Nissan Almeras

magpieant

magpieant

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Looking for a cheap, reliable car as a run around for the wife.

Can't afford a Jazz or Yaris for the mileage / budget we want.

Almeras seem to have a good rep for reliability - nowt flashy - but a good solid car.

Any petrolheads got any advice .... ?

Looking to spend approx £2000 and seen some decent ones with low mileage at that price.

Thoughts appreciated as always.

Cheers.
Anth.
 
You generally cant go wrong with a Nissan. However, I would look at Primera's rather than Almeras.

I would also be looking at something a bit older than possibly what you had in mind.

Your budget suggests your not looking for anything nearly new, so if your going to by used, why not buy, lets say "well proven" You could get a 10 - 12 year old Primera for a quarter of your budget which would leave you lots of £££ to treat yourself.

They're bomp proof and better built than later variants with a more solid feel, rather than the light and poor feel of newer models. I know "airy" can be nice, but I like to feel safe in a car at the same time !!!

Parts and running costs are dirt cheap, and repair work is very easy (cheap) should it need any.

My 2p's
 
additional:

I paid £80 for this 2.0 diesel which passed an MOT without any advisory.

It IS as clean and tidy as it looks

P1070512.jpg
 
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I'd agree with BB.

If £2K is your budget I would spend less, maybe £1K. You need to have enough to sort out any little issues and for this money you dont want to have so much tied up in it that you cant afford to bin it if it turns out to have some major issue 6 months down the line. I dont think you get a significantly better car for the extra cash.
 
If it's a run around for the wife, surely they won't require a Primera?

I would personally be supplying the wife with a Micra. You should be able to find a 6 year old Micra for £2k. Excellent reliability and economy.
 
30psi said:
If it's a run around for the wife, surely they won't require a Primera?
Click to expand...

Why not ? You can run around in a Primera.

Small cars are ok for parking etc, but safety comes before parking ability for me, and a larger car is a safer bet. Mine returned a "small car matching" 50 mpg, had finger light power steering and cost beer money, literally !
 
Larger cars aren't always safer? There is a lot of false impressions about large cars. Given a £2k budget a smaller car is likely to be newer than a larger car with the same amount of cash, newer cars are subject to more crash testing than older cars. A 2002 Micra has 4 star ncap rating. Same as a 2002 Primera.

But my point of a Micra is ongoing cost. Tax is cheaper for the smaller car. One person in a larger car doesn't make as much economic sense as a one person in a small car. Remember 50mpg in a Micra will be cheaper in petrol than diesel. Increasing fuel costs have increased smaller car sales. That speaks for itself really.

I drive a Citroen Xantia 1.9TD that cost me £100, and occasionally tow with it. Wouldn't recommend the car to my missus though. If I didn't need a large car for lugging crap around in and towing I would be in a 1.0 petrol car.
 
you cant compare ncap ratings between cars of different sizes.

I also think that smaller cars of the sort of age that 2k buys you will be older than the larger car. small cars much more in demand as 2nd cars and for young drivers.
 
How can you not compare ncap ratings. Surely the whole point of the ratings is for comparisons? All cars under go the same tests.
 
Ok ... thanks for all your help.

Let me rephrase slightly ..... it's a runaround for the wife, and 3month old son AND a pretty big pram!!!

She did have a little micra which she loved. But due to not checking oil, she didn't realise it had a leak. Which in turn meant she didn't top any oil up. That lead to the cylinder head blowing, and that was the end of the micra!!!!

Not really looked into Primeras - will follow that avenue too - also looking at Micras which she likes.

As for size, she is used to a big one ( ;) ) as she has been driving my Volvo around and can park, etc easily. We live in a terraced house, so you soon learn to reverse park in the smallest of gaps!!!

great advice guys - keep it coming. And if you know of anyone selling an old Nissan ....

Anth.
 
The only test out of the many ones they do that can't be directly compared is the frontal one which is basically like having a head on with the same car because of the weight of the car. But the ncap still provides a very useful comparison.
 
yes the tests can be compared if you get down to the actual damage caused etc, but that isnt the info you have. What you have is a star rating which is based on the class of car. A 3 star on a small car is going to be very different to a 3 star on a large car. Thats why NCAP specifically say that comparisons of cars of different classes are not valid. The information is not readily available to tell us if a 4 star small car is better/worse/the same as a 3 star large car.

Yes the ratings are a useful comparison, but mainly betweeen cars of the same class. I think the main benefit to them is that they encourage makers to improve the safety of their vehicles.
 
Put it this way, I'd rather be in a Volvo Estate then a Smart Car in a motorway pile up !!

I must admit, NCAP testing has never even entered my mind any time I've purchased a car. At the same time, I know what I feel safe in.
 
Latest ....

Test drove a Primera tonight. Very smooth drive.

Good condition inside and out and decent mileage - gonna make an offer tomorrow .... will keep you informed!

Anth.
 
magpieant said:
Latest ....

Test drove a Primera tonight. Very smooth drive.

Good condition inside and out and decent mileage - gonna make an offer tomorrow .... will keep you informed!

Anth.
Click to expand...

Good one, how old? petrol/diesel? etc...
 
If your still looking for an Almera I've got a 29,000 mile one coming in part exchange, it's a twister model so it's go quite a few nice little features and of course a/c.
 
James Rothwell said:
If your still looking for an Almera I've got a 29,000 mile one coming in part exchange, it's a twister model so it's go quite a few nice little features and of course a/c.
Click to expand...

Air cons for girls !!!

Get yer windows down and yer shades on !!

:lol:
 
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