Advice on Nissan Almera?

xFROSTY Gx

Hey everyone,


I'm thinking of maybe buying an '05 1.5l petrol Almera hatchback. I am looking for people views, tips and advice on the N16 Nissan Almera. Eg. running costs, issues at certain mileage, typical faults etc.

All help would be greatly appreciated:D

johnayo

xFROSTY Gx wrote: »

Hey everyone,


I'm thinking of maybe buying an '05 1.5l petrol Almera hatchback. I am looking for people views, tips and advice on the N16 Nissan Almera. Eg. running costs, issues at certain mileage, typical faults etc.

All help would be greatly appreciated:D

As a general rule they are quite a good car.
If Almera service is neglected, They can be prone to timing chains stretching. Can be expensive to put right.(lots of info on Google).

Mr Benevolent

There are better cars out there. How much are you planning to spend?

xFROSTY Gx

Ah right thats good about the reliability, thanks

ianobrien

I have a 05 Almera Hatchback.

I bought it three years ago with 19K on the clock, it's got 136k now. I service it at home and to avoid the timing chain issue, I change the oil every 12k (it comes around well before 6 months)

The only issue I had was two heater resistor packs blowing (100 euro job at the main dealers) and a climate control ecu blowing (300 euro plus fitting!)

There are no squeaks or rattles anywhere, handling is OK, but near the limit the back can get very unsettled over bumps/jumps (driving on private roads - I was well beyond the speed limits;) ) and considering the way I drive it (very hard through corners) the shocks/balljoints/bushes have stood up quite well.

The radio/heater controls can be quite tricky to understand as they are shared. Check if the headlights have been changed. The dims tarnish and it's like having drunken glow-worms in the front of the car. If they haven't, budget 400euro for two headlight assemblies from your main dealer.

Cookie_Monster

Re: the headlights, not sure about the 05 version but my old car was an 03 and the light assemblies were replaced under a recall for free as a safety defect. Maybe also be the case with the 05.

I got roughly 35mpg out of an 03.
Grand car, nothing spectacular but solid and reasonably comfortable. Personally I hate hatchbacks so bought the saloon version.

05 should have alloys and AC as standard iirc, 03 didn't

ianobrien

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

Re: the headlights, not sure about the 05 version but my old car was an 03 and the light assemblies were replaced under a recall for free as a safety defect. Maybe also be the case with the 05.

I got roughly 35mpg out of an 03.
Grand car, nothing spectacular but solid and reasonably comfortable. Personally I hate hatchbacks so bought the saloon version.

05 should have alloys and AC as standard iirc, 03 didn't

A/C standard in saloon in 05, not in hatchback. Alloys standard allright.

As an aside, after spending some time in the United Arab Emirates, I reckon that a/c isn't needed in a car here.....

Cookie_Monster

ianobrien wrote: »

As an aside, after spending some time in the United Arab Emirates, I reckon that a/c isn't needed in a car here.....

the last two days of driving with it on full have convinced me never to buy a car without it again

Sure its not needed, but it makes a huge difference

largepants

Wife drives an 04 Almera and naturally I spend some time in it too. I find the car great to be honest. When I went looking for a second car last year I was told to get an Almera as they'd go forever. So I was happy enough when I picked up a clean 04 with 36k miles for €5,500. Only issue I have is the actual aircons coolest temp is 18 degrees. Other than that I'd say go for it.

antodeco

I have a 2006. Its just hit 90k kms. What has been needed in it so far:

New Clutch
New Breaks discs (warped them)

I have replaced:

Head lights
Put in a strut bar.

Overall, grand car. 4th gear is not worth using, very underpowered, unless simply coasting. I think my chain might be on its way out. I can hear a high pitched noise coming from the engine as it turns

xFROSTY Gx

Thanks for all the replies. Its really put me at ease as I was looking for a reliable car and the almera has turned out to be one:D

ianobrien

antodeco wrote: »

I think my chain might be on its way out. I can hear a high pitched noise coming from the engine as it turns

The first sign you'll get if your chain is on the way out usually is the engine light stays on. The chain will rattle if it's very loose.

High pitched noise is probably a bearing somewhere, power-steering probably as in my experience, most Nissan Power steering pumps have trouble going over 80 to 100k miles (touches wood instantly)

antodeco

ianobrien wrote: »

The first sign you'll get if your chain is on the way out usually is the engine light stays on. The chain will rattle if it's very loose.

High pitched noise is probably a bearing somewhere, power-steering probably as in my experience, most Nissan Power steering pumps have trouble going over 80 to 100k miles (touches wood instantly)

Phew (also touches wood) I know generally its only the belts that make that noise, but the noise happens at idle. I might check the oil, there may be a leak somewhere. Failing that, a kick old swift kick to something generally fixes it!

Anyway, OP, it is a reliable car. Like ianobrien, I do thrash the car about, and it stands up fairly well. I get shockingly poor MPG though (about 27 - 29MPG), but as cars go, it wont give you too much hassle. My car is fairly rattly, but Im going to strip down some of the crap out of it and see does that help!

You will get slagged a bit for having a "boring" car, but I like mine. It does me, keeps going, and rarely gives out about anything.

ianobrien

antodeco wrote: »

Phew (also touches wood) I know generally its only the belts that make that noise, but the noise happens at idle. I might check the oil, there may be a leak somewhere. Failing that, a kick old swift kick to something generally fixes it!

Anyway, OP, it is a reliable car. Like ianobrien, I do thrash the car about, and it stands up fairly well. I get shockingly poor MPG though (about 27 - 29MPG), but as cars go, it wont give you too much hassle. My car is fairly rattly, but Im going to strip down some of the crap out of it and see does that help!

You will get slagged a bit for having a "boring" car, but I like mine. It does me, keeps going, and rarely gives out about anything.

Did you add bonnet vents? I once drove one that bonnet vents, which were cleverly positioned over the Alternator. Needless to say, that car hand a high pitched noise coming from the Alternator.

Cookie_Monster

antodeco wrote: »

You will get slagged a bit for having a "boring" car, but I like mine. It does me, keeps going, and rarely gives out about anything.

exactlymy experience with mine. Though people tend not to find it so boring when they need a lift somewhere