Hello from England (02 Nissan Micra K11 1.0L)
 

I have been lurking here for a little while, so I thought I would join in the fun.

I live in Wiltshire, England and my daily commuter is a 2002 Nissan Micra 1.0 3-door hatchback. It has a 5 speed manual gearbox. I have owned it since July this year when my old Rover diesel finally gave up the ghost. I have just moved jobs, and now commute 26 miles over a hilly, bumpy road which has a number of technical challenges. After reading up on eco-driving techniques and watching a number of Youtube videos I have taken up a more economic driving style. I achieved 419 miles on my last fill up (37 litres - not worked out the mileage) but I know I can do better.

I have already had my share of tailgaters following me on the drive!

I have also removed as much excess weight from the car as I could find. As I have to take the kids to school sometimes I have not removed the rear seat, though I have removed the passenger side wing mirror. I dare not remove the spare tyre as I have had a couple of punctures on the rubbish roads around these parts.

Interested in aeromodding and working out whether classic hypermiling techniques are better than merely coasting in gear - I'd rather be safe.

EDIT: also interested in some aeromodding - the front of the car has some hollows in it where there might be foglights so they probably need blanking off.

Best wishes,
Noddy

Welcome to the site Noddy.

We'd love to see some pictures of your Micra. It sounds like you're getting a pretty respectable 42 mpg US, but we can definitely help you improve that.

Welcome! As mentioned we look forward to seeing the Micra and your adventures with it

Hi there, Noddy!

We just got the current generation (K13) Micra back here in Canada as a 2015 model -- of course with only the highest displacement/power engine option - 1.6L) after a ~20 years gap since the first gen car was last sold here (K10, with only the 1.2L 4-cyl).

Is yours the weird one (K12) with the oval headlights up high on the front fenders/wings? I like that one.

Well, as daox pointed, it's 42 mpg US = 5.6 L/100 km = 51 mpg UK.

Not a bad start, but there's more where that came from if you want it.

I'd look at a partial grille block, smooth wheel covers, and an air dam. If you're up for some fabrication, I'd look into making a Kammback on the hatch as well.

Welcome to the forum!

PS: one of the best things you could do is put fuel economy instrumentation in the car. If it's fuel injected, you could use an MPGuino.

.

Welcome...

The very 1st and most important thing you should do is buy a instant feedback gauge.

Without instantaneous feedback it is hard to know what works and what doesn't.

Information can be found here.

ScanGauge - Trip Computer + Digitial Gauges + ScanTools

UltraGauge OBDII Scan tool & Information Center

Both of these are easy to install. They just plug into the cars OBDII port.

Without it your shooting in the dark... ;)

>

UltraGauge is compatible with most* 1996 and newer foreign and domestic vehicles sold in the United States. While OBD II compliance was federally mandated in 1996, some vehicle makes and models were compliant as early as 1994. Compliance is indicated on the vehicle's emissions decal located in the engine compartment. Below are examples of emission decals.

If your car is not compatible. You will have to use a MPGuino like Metro suggested.

Info can be found here.

OpenGauge / MPGuino FE computer - Fuel Economy, Hypermiling, EcoModding News and Forum - EcoModder.com

>

Will an '02 Euro Micra have an OBD-II port? I really don't know.

From what I can find about compliance in Europe, petro cars after 2001 should be either EOBD or OBD2.

I edited my original post.

>

Edit.

The OP should check if his car is compatible by contacting the manufactures directly.

>

Thanks very much for the welcome, and the replies. Yes it is OBDII (checked for the port under the steering wheel) and a ScanGauge is on the cards. I have yet to clear this expenditure through the CFO, however. I like the idea of the MPGuino but I am totally scared by the installation process - I would need to ask someone who knew what they were doing to install it.

This car is a K11 model - the "noddy car" variant hence my username. This particular car is a very basic model and lacks a rev counter so some real-time instrumentation would be very welcome. At present I drive it in socks to drive by feel, and try to listen to the engine note to get the most efficient speeds. I use the highest gear I can get away with - on level ground I can drive in 5th gear at 30mph.

Another deletion I am considering is the car radio - it's not much use anyway and I only listen to it for the news now. And it is a radio cassette player...

I will post pictures as soon as I get to 5 posts (just tried to post some but I'm still too new here).

EDIT: I should say that I do not have a mechanical background, though I seem to have developed an interest thanks to watching all those motoring programmes on the Discovery channel.

I ought to add that the figure of 42mpg (US) and 51mpg (Imperial) included two return journeys where the car was fully laden, either with passengers (including in the rear seats so four adults) and with a load of PA equipment driving to and from a gig. I am a semipro musician playing in a soul/R&B band so I sometimes have to transport band kit.

So far on the current fuel tank I have driven 292 miles and the gauge is showing just under half full. It would be nice to get 450 or more miles on this tank; we'll see. I have been keeping a paper log of fuel consumption and mileage, and will be inputting them into an Excel spreadsheet at some point.