style and some interior cosmetic and specification differences they really are the same car.
Having road tested the Renault I think you will choose that if you prefer its somewhat retro R5 styling and ‘French” chic feel to the interior.
So what of this new Micra? The car on test here is the top of the range Evolve. There are three trim levels. Engage which is only available with a 40kWh battery. Advance which has both a 40kWh and a 52kWh battery choice and this model here the Evolve which comes with a 52 kWh battery only. The new Micra is available only as an EV.
First Impressions
I really like the styling of the new Micra. It is in my opinion a bit of a head turner.
The signature lighting at both the front and rear is really quite distinctive and could be described as Funky. Where the R5 leans towards emulating the original R5 with a modern twist this new Micra sets a tone all of its own. It looks fresh, new and really cool.
What’s it like inside?
The interior immediately impresses. Naturally most of the interior is made from recycled materials including the faux leatherette two tone upholstery. However although I am not a fan of this so called Vegan upholstery (a fancy word for plastic) it does look well enough.
The dashboard layout boasts a very well designed digital 10 inch drivers display and a 10.1 central display designed in such a way that they look perfectly integrated into the dash unlike those horrible huge central screens on some cars that look like a late addition add on.
Standard kit on this top of the range Evolve version is excellent and highlights include 18 inch diamond cut alloys, heated front seats and heated steering wheel, adaptive cruise, and even hands free parking. There is a superb Harmon Kardon 9-speaker sound system too. I must say I found the infotainment easy to use and thankfully Nissan have a row of proper buttons for the climate control. There are three drive modes, comfort, eco and sport. I also like the fact that you can turn of all those annoying dings from the ADAS system with one push of a button on the dash.
The cabin really feels a lovely place in which to travel, with a quality feel to the materials. Accomodation up front is fine but the rear really is a very tight squeeze for an adult while the small boot could hold one standard suitcase. So this really is a car for two plus some small kids. There is no under boot storage as the big Harmon Kardon subwoofer sits in there.
Performance.
The 52 kWh battery powers an electric motor which drives the front wheels. Power output is some 150 Bhp. Performance is good it feels quite lively. Nissan quote a range of 416km but like all EV’s this is somewhat optimistic. I charged it to 100% and had a predicted range of 393km however I actually achieved 335km which though not bad for a city car is a bit off the quoted 416km. I also had to really nurse it along to get this result. In the urban environment it proved very efficient consuming just 13.5 kW/100 km. Like all EV’s though motorway use hammers the range. Use it about town and this 335-340km or so is achievable.
Road Behaviour
The new Micra acquits itself well on country roads proving surefooted and quite agile despite its weight. I found it turns into a corner very well and has plenty of grip whether on wet or dry roads. I would almost go so far as to say its a bit of fun to hustle along. The only downside here is that the somewhat firm suspension set up (needed to cope with the battery weight) can result in a jittery ride over bumpy country roads. Sometimes to the point of being annoying. Overall though this new Micra is a great to drive. One strange feature though is that when you come to a stop there is no P for park on the gear selector, rather you need to select neutral then the electric park brake engages automatically. It takes bit of trust as you feel unsure that on a hill for example the auto park brake has engaged. However I guess over a longer period with the car you get to trust it. Nevertheless why not just give a Park selection for complete certainty?
Hugh’s verdict
I like the new Nissan Micra. Is this then the next great supermini? Well it is not perfect but it comes very close. So in many ways I think the new Micra is one of the next great electric superminis. It is stylish, distinctive, well priced and very well equipped. It offers a pleasant driving experience and its versatile as a two plus two small hatch. Interestingly in this Evolve trim it costs roughly €600 less than the equivalent Renault 5 ‘Iconic’ and in addition you get the Harmon Kardon sound system as standard. So euro for euro the Nissan offers a slightly better more premium feel and specification for less than the R5. But it’s a close call really.
Prices for the Engage version start at €25,995. The Evolve top of the range reviewed here costs €32,995.