First impression are very important and unless you are a big softy and in possession of your first teddy the new Micra C+C isn’t going to make you drop your MINI convertible brochure! The MINI convertible is derived form a car that young fashion conscious people want, as is the Peugeot 206 CC, sadly the Micra C+C isn’t. While the new C+C may share only a couple of body panels with the popular Micra hatchback it clearly has the same DNA and that just isn’t cool enough. I like the Micra hatchback, as it’s versatile, easy to use and well thought out. The C+C (coupe/convertible) version is less practical but a whole lot more fun and my gut tells me it will prove more reliable than French offerings out there but that’s not enough.
The exterior is chunky in a ‘Noddy-car’ sort of way and in no way sporting. Inside the logical Micra layout is evident with nice party tricks like keyless entry/start and steering-wheel stereo controls. My test car featured two-level heated front seats that were very welcome on a nice night-time blast from Dublin to Wicklow. Both buffeting and wind noise are at acceptable levels thanks to the car’s high sides and windscreen. Ever easy to drive the speed sensitive power steering works well but at the loss of ‘feel’. On good roads the car feels solid with no noticeable rattles. When the roof is up the car is relatively refined.
The roof is ‘state-of-the-art’ and features what Nissan calls ‘C-view’ glass. Above your head there is a large glass panel that has a mesh roller blind and behind you a solid glass rear screen. It takes a brisk 22 seconds to lower or rise and is done at the press of a button. Like the Peugeot 206, 307CC, Mercedes SLK, Lexus SC430 etc. the folded hard roof stows in the double hinged boot. With the roof up the boot is enormous at 457 litres and roof down there is 225 litres of space. The cabin is tight and try as I might I could only fit two passengers and myself in - at a squeeze. You can switch off the passenger airbag with a turn of the key if the front seat is pushed far forward.
The C+C is available in two engine sizes - a revised 1.4-litre (88bhp) and a new nippy 1.6-litre (110bhp) twin cam petrol engine fitted in my test car. The five-speed gearbox has quite a tight ratio, which works well about town but I think Nissan would be better off putting a longer fifth gear in for motorway cruising. As it stands 100km/h pulls about 3,000rpm.
€23,995 gets the 1.4-litre C+C that features a decent amount of standard kit like 15-inch alloys, air conditioning and front fog lights. €26,995 will get you a 1.6-litre C+C that features extra goodies like leather seats, climate control plus 16-inch alloy wheels. Sadly because of VRT and VAT the Micra C+C is between six and nine grand dearer here than in most of Europe! The price kills it for me.
Michael Sheridan
