Faults, but also a lot of fun

THIS LITTLE MICRA HAS MICRO FUEL CONSUMPTION AND A FANTASTIC PRICE Some design flaws, but the ‘ladybird’ is totally affordable.

Many years back, a mate of mine used to drive a Nissan Micra. I remember thinking how much his car resembled a bug. It was shaped like a beetle and had headlights that looked like protruding eyes so every time I saw it I used to think of a ladybird.

The new generation Micra Active is slightly better looking, like a ladybird who has had a nip and tuck and some eyework done. There is also a scoop on the back of the roof which, I’m sure, is intended to give the vehicle a “meaner” look, as are the jet-black mags.

To be frank, these accessories only serve to make it look like a nerd in a gym vest.

The colour of the car I testdrove last week was a big hit with the missus because the burgundy hue reminded her of “red wine”. And, while on that subject, there are a number of design flaws with the Nissan Micra that could drive one to drink.

I stand 1.82m in my stocking soles so when I am driving a car I tend to put the seat as far back as it can go so that my knees are not up around my ears. The Micra Active allowed me to do this and I had ample room for my long legs. But because the driver’s seat was so far back, there was very little room behind me for a passenger. One could have sat there, but only if he or she was legless. And I don’t mean inebriated, I mean legless as in a double amputee.

With just a 1.2-litre engine, the Micra Active isn’t going to win you any street races. Also, it is a bit of a tinny, bumpy ride. But it runs on the whiff of a petrol rag and with the price of fuel fast getting out of hand, that is a big plus.

There was a natty infotainment system, complete with Tom Tom navigation, in the car I got to testdrive for a week. It had a USB port and one for an auxiliary cable, so I scooted around Joburg listening to Boston’s Greatest Hits (very loudly). I’m not sure if it was this or the car, but I did find many people staring as I drove past.

I couldn’t for the life of me get my cellular phone to connect to the car’s Bluetooth, but that probably has more to do with the fact that I am a techno retard rather than any design fault.

There is no mirror on the sun visor on the passenger’s side, which horrified my missus and, I must admit, left me feeling that Nissan had taken every short-cut in the book in putting this vehicle together. Also, I would rather the car came without a hooter. The feeble squeak it emitted sounded like I expect a ladybird would if we could hear them.

You might feel I hated driving this car with all the negatives I’ve listed here, but you’d be wrong. It was fun and took me back to my younger days when my first fourwheeled mode of transport was a 15-year-old car that I bought from a very, very old lady. It drove like an old lady, too, and gave up the ghost after only a couple of months on the road. I would have loved a car like this back then.

The Micra Active sells for a shade under R160 000, making it one of the cheapest on the market. With the cost of cars today, it is a bargain and would make an ideal starter vehicle for any youngster. In fact, at the price, it would also appeal to a few old toppies I know.