NISSAN ALMERA Hatchback 2000‑2006

The NISSAN Almera 1.5 SVE is a wonderfully spacious and practical car to drive. It has large boot space for it's compact size. As a parent with two infant I find that you can easy fit two push chairs in the boot.

However bearing in mind that this is a hatchback space is ratter tight in the back seat as you can only fit two child seats or two adults with cramped leg room.

As for the drive the 1.5ltr petrol engine packs some pack the is capable of fast speeds but vigorous driving driving has it's draw backs as it is not fuel economic. A full tank of fuel 65ltrs will give you 350miles on the motorway or 200miles in the city which is a big difference as you are using an average fuel cconsumption 25ml/gl

Bought this as a bit of a gamble on Ebay. It is largely driven by my wife although I give it an occasional 'blast'. Totally reliable and if the 1.5l is worked hard, fairly quick. The non-standard alloy wheels help looks and handling. Motorway journeys are slightly noisy [205 tyres?] but the feel is 'solid'. Running cost is 'good' particularly with no repairs etc Would consider the purchase of the 2.2 deisel 'cos it 'goes well' with 0-62mph in just over 9 seconds,50-70 in very short time and economical. Good on the road with the slightly wider tyres, so criticism about handling not really justified! [Try a new set of 'shockers'!] Thus, I would buy another Almera without reserve, I like this car [1.5 petrol] but I tend to push it too hard although it has never failed to deliver! My wife loves the car, it replaced a brand new Citroen C2 which was 'gutless', cramped and did the same to the gallon when pushed, as the Almera! So there!

Nice and easy operating car. Though it does not have extensive electrical function but it is suitable for any small family. All japanse car is reliable than any other maker. Nissan is 2nd as per my choice.

For a small car , it is quite spacious, especially the boot area, because of the design, it is a little like a small van. They dont seem to depreciate in condition as much as other cars, mine has absolutely no rust or bad paintwork despite 7 years old. it is a good compact car, easy to park, good for shopping or taking the kids to school. If you are not too bothered about style and want something nippy to get you about,that is not too expensive to run , then this is the car for you. I would much rather have one of these than something like a Fiat or Ford KA , It is a simple car with sufficient mod cons to make it comfortable to drive. Mechanically , mine has had no problems since I've had it, not even a bulb has gone on it . Compared to some of the other cars I saw for the same price, it is superb.

When my Nissan Micra go to 10 years old i decided it was time for something more reliable. While looking around my Dad convinced me to go bigger and boy was i glad I did. I bought my silver Nissan Almera Sport myself and for that she had a place in my heart but she was also a fantastic car. As the sports model it had a silver framed dashboard, alloy wheels and separate fog lamps to look the part. The luxuries of electric windows, light up mirrors and the original Radio/CD player (that could bang out the tunes as loud as I needed) was just what I needed and didn’t have unnecessary accessories that might cost loads if they broke. Since I bought her at 4 years old until I sold her I had no trouble. The wear and tear of a new exhaust was to be expected, as was the odd punctured tyre, but she passed every MOT with flying colours. The strong 1.8L engine always impressed. When in 5th gear at 60 miles per hour you could put your foot down and it pulled instantly, no hesitation, no dragging increase in speed. The tax bracket was low for the engine size and even with yearly increases it was easy to afford, as was the insurance. The 5 doors and large boot were a blessing to get things in and out, which helped me to move all my stuff to two different homes. When I moved up north my 8 year old car never complained even in the depths of the worst winter in 30 years, her handling on icy roads was easy to manoeuvre. When I moved in with my boyfriend we quickly saw my Almera as the most reliable and useful car for us both when compared to his 3 year old Grande Punto, which caused us nothing but trouble for a few months. The fuel economy was surprising, I could do a trip up north, one-way on 3/4 tank of fuel, costing about £35. With a 450 mile round trip every two weeks I was worried my girl would start to feel the strain but I had no reason to, I never had to call out the AA in 5 years. The 4 year old car that cost me £4500 was the best buy I ever made, I only hope my new Vauxhall Astra can do the same. I only got a newer car, as I was worried my good fortune would start to run out on my nearly 10 year old Almera, to this day the Almera I bought at 23 will always be my favourite and something I still miss.

Owned for 8 years....

I purchased this car brand new in September 2000 as the first gen on the updated style.

The initial 18 months were trouble free, the in-car 6 cd changer I had fitted (with steering wheel controls) was brilliant and overall i was very happy with it. At the time i mainly used it to commute the 25 miles to work and longer trips on the weekends.

The boot is spacious for a hatchback and it was a good car for my needs.

However after 18 months the troubles began. There was a recall to fix an issue with the electronics (the engine management light had come on at this point and the car was experiencing issues)

From then on I had many issues with the electronics of the engine, revs bouncing, sensors breaking and a variety of issues including an episode where the Nissan garage struggled to find the issue changing several parts.

In the end (in 2008) the timing chain stretched and the car ground to a halt. I sold the car for a pittance and the people who bought the car then spent considerable time on it with issues around replacing the chain then the ecu then eventually finding that 3 of the 4 coils had broken.

I still see the car on the road locally so hopefully they are having a better experience.

Running costs were reasonable but the costs involved in the many fixes meant the score was reduced.

Overall the car was very much a mixed bag, it gave me periods of good service interspesred with real issues (particularly in the last 2 years of owning).

I have known many people with various versions of this car who had no problems at all so it could be a case of having a bad example but personally I won't be looking to Nissan for my vehicle any time soon.

The Almera was never going to compete with other Family hatchbacks such as the Focus or the Golf but as a practical, well spec'd and good value vehicle its definitely a winner.

The SVE comes with built in Sat Nav which is relatively easy to use as well as the usual toys climate control etc. The boot space is fantastic and easily fits any number of buggies including tandems and still has room for a weekly shop. The rear seats can easily fit 3 adults comfortably or in our case 2 adults and a very large child seat. We’re also expecting a second child but have no plans to change the car for a bigger one as it will easily take a second car seat.

Its exceeding well built and reliable as is the case for most Nissans. I've only had to call the breakdown service once and that was last winter when I hadn’t driven it for about 3 weeks and surprise the battery had gone flat. In fact the mechanic says he's only ever called out to Almeras when the battery is flat or they've got a puncture.

I'm averaging about 37 Mpg and the handy trip computer gives you a current and average display so you can adjust your driving to get the figures up. As I drive to work I'm filling up about once a fortnight.

That being said it is a safe choice of vehicle its not going to stir the soul or win in the looks department and it feels like its been designed with pensioners as the target market. The steering feels a little light which is great when parking but don't try and flick it round a sharp bend at speed. To be honest driving it doesn't stick in my memory and when I move on from it I’ll remember it with indifference.

But because of this lack of excitement you can pick them up for a really good price.

So in short a good practical family hatchback, perhaps a little bit boring but with 2 kids in the back and the boot full of buggies and toys you need some calm in your life!