Faults:

Left side rear shock absorber snapped (replaced both sides, usual when a car has this many kilometers behind it).

Left side drive shaft snapped around 258000 km.

General Comments:

Performance is not very good with the 74 kW engine, especially because low rpm torque is weak and gear ratios are long. It wakes nicely around 4000 rpm, so relatively quick acceleration is possible, if you put in a low enough gear.

In city driving, it's not very agile because of the large turning radius, aforementioned weak low rpm torque, and long gear ratios.

In highway driving, it's very stable and not noisy.

Headlights give out lot of light, and the pattern is good, concentrating light around the edges and right side.

Reliability: I'd would say about average or slightly better for a car of this age and km.

SLX equipment level is quite generous for year 1997: 2 airbags, 4 power windows, heated power mirrors, heated seats + optional A/C and cruise.

Fuel consumption is good: about 6.5 to 7.5 l/km.

Liftback body style would be superior to the sedan, as even though you can fold the rear seat also in sedan, the gap between the trunk and cabin will remain tight + there is a rear window wiper in the liftback.

Faults:

ABS lights on constantly.

Security system has no power going to it.

General Comments:

Seems very nice, haven't had it very long yet, but it does go extremely well after 4000rpm. It seems good on fuel also for a 2.0, but if anyone can help with the problems I've listed ,it would be a great help as I am struggling to get answers.

Generally I've heard good reports about this car, so I hope to sort the problems.

Faults:

Nothing - it's been pretty sweet really.

General Comments:

The motor is pretty good, really economical when driven smooth/slow, but has great over taking performance that will surprise most people in it - so it's great for long/medium distance commutes.

Also, it can easy carry 5 people as it's a big sedan, and the torque of the motor means it does not struggle.

Faults:

Drive-shaft snapped 2 weeks after I bought the car.

Failed MOT on two faulty ABS sensors (Not cheap to replace!!)

General Comments:

Bought the SRI as I couldn't afford the insurance on a GT. I was pleasantly surprised with the power and handling of the car; most of my previous cars been 5dr hatchbacks also. The Primera is the best car so far!!

Fantastic around corners in the dry and in the wet, if you have good tyres.

Loads of room in the cabin (I'm 6'4" and all my friends are 6' plus, and there is plenty of room for all!!!)

Boot-space massive (enough for 16 crates of beer at least (this I have tested!) )

Fuel economy not fantastic, but that could be the way I drive! When taking it easy I get about 30-32 mpg about town and about 40 mpg on the motorway.

Faults:

An important, but relatively unknown common fault is the drive shafts snapping at 140-150 thousand miles. Very expensive dealer replace, go to a parts company and it will be a lot cheaper!

NOTE: This is the reason there are many Primera GTs in the scrap-yards without driver's side drive shafts! I paid £70 for mine inc. delivery and VAT, the dealer wanted near £500, go figure.

Clutch is becoming slightly soft, but after some pretty hard miles (track/long distance) that is to be expected (157,000 miles on the clock).

Front multi-link bushings started to all wear out, however the links are usually the same price as the bushings (in total) and can be found on most part companies inventories.

Tyres do not last a long time at all (Falken soft compound, 6 months!), but that is to be expected from this car.

Small amount of corrosion under the spoiler as most Primeras have, black vinyl strip on the outer edge of the B pillar has peeled away : (

General Comments:

Essentially an evolution of the Bluebird, the Primera is actually quite a special package in an otherwise bland shell (although the phase 3 (P11) GT looks rather eye catching IMHO).

The suspension layout was all new and a very very good match of some of Nissan's best road suspension at the time. Rear is a multi-link semi-independent beam axle, and the front is a multi-link / double wishbone hybrid.

The suspension gives the Primera the BEST handling in its class, much better than the 405 (which handles very well indeed) and the Carina E GTi (the superstrut was designed for a McPherson 'upgrade' instead of having a dedicated sport suspension).

This is really a driver's car for those that require 4 seats. A LOT of room in it for its small-ish shell, and fantastic front end grip. If you know what you are doing, then please enjoy the lift-off oversteer responsibly :)

Interior is actually quite well designed for a japanese car, yet if you spent the time to trim it and colour code, you would have a fantastic interior to behold!

I only have two problems with this car in general.

1) The factory CD changer uses a Nissan specific plug, which is a pain in the ass if you want to put a new head unit in; get the electronics kit out or look for an adapter.

2) It is VERY under-powered. The drive is excellent, but the GT model only produces 150 BHP. This isn't terrible and the car can still surprise most drivers, yet the 0-60 time comes in at OVER 8 seconds (do not believe anything else), and it is definitely not as quick as the faster cars in the class (405, Carina GTi, Mondeo V6 etc...)

However, it seems Nissan set the engine up for mid range torque and not high power; the engine is a fantastic design, and tuning companies have had very similar success to that of the Vauxhall/Cosworth C20XE unit, so do not despair!

Just get a good head and new cams all mapped, and you can easily reach 170/180 bhp with a really good job done!

Either that, or put an SR20VE in...

Summary: Fantastic, love it, hate the lack of shove.

Get low profile tyres with 17s or so, some grooved discs (standard ones fade very quickly), and perhaps some shocks/springs (standards are very good, but you *can* get better), and tune the thing to about 180 BHP, and you will never need another car again.