K11 specifications and help please!

R

russ

Hi everyone,

I'm looking to buy a Micra within the next few weeks. I know I want a K11 but not sure on what options I've got in terms of engines etc.

I would like some spec info on the K11 micras for example what engines and bhp are available and any particular models to avoid or go for?

I am used to driving bigger cars having a 20v volvo and a straight six supra but with the price of petrol and the cost of doing 70 miles a day in my current car compared to a Micra I've realised I am burning away money I don't have.

I don't want anything really really slow but understand that the micras aren't built for speed. How fast is the 1.0 litre and is the 1.3 better? Are there bhp variations for the 1.3 as this is the engine size I am considering more than the 1.0

Can you really get over 40mpg in the 1.3 micra? Are the facelift k11's better?

I have about £1,000 to spend but the less the better. Any things I should look for when buying, problems etc?

Thanks in advance.

Russ
 
hey,
the 1.3 micra are 75bhp while the 1.0L are 55bhp! the facelift version had an extra bhp though!
there was a 1.4 made at 84bhp!

with a manifold, exhaust and intake system you can create a micra with bhp of around 100bhp which then makes the micra quite a fast little rocket!! then cams and a re-map and then its pretty insane!

you've driven some awesome / powerful cars so if anything definatly in my opinion get a 1.3! you wont regret it! these can be picked up quite cheaply but major problems are rust on the front crossmember and throttle body problems!!!

the "super s" and "SR's" are the top spec models which include most mod cons and sportier bumpers!!!

if you have alook though some of the k11 blogs or pics ull find some very nice unique micras

good luck!
napster
 
Thanks for the info. I've been looking and there aren't that many 1.3s around. You can get a 1.0 litre on a v or w plate for under £1k!!
Surely there are ways to make the 1.0 engine pull a bit better. Do you think its better to get a newer say W plate 1.0 litre micra or an older say P reg 1.3? for the same amount of money?

Napster said:
hey,
the 1.3 micra are 75bhp while the 1.0L are 55bhp! the facelift version had an extra bhp though!
there was a 1.4 made at 84bhp!

with a manifold, exhaust and intake system you can create a micra with bhp of around 100bhp which then makes the micra quite a fast little rocket!! then cams and a re-map and then its pretty insane!

you've driven some awesome / powerful cars so if anything definatly in my opinion get a 1.3! you wont regret it! these can be picked up quite cheaply but major problems are rust on the front crossmember and throttle body problems!!!

the "super s" and "SR's" are the top spec models which include most mod cons and sportier bumpers!!!

if you have alook though some of the k11 blogs or pics ull find some very nice unique micras

good luck!
napster
Click to expand...

Craig said:
What volvo did you have?
Click to expand...

I still have it. Its going to be sold now actually. Its an 850 GLT. Its the 2.0 litre 20v 5 cylinder pulls 143bhp if my memory serves me well. Its a saloon and absolutely lovely car. Its in brill condition as well its just too expensive to run. Less mpgs than my 3.0 supra!!
 
You could do the same mods to the 1.0 engine as the 1.3, but you wanted economy right? Stick with the standard 1.3 as it's a noticable difference over the 1.0.

Also, Super S and SR refers to pre facelift models. The facelift, around T reg and onwards have a few mod cons like Air conditioning, power steering, remote locking, and they're probably not rust boxes on wheels like some of the older K11 models.
 
early 1.3's can be had for £500, although they may be slightly ropey however if you buy a good one it will keep running for ages.

Mike
 
Thanks for all your advice. Looks like ideally I'd have a 1.3 facelift but trying to find one for around a grand is difficult. Maybe I will look for a mint SR.
 
Thanks everyone who's answered. I'll keep you posted with what I end up with in the next few weeks. I've been thinking, how funny it would be to mod up a micra so it pulls 200bhp and does a quicker 0-60 than the supe I had......
 
Wrenchable said:
Isn't that "had created"??
Click to expand...

well "had" would mean they did make one in the past but is now no longer???

but it is having an engine rebuild at the moment i thought and be back on the road so "have" was a better choice of wording would you not agree?
 
russ said:
I still have it. Its going to be sold now actually. Its an 850 GLT. Its the 2.0 litre 20v 5 cylinder pulls 143bhp if my memory serves me well. Its a saloon and absolutely lovely car. Its in brill condition as well its just too expensive to run. Less mpgs than my 3.0 supra!!
Click to expand...



Ha - you should try the T5 then!
You on the VOC?
 
I've got a 1998 ("S" reg, pre facelift) 1.3 GX which comes well spec'd - electric windows, power steering, drivers side airbag, central locking etc, in fact the only things it lacks are alloys & a rev counter. To be honest it's a nice little car, surprisingly quick off the mark (though I don't think that you could actually call it "fast") & fun to drive - it'll happily sit at 70/80 on the motorway. However 99.9% of my driving is in town/crawling to work/stuck in rush hour traffic & it returns approx 35 mpg in these conditions. Not sure if that's good or bad for a 1.3 Micra but it's a lot better than the 20/25mpg that I used to get in my old Audi quattro - I still miss the Audi though despite the expense of running it!

Also insurance for the Micra is much cheaper - sub £200 for me though I await my renewal quote with interest - & road tax is cheaper too.

I probably paid too much for it, but I desperately needed a cheaper car (now that petrol prices have gone into orbit :() & it came with 12 months test & tax. It had a rusty front crossmember (like many many Micra's have - an MOT failure & something you MUST check on any potential purchase) & had to have this welded to pass the MOT. Apart from a sticky gearchange - which didn't show up on the test drive & which I've mostly cured by taking the linkage apart & putting it back together with huge amounts of grease evrywhere - I've not had any problems with it at all. It starts first time, everything works (apart from the gearchange sometimes!), it's fun to drive & economical too. The reliability of Micra's is legendary & the build quality seems good too, it's nigh on 10 years old & nothing squeaks or rattles in the cabin yet!

There's not a lot to dislike about it really :)
 
Thats very helpful info, thanks! :grinning:

pollymog said:
I've got a 1998 ("S" reg, pre facelift) 1.3 GX which comes well spec'd - electric windows, power steering, drivers side airbag, central locking etc, in fact the only things it lacks are alloys & a rev counter. To be honest it's a nice little car, surprisingly quick off the mark (though I don't think that you could actually call it "fast") & fun to drive - it'll happily sit at 70/80 on the motorway. However 99.9% of my driving is in town/crawling to work/stuck in rush hour traffic & it returns approx 35 mpg in these conditions. Not sure if that's good or bad for a 1.3 Micra but it's a lot better than the 20/25mpg that I used to get in my old Audi quattro - I still miss the Audi though despite the expense of running it!

Also insurance for the Micra is much cheaper - sub £200 for me though I await my renewal quote with interest - & road tax is cheaper too.

I probably paid too much for it, but I desperately needed a cheaper car (now that petrol prices have gone into orbit :() & it came with 12 months test & tax. It had a rusty front crossmember (like many many Micra's have - an MOT failure & something you MUST check on any potential purchase) & had to have this welded to pass the MOT. Apart from a sticky gearchange - which didn't show up on the test drive & which I've mostly cured by taking the linkage apart & putting it back together with huge amounts of grease evrywhere - I've not had any problems with it at all. It starts first time, everything works (apart from the gearchange sometimes!), it's fun to drive & economical too. The reliability of Micra's is legendary & the build quality seems good too, it's nigh on 10 years old & nothing squeaks or rattles in the cabin yet!

There's not a lot to dislike about it really :)
Click to expand...

Craig said:
Ha - you should try the T5 then!
You on the VOC?
Click to expand...

Hi mate, yeah I'm a member of the VOC - proved very helpful with a few problems I had but now all seems cured. The T5s are amazing but fuel consumption (especially as I'd want to be driving around on boost all the time) would be silly.

At the end of the day, unless you can afford to not worry about spending on petrol, why have a car thats burning money you don't have. I love the volvo even though its only the 2.0L but every time I am at the pumps filling it up I ask myself why am I giving money away? I could do 3x the mileage in a small economical car for the same price.

Wish I didn't have to think like this but I'd really rather use that money for a house deposit.
 
russ said:
Wish I didn't have to think like this but I'd really rather use that money for a house deposit.
Click to expand...

wooohhhh....hold on there Russ!!!! there is no problem saving money for house! im doing that now! well have been for awhile!!!

you can have as much fun i would say (although not been in many volvo's) with a 100bhp micra!!!! still econimcal on petrol or at least cheaper than volvo tank and still have fun!!!!
 
Napster said:
wooohhhh....hold on there Russ!!!! there is no problem saving money for house! im doing that now! well have been for awhile!!!

you can have as much fun i would say (although not been in many volvo's) with a 100bhp micra!!!! still econimcal on petrol or at least cheaper than volvo tank and still have fun!!!!
Click to expand...

Without a doubt! Thats wot I mean. Thats why I was looking for a car like the micra coz the 1.3 is not too bad on 0-60 compared to other cars of similar size and price and is very economical. I'm spending £20 and getting around 80 miles for that in my volvo. Don't know what this is in mpg but its bloody expensive.

Just looking for a cheaper to run car but with a respectable bhp and the 1.3 micra seems to be ideal. I rekkon I'd be saving tonnes on fuel.
 
in my opinion, that to enjoy owning / driving a bigger / powerful car would be difficult for me!!!
reasons:
to large / long for a parking space
heavy to control (some)
tax is more over 1.6
insurance is more (depending on age / NCB)
petrol is more
reputation of some vehicals are slammed (but a micra's a granny car according to people)
not many people in 4x4 indicat, not having ago at anyone!!!! (2nd time today ive said this, whats going on??)

when you can have loads of fun in a little car! that is cheap yet so much fun to drive??

someones going to argue with me:down:

Russ: one question if you dont mind me asking......"why a micra" rather than "VTS" or "GTI" etc?? or "civic"....still jap?? i know u said cheaper everything etc, but not alot in it some times....just looks and power??
 
Napster said:
in my opinion, that to enjoy owning / driving a bigger / powerful car would be difficult for me!!!
reasons:
to large / long for a parking space
heavy to control (some)
tax is more over 1.6
insurance is more (depending on age / NCB)
petrol is more
reputation of some vehicals are slammed (but a micra's a granny car according to people)
not many people in 4x4 indicat, not having ago at anyone!!!! (2nd time today ive said this, whats going on??)

when you can have loads of fun in a little car! that is cheap yet so much fun to drive??

someones going to argue with me :down:
Click to expand...

I agree with some of what you say but before the Micra I drove a 1989 Audi coupe quattro - it was streets ahead of the Micra in terms of performance, handling, solidity, comfort, looks, practicality (it could seat 4/5 in comfort with a bigger boot), fun etc. If I had the choice, & was travelling any distance, then I'd choose the Audi over the Micra any day of the week. However if you take into consideration the fact that I rarely make any long(ish) journeys (& if I do I can, hopefully, borrow my girlfriends C200 Merc) then the Audi became a luxury I just couldn't afford to run - hence me selling it & buying the Micra. I miss it & if I could afford to run it then I'd have another coupe quattro in a heartbeat.

In fact all the cars I've owned for any length of time have been bigger than the Micra - some were more fun to drive/enjoyable to own than the Micra, some weren't. I've owned only two small cars for any significant length of time these were a Midas Bronze (mini based) kit car that I ran as my only car for 9 years & a Suzuki SC100 Whizz Kid that I owned for a couple of years before that. The Midas was smaller than the Micra & much less practical with only 2 seats (though it was a hatchback with a surprisingly large boot) but much faster (especially with a 1275 in it), much better handling & way more fun. On the downside it was noisy, uncomfortable & knackering (hardly any suspension travel & only 4 gears) on any sort of long run! I miss that car too but I'm not sure I'd have another as I'm a bit old for such things now! The SC100 was a blast too - quite nippy (only 1000cc though), rear engined (mini Porsche 911 anyone?) but with no boot (unless you folded the useless rear seats down) & not much more practicality - very rusty too unfortunately which is why there are so few left on the roads!

Anyway I ended my original post by saying that there wasn't much to dislike about the Micra. Well I still stand by this but I should probably add that whilst I do like the car, it doesn't exactly set my pulse racing either ..... not like the Suzuki, Midas, Audi or Lancia Delta turbo's did.

I should also probably add that my Micra is completely & utterly standard (bar a pretty redundant strut brace!) & I've never driven a modified one so I can't really comment on how those drive.

I can see why they are popular with the old & young alike (reliable, economical, cheap to buy, insure & tax, good to drive) but I don't think they're a particularly exciting car which, to be fair, is not what they were designed to be in the first place :)
 
pollymog
its really tricky to answer such a question as "what cars better" because everyone has a different opinion, have different tastes, different styles, different feelings. its down to the person in my opinion!!! the cars a car.....same just different engines and colour etc where as a person, so many differences from each other!!! thats why agreeing on something like this couldnt happen!!!

experiances usuall persuade a vote..........rust everywhere....dont buy it etc!!! electrics always failed....dont buy....yet someone would have had an experience...in the same car with no problems what so ever!!!

its not down to who you believe or he / she is lying or making a mole out of a mole hill etc....its more........believe what "you" want to.....take it with a pinch of salt and ignor it...or except that some has had a bad experience and just expresssing them selves!!!

some people want luxury, some bhp, some handling and the "go kart" feel!! nothing wrong with that, but factors like spending unwanted money is something im not inclined to always do!!

ive had nothing but "pure excitement" owning and driving a very fast and fairly good looking micra!!! nothin can change that!!


sorry
 
You've raised some valid points, I considered a micra because:

Excellent MPG
1.3 has a respectable 0-60 for such a small engine so would pull me, missus and kid ok
small so easy to park (you wouldn't believe how awkward it is sometimes trying to park a volvo 850 in some of these extremely small multi storey car parks etc)
Reliability tends to be excellent
Prices are fairly reasonable
Japanese (and after owning a corolla g6, yaris, supra and then a ford I can see why Jap is the way to go)
Lower tax band
Unless its modded its a car people aren't going to notice (no problems with jelious people scratching it etc)
Insurance is cheaper
Parts and servicing tend to be cheap compared to cars I've had
Thats quite a few plus points!

I have considered other cars, I have been looking at an sr corolla 1.6 but then the mpg isn't very good. I've also started to look at the middle of the range Almera they seem very good for the prices you can pick one up.

Another main reason for the micra choice is that my girlfriend who hasn't passed yet wants to get insured on it so that makes a big difference to the cars we can choose.

Napster said:
in my opinion, that to enjoy owning / driving a bigger / powerful car would be difficult for me!!!
reasons:
to large / long for a parking space
heavy to control (some)
tax is more over 1.6
insurance is more (depending on age / NCB)
petrol is more
reputation of some vehicals are slammed (but a micra's a granny car according to people)
not many people in 4x4 indicat, not having ago at anyone!!!! (2nd time today ive said this, whats going on??)

when you can have loads of fun in a little car! that is cheap yet so much fun to drive??

someones going to argue with me:down:

Russ: one question if you dont mind me asking......"why a micra" rather than "VTS" or "GTI" etc?? or "civic"....still jap?? i know u said cheaper everything etc, but not alot in it some times....just looks and power??
Click to expand...
 
Sorry Napster, I wasn't trying to imply that the Micra's a poor car (it most certainly isn't) or that you hadn't had, & aren't still having, fun in yours. I like mine but of the cars I've had, & I've had a fair few, it ranks as "good fun" rather "great fun".

I suppose you could say a car's a car but I'm not sure you could compare, for instance, a Lamborghini Miura to a Trabant. Both are cars, both have 4 wheels (5 if you count the steering wheel!) but as far as I'm concerned that's where the similarity ends & I know which one I'd opt for given the choice.

I'm not trying to slate the Micra! I like it, I'd recommend it to anyone who wants a reliable car & it's a lot more fun to drive than I thought it was going to be - but compared to some of the cars I've had it's not as much fun. I think that it's an excellent choice as an enjoyable, economical alternative to a enjoyable, but not economical, Volvo ..... which is what Russ wants I think.

:)
 
Pollymog, i know you where not implying anything :blush: i know what you mean. every car has a "class" of its own that gets a person really "excited" (if thats a good word)
we where both just stating an opinion to a question that was posted. nothing wrong with that!!

anybody could post......."why get any car at all" its going to have faults, problems, little things that get on your nerves!!!! but thats life!!! deal with....or get rid of it.....by moding it etc!!! then get another car and find more faults with it!!

theory is.........have a laugh.......get on with the day.....instead of making a fuss over an arm rest being in the way everyday.....knock it.....and laugh!!!! ull feel better lol!!!!

anyway......im not disagreeing at all........i'd love another car!!!! infact im after a CRX Vtec!!! but not just yet!!! im saving all my money for moving on in life......housing etc!!! and by driving my micra im saving loads!!! plus having fun while doing so!!! im happy!!!

sorry again
 

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