Introductions in Order

[Stickers=+HP]

Evening Everyone

As of yesterday I am a proud owner of a very ratty 2001 Micra K11 1.4 SE.

Its my first car since migrating to the UK and I am warming up to it very quickly.

Basically just wanted to introduce myself and ask if there is anything I should look out for ( too late I guess seeing as its already purchased) and any first mods I should make straight away to improve my plucky little car.

I have some basic mechanical knowledge and have worked on my cars/bikes in the past but being in this country for less than a year means I have no tools or even a drive way to work on yet so I'm getting there.

I have no other pics other than the ones I have stolen for the AutoTrader add.

She was a grand total of £500 and I was most likely ripped off but I am not regretting my purchase just yet as everything (besides NATS it seems) appears to be working.

I'm going to start tinkering with this lovely little car in the very near near future, starting with some preventative maintenance first before getting into the aesthetics and tweaks and I'm looking forward to getting to know you all and learn from what seems to be a very healthy community

Regards
Colin

 

[LiamC]

Evening Everyone

As of yesterday I am a proud owner of a very ratty 2001 Micra K11 1.4 SE.

Its my first car since migrating to the UK and I am warming up to it very quickly.

Basically just wanted to introduce myself and ask if there is anything I should look out for ( too late I guess seeing as its already purchased) and any first mods I should make straight away to improve my plucky little car.

I have some basic mechanical knowledge and have worked on my cars/bikes in the past but being in this country for less than a year means I have no tools or even a drive way to work on yet so I'm getting there.

I have no other pics other than the ones I have stolen for the AutoTrader add.

She was a grand total of £500 and I was most likely ripped off but I am not regretting my purchase just yet as everything (besides NATS it seems) appears to be working.

I'm going to start tinkering with this lovely little car in the very near near future, starting with some preventative maintenance first before getting into the aesthetics and tweaks and I'm looking forward to getting to know you all and learn from what seems to be a very healthy community

Regards
Colin

On those later 1.4 engines you'll want to watch out for oiling, keep on top of services as much as you can as they can get very rattly from what I understand. Rusty rear arches, sills and cross member are the only real problems, maybe the odd sunroof or scuttle panel leak. Other than that, these cars are bulletproof and the 1.4 is meant to be quite a quick little car. That could be a pretty good deal depending on how much history, mot left and mileage etc. Anyway, welcome to the club

 

[Stickers=+HP]

Thanks for this.

MOT till Dec this yeah. Service history is patchy with the last record in the book being 70K miles ( its at 94k miles now). I was told the last two services were done by the owner so there is no stamps, I want to believe that. Engine bay looks really good.

I'm in the process of moving flats so with deposits, agents fees and all I'm flat broke, so any maintenance is going to have to wait at least a month.
No tools or a place to work also doesn't help. First things first is a service. Oils is full when I got it so that's promising, little thing and dark but doesn't smell of petrol, cant be too bad. Are those amazingly Cheap Ebay K11 service kits too good to be true ? I more tempted to got a Auto Parts place and just the consumables for a service individually.

After about 3 weeks of ownership I cant seem to find anything wrong beside the hand break seeming to be at the limit of it adjuster and being pretty useless. Took it to get aligned, not because it was pulling, more for peace of mind because. Was also able to have a good look underneath, All looked good, little rust on the "rear axle", basically the bar connecting the two wheels. no clue what its call and all my previous front wheel driver cars never had the rear wheels connected. I could also see a rust repair on the sil in front of one of the rear wheel. real tatty silicone, steal plate and some brushed on black paint but it survived a finger poke test so no issues for now.

Recently drove it to Birmingham and back (from London) in a day and she is surprising strong on the open road. Hell site more spritely than my 2009 1.4 VW Polo I used to have.

After the service I'm going to fiddle with a K11 instrument cluster I got off Ebay that has a Tacho on it. you wouldn't happen to know how to swop over the Odometer screen, I am trying to keep the original miles on the car, helps for MOT and my conscience. Briefly checked the forum and the general consensus is simply live with your new millage you have been given.

Lastly some wheels, the tires on this care are cracked on the edges, car must have been parked for a while. Would rather just get some much prettier second hand Fiesta allows off Ebay that come with tires, If they fit that is.

Either ways, Love this little car and I'm sure I'm going have many happy hours underneath it and driving around.

 

[ash d]

Looks like you've got a good deal to be honest, the 1.4's hold their value a little bit better than most of the other models so £500 is quite good.

Here's a little buyers guide video i did that might help you with some of the common problems that the Micra's have


Also Fiesta wheel won't fit the Micra, the Micra has a 4x100 stud pattern and the Fiesta has 4x108

 

[Stickers=+HP]

Thanks

Only now have I realized how little I know about wheel sizes.

Fortunately my car has none none of mentioned issues in the video ( that I have seen so far) but I will be sure to keep an eye out.

Currently bidding on some old BMW E30 wheels

 

[ash d]

Thanks

Only now have I realized how little I know about wheel sizes.

Fortunately my car has none none of mentioned issues in the video ( that I have seen so far) but I will be sure to keep an eye out.

Currently bidding on some old BMW E30 wheels

The E30 bottle cap wheels would look awesome on a Micra and fitment should be pretty good as well

 

[MikeHP]

Isn't the centre bore smaller on the BMWs?

https://www.wheel-size.com/size/bmw/3-series/1990/

https://www.wheel-size.com/size/nissan/micra/2000/#trim-14i-eudm-80

So the BMW wheels wouldn't fit over the Micra's central locating... lip... thingy

Unless they were professionally machined out.

Love the car btw, I miss driving my 1.4

 

[LiamC]

Thanks for this.

MOT till Dec this yeah. Service history is patchy with the last record in the book being 70K miles ( its at 94k miles now). I was told the last two services were done by the owner so there is no stamps, I want to believe that. Engine bay looks really good.

I'm in the process of moving flats so with deposits, agents fees and all I'm flat broke, so any maintenance is going to have to wait at least a month.
No tools or a place to work also doesn't help. First things first is a service. Oils is full when I got it so that's promising, little thing and dark but doesn't smell of petrol, cant be too bad. Are those amazingly Cheap Ebay K11 service kits too good to be true ? I more tempted to got a Auto Parts place and just the consumables for a service individually.

After about 3 weeks of ownership I cant seem to find anything wrong beside the hand break seeming to be at the limit of it adjuster and being pretty useless. Took it to get aligned, not because it was pulling, more for peace of mind because. Was also able to have a good look underneath, All looked good, little rust on the "rear axle", basically the bar connecting the two wheels. no clue what its call and all my previous front wheel driver cars never had the rear wheels connected. I could also see a rust repair on the sil in front of one of the rear wheel. real tatty silicone, steal plate and some brushed on black paint but it survived a finger poke test so no issues for now.

Recently drove it to Birmingham and back (from London) in a day and she is surprising strong on the open road. Hell site more spritely than my 2009 1.4 VW Polo I used to have.

After the service I'm going to fiddle with a K11 instrument cluster I got off Ebay that has a Tacho on it. you wouldn't happen to know how to swop over the Odometer screen, I am trying to keep the original miles on the car, helps for MOT and my conscience. Briefly checked the forum and the general consensus is simply live with your new millage you have been given.

Lastly some wheels, the tires on this care are cracked on the edges, car must have been parked for a while. Would rather just get some much prettier second hand Fiesta allows off Ebay that come with tires, If they fit that is.

Either ways, Love this little car and I'm sure I'm going have many happy hours underneath it and driving around.

That mileage isn't too bad, a service is always the first thing to do with a new car and replace oil and filters everywhere. I just buy bits individually myself, haven't bought any service kits.

With the handbrake, the cables could be stretched or the rear brake shoes could be very worn. I wouldn't worry too much about the back axle if it's just surface rust. Probably a good idea to get that patch welded up properly

You just have to stick with your miles you have now, unless you pay a company to change them for you

Ford wheels won't fit our 4x100 micras

 

[Stickers=+HP]

Isn't the centre bore smaller on the BMWs?

https://www.wheel-size.com/size/bmw/3-series/1990/

https://www.wheel-size.com/size/nissan/micra/2000/#trim-14i-eudm-80

So the BMW wheels wouldn't fit over the Micra's central locating... lip... thingy

Unless they were professionally machined out.

Love the car btw, I miss driving my 1.4

Yeah good thing the bidding ran away from my budget.

Only now am I learning the complexity of wheel sizes. I have signed up to all the Micra related Facebook pages and as soon as something decent comes along I will take a look. I think some preventive maintenance is first on my list. Were you able to remove the CAT and pass MOT on your 1.4. I have noticed the CAT is part of the manifold so a little decat pipe doesn't seem an option. Im all for saving the polar bears but I doubt the its doing anything other than restricting flow seeing as its 18 yrs old. Removed the cat from my 1.4 Polo in South Africa and made a noticeable difference in the throttle response and nicer sound.

 

[Stickers=+HP]

That mileage isn't too bad, a service is always the first thing to do with a new car and replace oil and filters everywhere. I just buy bits individually myself, haven't bought any service kits.

With the handbrake, the cables could be stretched or the rear brake shoes could be very worn. I wouldn't worry too much about the back axle if it's just surface rust. Probably a good idea to get that patch welded up properly

You just have to stick with your miles you have now, unless you pay a company to change them for you

Ford wheels won't fit our 4x100 micras

Thanks, I think I might just go to an auto parts store and get what I need, seeing as I'm going to need to buy some tools and a jack too.
I'm new to the country, are there any particular part stores or brands I should avoid ?