Fuel economy wrap-up...
- 47 mpg over 766 miles
- 5.0 L/100 km over 1234 km
Context for those numbers:
- 30% city
- 30% highway (100 km/h / 62 mph limit)
- 40% secondary highways (80 km/h / 50 mph limit)
Basic ecodriving techniques were used, particularly: shifting to top gear as soon as practical; minimizing braking by reading traffic conditions well ahead. I drove at or near the speed limit depending on traffic (within a few km/h / mph).
And while I typically killed the engine at stops of more than ~10 seconds, there was no engine-off coasting.
Some of the total distance was with
various ecomods in place (sidewall PSI for about 75%, grille block for about 50%, air dam for about 25%).
So, there's considerably more MPG where that came from, with a kill switch and mods in place 100% of the time.
What bugged me about the Micra?
1) Driver's seat comfort
This is subjective, but I found the seat cushion uncomfortable -- not enough thigh support (I'm average height). The 6-way adjustable seat in the mid- and top-trim Micra was much better in that area than the base car's 4-way seat.
It wouldn't be a deal-breaker though: I've added padding to my cars' seats before (the current Firefly being one of them).
And many owners of the base S don't seem to mind.
2) Transmission gearing
In 2 weeks and over 1200 km, I never got used to the transmission's low gearing (~3000 RPM @ 60 mph / 100 kph). I found myself automatically reaching to grab another upshift when it was already in top gear -- it happened even on my last drive to return the car.
In addition to the rev-happy top gear, first gear is so short as to be nearly useless. I often took off in 2nd gear if facing slightly downhill, or if the car was even just barely moving.
Many reviewers & owners have grumbled about the manual gearing. It's one of the few consistent negatives about the drivetrain.
Blame clever cost-cutting: Nissan saves money by dropping in the drivetrain from its heavier Versa stablemates, where the short 1st and 5th are
somewhat more appropriate.
It needs a taller final drive ratio, at least.