Faults:

I got the car at 129k. It had no history, although seemed in good condition. It needed nothing for the MOT apart from new wipers (£2 off ebay).

Had a wheel bearing at 131k (£50).

Centre/rear exhaust at 132k (£60).

Erm... that was it!

General Comments:

I wish I hadn't sold this car. I've always had German or Swedish cars, and bought this Primera as a stop gap between a 320 and a 9-3 convertible as I had no money. I was embarrassed by it at the start, but after a while it really got under my skin.

The eGT is such an underrated car.

It feels so solid to drive with real feeling from the gearbox as to what the car wants from you.

I discovered, only after buying it, that people rave about the engine being 'bombproof'. It feels like it just might be.

It isn't lightning fast, but the engine is hungry for revs and enjoys being driven hard. It feels 100% quicker than it is.

The handling, for a cheap old saloon was bordering on ludicrous - it corners superbly. I'd go as far as saying it is one of the best handling front wheel drive cars in its class.

It looks very dated now and the interior looks old fashioned, but it is very very comfortable, really easy to drive and has the exact right amount of power and refinement.

Honestly, I usually could never be bothered to write a review about a car, but if you are considering one of these you really need to buy one.

If you find a good one for less than £1,000, I'd say buy it over every other saloon/hatchback in the same price range.

Faults:

Thermostat housing broke when I fixed it on; it's quite a weak part so beware tightening it up too much. It's difficult to get a good seal when fixing it on, use lashings of liquid gasket and leave it to set for a few hours.

Aftermarket thermostats are no good for this engine, you need to get a proper Nissan one otherwise it'll underheat.

General Comments:

I bought the car in September 2008 for £400 with MOT test and road tax until May 2009.

The engine is a 1974cc naturally aspirated diesel, which makes a mere 74bhp, which isn't enough for a reasonably big, modern car. Acceleration is very poor, and it gives little confidence when overtaking or pulling out of junctions. Once up to speed it goes fairly well though, and just about cracks 100mph on the flat (confirmed by my sat nav).

Even with my right foot to the floor much of the time, it manages 45MPG (6.3litres/100km).

Inside it's quite dark and gloomy, but comfortable and roomy apart from limited headroom in the back. The boot is huge.

When new the Primera was considered one of the finest driver's cars in the family car class, and mine still drives superbly 14 years after it was fresh out of the showroom.

The ride is a little bit jittery, but the handling is sublime. It has hardly any roll at all and you can go into corners quickly without drama. With wider tyres than the puny 175-section efforts that are on it now, I imagine it'd be even better.

Apart from little blobs of rust here and there, the bodywork is bearing up well for its years.

Being a 1990s 'special edition' it was covered in cheesy stickers - they were quickly dispatched into the bin.

Faults:

Had to replace the spark plugs, leads, and distributor cap when I bought the car.

Cracked windscreen, this seems to be a really common fault.

General Comments:

I've only owned the car for a week and have only covered 500 miles so can't really comment on reliability of this model.

Driving experience of the car is fantastic, particularly for a car that's 12 years old now, handling is amazing, my last car was a micra, but I've driven a lot of newer cars that don't handle nearly as well as this.

Lots of equipment including 4x electric windows, electric ariel, 6 disc CD changer, remote central locking, alarm, immobiliser and alloy wheels.

Performance is pretty good, doesn't feel as quick as it is, I thought 150bhp would give a bit more of a shove in the back than it does, very pleased with it none the less particularly since I paid £900 for a 1 owner from new full service history 70,000 mile car!

I did have a slight misfire when idling, but this was corrected by changing the plugs, leads, rotor arm and distributor cap.

The insurance group of 15 is a little steep though, I have 9 years no claims, and an advanced driving licence and I'm 31 years old, I'm paying £250 fully comprehensive.

I find the leather seats very comfortable and supportive, although it probably takes time to get used to the hard ride from the sports suspension, although I like it!

I would definitely recommend this car if you're after a spacious, reliable (based on previous Nissan), fast cheap car.

Take your time when looking and you should be able to find a good one.