MOT

[climbinghutch]

Ok, so 2 months into Micra ownership and i've just put it through its MOT. I like to get it in early so as to have a bit of an overlap etc. Didn't turn out as great as i was expecting!

It failed on a rusted front cross member. From under the front bumper on the passenger side there is a splash gaurd that bolts onto the front cross member and meets the wheel arch liner. If you look behind this with your head in the wheel arch you can just see the back of the front panel and that is where the rust is. From the extent of the rust i would guess that it should not of passed last years MOT but i guess the MOT tester knew what and where to look for on a Micra.

Now my problem is this. Nissan have quoted £600 to repair this! I've looked through the Haynes manual and it doesn't have any info on the front cross member. Can the whole thing be replaced? And if so what is invovled in the removal and replacement?

I know of a local garage that can do welding far cheaper than Nissan so if welding is the only option i guess i'll have to suck it up, but if a replacement is a case of nuts and bolts i can do this myself.

Any advice would be greatly appreicated. Is this a common problem on K11's?

 

[Titch]

Very common problem on the K11 mate.

It can be welded up to, and it's alot cheaper than getting Nissan to do it.

 

[RIK]

it needs to be welded in ,,its not a nut-bolt job ,,dont go to nissan tho

 

[Ben]

its a very common problem with micras. I just replaced mine a few month back and a couple of others have too. For starters, bought the front panel from:

http://www.sel-imperial.co.uk/SelectPart-part?markid=464&modelid=155&makeid=21

Part number 4299 = £40ish

Then when it came i booked it into a welder garage which charged me £175 for welding but some say might be cheaper so cost about £220 all in.

 

[goldstar0011]

I've done 2 full frontend replacements in the past month, recommend this to a member replacement firstly.

If you got a little know how you can do the work yourself and get welded later, mine passed MOT without welds but still get them done.

Remove the bumber, headlights and wings and you can see how it's all put together

 

[climbinghutch]

Thanks for the advise guys, i'll get it booked into my welders tomorrow. Hmm, wish i'd looked behind the splash gaurds when i bought the car! No sign of rust from under the front bumper/ There's a tip for anyone looking to buy a used K11.....