Nissan Note

11:46am Monday 3rd July 2006

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THE Nissan Note promises more space, greater practicality and huge flexibility over a conventional hatchback. But it does so at a cost.

The range starts at a few quid less than the psychologically important £10,000 barrier but our 1.5 dCi SVE cost almost £13,595 and that's a lot of money for a car that's largely based on the underpinnings of a Micra. In fact, for the price of this Note you could have bought the VW Golf, a Ford Focus or even the Golf Plus, albeit not a dieselpowered model.

Interestingly, although the Note is shorter overall than a Golf, its wheelbase - the distance between the front and back wheels - is longer than the German car, giving a hint that the interior room should be something special.

In fact, the Note isn't even supposed to go head-to-head with the Golf/Focus set. It's aimed at what Nissan calls the B+ segment, blown-up superminis like the Renault Modus, the Vauxhall Meriva and the Honda Jazz.

Nissan believes the Note is more useful than the Modus and the Meriva but can the new Note justify the extra cost over something as good as the award-winning Jazz?

Designed and engineered with UK input, the Note is about the same size as a Peugeot 207 or a Fiat Punto. Clever thinking makes it more versatile and potentially more useful for a small family.

Outwardly it shares a family resemblance to the excellent Murano luxury off-roader, particularly at the front, with the double-decker four-slot grille.

It's hard to make a one-box shape interesting but Nissan's designers have done their best. The rear lights run up into the roof and the rear window adopts a dramatic angle, making the D pillar almost triangular.

The front lamps are larger versions of those already used on the Micra. They certainly cast a decent spread of light on an evening.

The interior is undoubtedly well screwed together (we've come to expect the very highest standards of quality from Nissan Sunderland) but there's too much hard black plastic for a car costing as much as the Note.

The plastic picnic trays attached to the back of the front seats are particularly flimsy. They reminded me of the worst bargain bucket airline.

It's a model of clarity and straightforward design. The twin clocks are housed in a deep cowl that keeps the sun off in bright weather. They are very clear and easy to read.

Between the speedo and rev counter is a big fuel readout and a smattering of warning lights for, among other things, the engine's coolant temperature.

This illuminates blue on start-up (presumably to signal that the engine is still cold) but more than one passenger asked if I had my headlights on full beam. What's wrong with a good old-fashioned temperature gauge?

The temperature controls on our Note were of the digital variety.

Lesser models have three rotary dials. The air conditioning on either is well up to the job of keeping the cabin cool on hot days.

Big vents make it easy to direct a stream of cold air on to your face. There's nothing amiss with the driving position, although the wheel only adjusts for rake alone, and the driver has the luxury of folding armrest for long journeys.

Three 12-volt power sockets (front, back and boot) should accommodate even the most gadget-obsessed families. Dad could be recharging his mobile in the front while the kids watch a DVD in the back. The 12v outlet in the boot is handy for running air compressors for blowing up rafts etc.

Taking a cue from the Almera there are two 'curry hooks', a small plastic hook for shopping bags and a usefully deep map pocket above the glove box.

Reach beneath the passenger seat and you'll find a storage box and the glove box itself is air conditioned so it can pull double duty as a drinks cooler in warm weather. Thirsty families can cram in up to a dozen cans in the nine litres of space.

Maybe that explains why there are six cup-holders. Given that the Note can only seat five people someone obviously gets two drinks.

When Nissan designers asked young people what they most wanted from their parents' cars most of them answered: more legroom.

That's why the Note's back seat slides backwards and forwards by as much as 16cm to increase the boot or passenger legroom as required. The bench can be slid into position from the cabin or the boot with ease.

Mind you, I'm not certain I can see the reason for the double floor boot. The boot is bisected by two double-sided pieces of plastic with carpet on one side and knobbly plastic on the other. They are sturdy pieces of equipment and Nissan reckons you can load 50kg on them without cause for complaint or fear of breakage.

But what's the point?

With the false floor in place the boot is ridiculously small. I couldn't even fit a fold-up pushchair in there without removing the parcel shelf.

Nissan reckons it allows valuables to be stored out of sight but that's what the luggage cover is supposed to do isn't it?

Maybe it would be useful if you had muddy boots and didn't want to mess up the rest of your luggage but there have to be easier ways of accomplishing this. I reckon most drivers will take the so-called Flexi-Boards out altogether or lay them flat in the boot and forget they exist.

There are three trim levels.

Even the most basic Note hits the road with a quartet of airbags, a CD player, front electric windows, remote central locking, central locking and an immobiliser. Air conditioning is a sensible extra, however.

The SE adds alloy wheels, that Flexi-Board arrangement in the boot, electrically adjustable door mirrors, rear power windows, a six-speaker stereo and remote controls on the steering wheel.

Push the boat out and go for an SVE model if you want folding mirrors, electronic climate control, part leather upholstery, a six-CD in-dash player plus auto windscreen wipers and headlights.

One area where the Note doesn't have a bigger set of figures than its rivals is in its overall height. The Note is significantly lower than cars like the Meriva. This benefits both the car's overall look on the road and its handling.

That clever packaging again means it offers just as much interior head room as the Vauxhall, so six-footers need not leave their top hats at home.

Although the Note's suspension tech is nothing sensational (many small cars are moving away from the Note's torsion beam to adopt a fully independent rear set-up) careful tuning for UK roads has worked well.

Even driven over poorly-surfaced roads at high speed the little Nissan keeps its composure well and maintains good balance on smartly-driven Broads.

The 1.5-litre diesel was developed by Nissan's European parent company Renault. It has a turbo for extra power but should still return more than 55mpg.

The 0-62mph time is a fairly pedestrian 13 seconds, it's breathless at higher speeds and sounds noisy from cold. In short, it's frugal but nothing special. Renault's diesels now lag behind those from Peugeot and VW.

The good news is that you don't have to buy a diesel to enjoy decent fuel economy; both the 1.4 and 1.6 petrol engines should comfortably return mid-40s mpg figures.

However you look at it the Note is a better bet for success than the out-going Almera.

Nissan's designers have ruthlessly designed this car to provide everything a young family will need in a workaday hatchback. It's spacious, well equipped, easy to drive and a cinch to park.

The Honda Jazz can't hold a candle to the Note's interior space nor its boot size (1,663 litres with the seats down v 853 for the Jazz). The North-East car is also more fuel-efficient and falls in the same low insurance category. Longer and wider, the Nissan rubs the Jazz's nose in the dirt by also being the more enjoyable car to drive.

If you have a family that includes toddlers rather than babies, and you need a do-it-all car for work and play, then I guess buying a Note is something of a no-brainer.

Specification:

Engine:1.5/4-cylinder turbo diesel
Max power:	85bhp
Max pulling power:	136 ft lb
Max speed:	104 mph
0-60 mph:	13 seconds
Combined mpg:	61.4mpg
Insurance group:	3
For convenience:	Air conditioning, remote central locking, multi-disc CD player, electric windows
For safety:	Anti-lock brakes, side and curtain airbags