Buying Our First Car (Micra)

Kintarō Hattori

Hey Guys,

The missus and myself have decided that we finally need a small car and so we've decided settled on a Micra that we like the look of (we had considered the Yaris also). I'm afraid I don't know the first thing about mechanics and other than looking for the usual such as rattling sounds, smokey exhaust, rust etc I'm pretty clueless.

Is there a service or a reputable mechanic we can hire to come along and look at the car before we hand over our money? Also what is it likely to cost for this? Finally buying a car 2nd from a dealer do you get any sort of a guarantee?

Many thanks for any advice.

colm_mcm

Warranty would depend on what dealer you go to, Nissan dealers will give a comprehensive warranty, as will most other brands. What year Micra were you looking at?

Stinicker

Are you sure you want a Micra ??:eek:

Mc Love

Kintarō Hattori wrote: »

Hey Guys,

The missus and myself have decided that we finally need a small car and so we've decided settled on a Micra that we like the look of

Is he taking the mick?

Seriously OP, a micra?

What kind of car/year/budget are ye looking for? Trying to sell my car, see signature

hoodie6029

any of the motor check websites offer an insection service. I think the AA do too.
Make sure you do the background check on your car, my sister nearly both a dud mini a few weeks ago but for the check.

Micra/Yaris are decent cars for town and short trips. you won't be doing any burn outs or getting any speeding tickets in them!

TheColl

Mc Love wrote: »

Is he taking the mick?

Seriously OP, a micra?

What kind of car/year/budget are ye looking for? Trying to sell my car, see signature

It's their first car, micra is perfect for that! Each to their own anyway... Tbh, I'd have a micra ahead of a 206 any day!

Mimikyu

This post has been deleted.

pajo1981

TheColl wrote: »

Tbh, I'd have a micra ahead of a 206 any day!

You must really hate yourself?

TheColl

pajo1981 wrote: »

You must really hate yourself?

Insightful, congratulations. If choosing between those two I'd go for the lesser of two evils in my eyes.

.Longshanks.

TheColl wrote: »

It's their first car, micra is perfect for that! Each to their own anyway... Tbh, I'd have a micra ahead of a 206 any day!

Depending on the year/model, I'd agree

Gitb1

hoodie6029 wrote: »

any of the motor check websites offer an insection service. I think the AA do too.
Make sure you do the background check on your car, my sister nearly both a dud mini a few weeks ago but for the check.

Micra/Yaris are decent cars for town and short trips. you won't be doing any burn outs or getting any speeding tickets in them!

I got 2 speeding tickets in a micra

Stinicker

Gitb1 wrote: »

I got 2 speeding tickets in a micra

Oh yes I heard about the new 30km/h speed limit in the city centre bugger about that!

Kintarō Hattori

Thanks for the helpful responses guys. Yes I realize the Micra isn't for everyone but we live in and around the city centre. It'd primarily be used for the missus to get herself to and from work with the occasional trip out of town.

The Micra is perfect for us as it's cheap to buy and run. We also want something reliable as it's our first car and we're not used to owning one, so we're breaking ourselves in gently!

I didn't know about the AA so I'll look into that and go with them.

.Longshanks.

OP, what year of car are you looking at?

Gael23

I'd definately go for a Micra over anything french tbh. If the OP is buying one 04 or newer it will have a 1.2 80bhp engine which is reasonably pokey. Dont know alot about mechanics but micras in general are always fairly reliable.

Mc Love

Much to some peoples annoyances with all things french. I have never had a problem with the car and owned it for four years. Always passed NCT first time, always looked after. And its much better looking than a Micra any day of the week.

In fact the first car I drove was a 206 and bought one after that. I must be the exception because i never had a problem in either the pre-plexed or multi-plexed versions

TheColl

Mc Love wrote: »

Much to some peoples annoyances with all things french. I have never had a problem with the car and owned it for four years. Always passed NCT first time, always looked after. And its much better looking than a Micra any day of the week.

In fact the first car I drove was a 206 and bought one after that. I must be the exception because i never had a problem in either the pre-plexed or multi-plexed versions

There's the problem, give yourself more time in other cars and the 206 will seem.... very, very ordinary.

Mc Love

TheColl wrote: »

There's the problem, give yourself more time in other cars and the 206 will seem.... very, very ordinary.

Bet its better than a Micra though. Super minis are very very ordinary at best.

Have been in a micra or two, one that was from 99 and the other was a 04 and I would pick the pug over the two anyday!

EPM

Looks aside I'd have a Micra every time over the pug.

In saying that, the current share aren't as reliable of ones of old. From parents having an 03 primera and almera from new for a few years I'd be very slow to buy one. Countless electrical problems.

For what you seem to want I'd go with a Yaris

colm_mcm

Yep, Yaris is superior, even if you compare old Yaris with new Micra.

Kintarō Hattori

Longshanks100 wrote: »

OP, what year of car are you looking at?

Hi Kevin,

I found one from 2001 with 52,000m and just two owners for a reasonable price. I know the Yaris is alot better but the price on the Micra is winning me over.

We can always change if we feel we need a bigger car or something with more poke.

colm_mcm

how much is the Micra?

TestTransmission

Mc Love wrote: »

Bet its better than a Micra though. Super minis are very very ordinary at best.

Have been in a micra or two, one that was from 99 and the other was a 04 and I would pick the pug over the two anyday!

Hm,no it's not.

PauloMN

Kintarō Hattori wrote: »

We can always change if we feel we need a bigger car or something with more poke.

My advice would be to try and forsee what you might need in a year or two. You can always change yes, but if you decide to change in 6 months or a year, you'll end up losing a lot of cash.

So unless you really do not need any luggage room or rear passenger room, I'd personally go a little bigger myself - it'll save you changing to something bigger anyway in a year or so. At that year, there'll be practically no difference in price between a supermini and a small family car anyway.

Kintarō Hattori

colm_mcm wrote: »

how much is the Micra?

€1500.

PauloMN wrote: »

My advice would be to try and forsee what you might need in a year or two. You can always change yes, but if you decide to change in 6 months or a year, you'll end up losing a lot of cash.

So unless you really do not need any luggage room or rear passenger room, I'd personally go a little bigger myself - it'll save you changing to something bigger anyway in a year or so. At that year, there'll be practically no difference in price between a supermini and a small family car anyway.

We really don't need extra space, it's just a run around to get us from A to B. We're both in our 30s (first car I know!) and have always walked or gotten public transport so it's not something we're going to depend upon. It'll just be handy to have.

Eoin

ryanf1 wrote: »

I'd definately go for a Micra over anything french tbh.

I find that quite a silly generalisation. I would say that French hatchbacks quite often give you the most value for money. For example, a 1.2 Clio from around 2000 is a pretty good little car. I'd have it any day over a Micra.

Mc Love

TestTransmission wrote: »

Hm,no it's not.

yep yes it is!

keithclancy

eoin wrote: »

I find that quite a silly generalisation. I would say that French hatchbacks quite often give you the most value for money. For example, a 1.2 Clio from around 2000 is a pretty good little car. I'd have it any day over a Micra.

Only good thing about a Micra was you could buy one in the buy and sell for 200 euros and drive it until it was dead.

Eoin

Don't get me wrong - I think Micras are great. I just find the "all French cars are shìte" nonsense very boring at this stage.

keithclancy

eoin wrote: »

Don't get me wrong - I think Micras are great. I just find the "all French cars are shìte" nonsense very boring at this stage.

Nothing wrong with the French.. they make the best Diesels

znv6i3h7kqf9ys

You can't with a nissan