NOT so long ago everyone was predicting the death of the small car.
- Ford Fiesta.
- Ford Ka.
- Vauxhall Adam.
- Vauxhall Viva.
- Peugeot 108.
- Citroen C1.
- Renault Twingo.
- Volkswagen Up!
- Skoda Citigo.
- Seat Mii
The Nissan Micra has been rebooted for the electric age[/caption]
Micra is a reskinned Renault 5 using the same menu of batteries, e-motors, suspension and electronics[/caption]
All popular runabouts sent to the great scrapyard in the sky.
Manufacturers blamed cost, ever- tightening regulations adding even more cost, and the trend for pumped-up crossovers.
Now everything is about to go full circle and I’m here for it.
Renault will unveil an all-new Clio petrol hybrid shortly.
To sit alongside the gorgeous battery-powered 5.
Then the titchy Twingo returns as a £17K EV late next year.
Volkswagen is to update Polo with a mild hybrid petrol engine – so it’ll be around for much longer. Ditto Seat and Ibiza.
Then VW will roll out a family of urban EVs previewed by the ID2 and ID1 concepts.
ID2 will be badged ID Polo by the time it hits showrooms next summer priced from £22k – and ID1 will become Up! in 2027, costing about £17k.
Vauxhall already flogs Corsa in both power types and we’ll see the next one in a month or two.
Fiat has the brilliant 500 and box-fresh Grande Panda and there’s a smaller Panda city car in the pipeline.
We recently tested BYD’s £19k Dolphin Surf.
Lots of small, simple starter cars for everyone.
Now we come to the red car you see here. Nissan Micra.
Another household name rebooted for the electric age.
Basically, Micra is a reskinned Renault 5 – built by Renault at the R5 factory – using the same menu of batteries, e-motors, suspension and electronics.
So it drives like an R5. Feels like an R5. Goes as far as an R5.
Which is fine by me. Because the R5 is a peach.
So your choice is purely down to looks.
Whether you prefer the retro codes of the R5 or the cheery puppy-eyed Micra.
Those Micra lights “wink” at you when you unlock the car.
That thick stripe down the waistline is what Nissan’s London designers call the “ice cream scoop”.
Like dragging a spoon across the surface of untouched ice cream.
Yeah, whatever. It’s a million miles better than the vanilla Micras of old.
The Micra drives like an R5, feels like an R5 and goes as far as an R5[/caption]
Other observations. They’ve printed Mount Fuji in the centre console and boot frame, a nod to the car’s Japanese heritage.
But they forgot to replace the French cockerel on the windscreen. Duh.
Like the R5, Micra has a twin-screen dash, Google brain, reversing camera and one simple button to switch off all the beeps and bongs the law now demands.
Unlike the R5, mid-spec Micras have steering wheel paddles to adjust the levels of braking regen.
So it’s actually more fun to drive.
The tech wasn’t ready before R5 hit the road. But it will get it soon.
Nissan has also done another deal with Renault for a city car based on the upcoming Twingo.
Death of the small car? No, mate.
There’s lots of good stuff just around the corner.
KEY FACTS: NISSAN MICRA
- Price: £23,000
- Battery: 40kWh
- Power: 122hp
- 0-62mph: 9 secs
- Top speed: 93mph
- Range: 192 miles
- Out: January
Unlock even more award-winning articles as The Sun launches brand new membership programme – Sun Club.
