1.6 dci 130 n-etc plus 2wd 5dr

Unimpressive reliability

I have owned this car for a year now. I chose it over a RAV4 due to the glowing reviews of the motoring press. I now regret that decision.

It was bought at roughly 6 months old from a main dealer. The dealer was useless, they applied Diamondbrite Paint protection instead of the protection pack that I had specified (floor mats, mudflats, boot mat).

The 1.6 diesel is a very flexible engine with bags of torque. The interior seems to be holding up well, though the seat fabric is a bit prone to developing watermarks. The 360 degree around view camera is very useful, a godsend really, but only because the rear 3/4 visibility is so poor and restricted by the large C pillar.

The panoramic roof makes the interior light and airy when the blind is open, but when shut the back in particular feels very claustrophobic and dark. It also reduces headroom in the front and quite considerably in the rear.

The seats are comfortable, though the squabs are a bit short and angled a bit too flat in the rear. Space is adequate I would say.

The interior is on the whole practical and well thought out with quite a bit of storage places.

The vehicle has let me down four times now in the past 6months. All with faults on unconnected systems.

Two of the alloy wheels (18inch diamond cut) developed bubbling of the lacquer on the diamond cut face and were replaced under warranty (not damaged by kerbing).

The battery failed leaving my partner stranded in the car at a busy motorway junction when auto stop start stopped the engine at traffic lights and then when attempting to restart the vehicle lost electrical power. The vehicle could not be moved to a safe location by the police who were passing as the handbrake could not be released (joys of an electric handbrake). Battery replaced, RAC (Nissan assist) said ‘I see lots of these that have done this’)

Car has started to momentarily loose power while driving at constant speed, and hesitate while accelerating to overtake. Mass Air Flow Sensor replaces under warranty, although improved it still happens, so will have to go back again.

This Autumn The Air Conditioning stopped working, it was displaying signs of being low on gas. Dealer had master technician check for leaks, none found. I was charged £150 to top up as it’s not covered by the warranty. The car is less than two years old, if there is no leaks, why was it low on gas????

The car developed an odd noise from under the bonnet, traced to the air filter housing which was partially loose and the securing clip worn, pointed this out to the dealer on first service at 1 year old (expecting the part to be replaced) and their solution was to screw a self tapping screw through it!

Don’t expect long life from the front tyres, especially if you you use a heavy foot, the original set on mine were down to to less than 3mm in 12,000miles!

The 18 tyres are an obscure size with not many options available and decent tyres are relatively expensive for a family car.

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