Advice on a Nissan Micra

Lum

Both engines are run by computers, including your base model. What your friend is talking about is probably the fancy display unit that tells you your fuel consumption and average speed and other information. This is an additional unit that just reads information as it passes to and from the basic engine management computer that you both have.

If something were to go wrong with your car than it's likely that you will also get the check engine light as you almost certainly have one on your dashboard.

Something else is wrong with your friend's car.

As for your concern with the timing chain, I'm not familiar with this specific fault but surely if they are known to go at a certain mileage then you should treat that part as a consumable and replace it before it's likely to cause a problem.


Glad to hear that the "Italian tuning" performed by the OP worked out though.

benham3160

puddy wrote: »

me and my friend both have micras, hers is 03 mine is 05. mine is the basic basic model, no engine computer etc. hers is the second from top model. she says she has had a lot of trouble with it, the engine warning often comes on but no one can find anything wrong with it. the timing belt went at 60k miles etc.

i havent had problems with mine, except for last winter, when it was v cold and i hadnt been driving it very regularly. i had previously been doing about 100 miles a day, then to nothing, then the car didnt start a couple of times. now im back to regular motorway driving, no problems at all. so i suspect they like being driven.

her theory is that the engine computer has a lot of faults in it.

mine is now at 56k miles and im wondering about when the timing belt will go, as it seems a common problem

ALL petrol cars sold in Europe after 1992 have an "engine computer."

It's not new technology, it's been about years, it's very reliable, and those who don't believe it should go back to old cars that wouldn't start on cold mornings......

Your model definately has a "computer" probably the same one as your friends car.

Regards,
Andy

puddy

i didnt know that. yes she has a display and whenever i get in her car it ALWAYS says 'engin warning...' with whatever problem its now saying she has. she is fed up with it. she couldnt afford to trade it in so got the timing belt thing fixed, which is what i plan to do.

i had always thought about doing it in advance of it going wrong, but how do i know if its got years left yet or to do it asap?

cyclonebri1

Read somewhere the otherday that there is now more computer power in the average car than in the rocket that sent the 1st man to the moon, scary :eek::eek::eek:

Lum

That's not exactly hard. Your mobile phone, even if it's not a smartphone, has more computing power than the ones in the Apollo missions.

That said the computer in your phone would not work reliably in outer space due to interference from cosmic rays, something which older larger computers are less susceptible to. (This is a very very simplified explanation)

harz99

[QUOTE=puddy;36392719got the timing belt thing fixed, which is what i plan to do.

i had always thought about doing it in advance of it going wrong, but how do i know if its got years left yet or to do it asap?[/QUOTE]

You don't, but if a belt snaps, or things go wrong with associated bits on a chain equipped engine the result is often catastrophic to the point of needing a new engine.

Either join an owners club and seek advice or Google your particular model with "known faults" and see what is said.

BTW, mileage is not the only factor in replacing wear and tear items, time elapsed and the type of use has a lot of bearing as well.

[Deleted User]

I like bombing it down country roads 50-60mph in 4th gear. keeps the engine sweet.

benham3160

cyclonebri1 wrote: »

Read somewhere the otherday that there is now more computer power in the average car than in the rocket that sent the 1st man to the moon, scary :eek::eek::eek:

You're assuming man has been to the moon.....

.......

Regards,
Andy

cyclonebri1

Lum wrote: »

That's not exactly hard. Your mobile phone, even if it's not a smartphone, has more computing power than the ones in the Apollo missions.

That said the computer in your phone would not work reliably in outer space due to interference from cosmic rays, something which older larger computers are less susceptible to. (This is a very very simplified explanation)

So what you saying Dell?

dylanandlulu

Ive also done some research about these cars and know that the timing chain is a well known fault...I guess Ive just taken a calculated risk although it shouldnt be a problem until years to come. I had hoped with mine being a 2007 later model that the problem may have improved by then although I suppose that the problem may not have emerged in those cars yet because most of them wont have yet got to the high milage stage.

It is currently running fine but because my confidence level as a whole in micras has dipped a little, i probably wont keep it longer than a year or so.