What car for daughter about to learn to drive?

Daughter turns 17 next month.

We have my Dad’s old Nissan Micra Dci (2010) on the driveway, which has been sat there largely unused, and latterly SORN’d for most of the last year. Plan had been to let her have that as a starter car.

However, it’ll likely need a bit spent on it (flatbed truck to the garage, then MOT, new battery and a service as a minimum) to get it up and running. Dad had it pretty well maintained up to the point he could no longer drive, but I’d imagine there may well be other bills to come.

The alternative would be to buy another banger! We’d not be able to spend more than £1000 or so … but might be worth doing if we can find something cheap to run and well looked after? But, is a small petrol likely to be cheaper to run and insure than a bigger old diesel?

I think my gut is to spend a bit on the car we have rather than taking a punt on something else old … but just wanting a reality check from STW.

Probably better getting the Micra fixed as you know it’s history rather than buy some tatty other car. You’ll struggle to get something decent and insurable for £1k. Aygo/C1’s in that bracket will be rough. Looking more like £2k plus

Get the Micra going.

How long since it was actually running? You may be able to save a good deal of cash by getting it running on the drive then taking it to the garage for the MOT and service.

If you spent a grand on a car then you would be buying something that would probably have some hefty bills coming. You already have a car which has been well maintained for at least a portion of its life so to me that one is a no brainer.

You may be able to save a good deal of cash by getting it running on the drive

This was my hope. But I have questions! Battery is dead, can’t unlock the car (even just using the key in the lock), to then get in the car, to open the bonnet to charge the battery.

– is there a way of popping the bonnet from under/on front of the car?

– is it safe (for the engine) to just start the engine, which hasn’t been run in probably 6 months or more?

You can drive a car to a booked MOT.

Why won’t the key open the door lock? Is it the right key? Has it got a lock barrel on th passenger side or the boot?

Once your in, stick the battery on charge, it might not hold but it’ll get you going

Check the engine has oil in it, the expansion tank is filled, and that the auxiliary belts are one piece, and just start it. Don’t overthink it. It’s 6 months parked Nissan, not a vintage Italian V12 barn find.

What you have available sounds ideal for a learner, you’d be mad not to spend £300 getting it on the road even if its just to get her up to her licence then change it.

We had to get my partner’s mother’s old Fiat, I just charged the battery, turned the key and it started.

It’s worth a go

Dad had it pretty well maintained up to the point he could no longer drive, but I’d imagine there may well be other bills to come.

I’d say better the devil you know, it probably might just need a new battery and a service…

Micras are actually really good little cars.

I drive a 2012 micra so I might be biased, they are deeply boring and unfasionable, but I can’t really fault it, its a great little runner that costs peanuts to run as long as you keep on top of things…mines a 1.2 petrol though, not a diesel so I dunno about that side of things…

It’s probably worth 2k absolute max, if you are lucky…so getting rid of it and spending a grand on a new ‘unknown quantity’…? Not a bet i would take, if the current car just needs a bit of TLC.

– is it safe (for the engine) to just start the engine, which hasn’t been run in probably 6 months or more?

Yes but don’t rev the nuts off it, let it idle for a good while as most of the lubricating oil will have sunk down into the sump.

can’t unlock the car (even just using the key in the lock), to then get in the car, to open the bonnet to charge the battery

Is it the hidden lock on the passenger side you are using? This should still work if the battery is dead, but I guess it could be seized. WD40 in the keyhole would be a starting point.

So is it a late K12 or an early K13?

Either are pretty reliable units and given it was well looked after I doubt it would take more than £200 to get it back on the road.

There is a reason you see so many Pizza/Indian delivery drivers using pretty much every iteration of Micra’s.

It’s a perfect first car for pretty much anyone. Where are you based? If its NW I’m quite happy to travel a bit to give you a hand.

Use something that will be insurable once she passes her test  – there is a bit of a bump between an accompanied driver and someone flying free….

I’d put the money into the Micra to get that on the road – they are pretty robust tbh

I’m surprised this is even a question – ditch a motor with a known history that needs possibly just a battery and an MOT (and a quick check + oil change) or some random heap from autotrader/ebay?  Lol + wink!

Battery for a car that size should be under £50. Try the key in all the doors (one might work) or penetrating oil and a wait. I had to use a set of mole wrenches to turn the emergency key on my 10 year old car when the battery went – I don’t think a key had ever been put in the lock before.

Then drive to the not, see what the cost is and make an informed choice

To unlock the car, t’internet’s suggestion is to get under it with a battery charger, attach the positive clamp to the big red wire going to the starter motor, and the negative to the chassis/engine earth strap/etc. Can give enough power to unlock.

Or, start poking through the grille, or up from underneath, to release the bonnet catch.

Then 100% keep and run the Micra, it’s the perfect learner/starter car.

I’m surprised this is even a question – ditch a motor with a known history that needs possibly just a battery and an MOT (and a quick check + oil change) or some random heap from autotrader/ebay? Lol + wink!

Yeah I think you’d be lucky to sell it for more than £1500, in retrospect.. especially if its sold as not running…and to buy another car for a grand, doesn’t sound sensible as you will likely be buying more trouble in this price range.

And it’s a Jap car…100% just get into it and put a new battery in, and then see where you are…£50 for a new battery is a bit optimistic, IMO, you’re probably looking more like £90 for a decent quality bat.

Is it beige too? Can’t think of much that would be any cheaper for a new driver to insure.

I recently had to revive the spare vehicle at work when my pickup failed. That was a Freelander that was green* from being left in the corner of a yard, been spare for a year and only moved in January to be MoT’d. Charged the battery for an hour and been using it since with just knackered central locking, but it probably came from the factory like that ?

*turns out that it’s actually blue

Find a way in, must be a FB group for it.
Charge battery and new battery in key if it has one. Then just book it for MoT with a bit of hard breaking on your way to clean up the brakes.

+1 mattyfez

Deffo worth trying to get it running, even if a new battery is needed.  If you decide to sell at least it’s a runner.

But a car probably worth keeping when it’s running again.

£1000 will get you – unless you are very savvy and/or lucky – a whole heap of misery, so might be best sticking with the car you already have.

Here you go for the battery https://www.tayna.co.uk/car-batteries/exide/eb602/

Brilliant responses everyone – cheers.

I don’t think the locks are seized, I’m just assuming that the central locking is powered by the battery, which, being dead, isn’t powering the central locking. Will have a more robust investigation this weekend.

A close friend of mine has her Mum’s old Micra, which is a ‘T’-reg/1999, so it’s a quarter of a century old! The last time it was MOT’d I think it cost her £50…

It’s red, and rather faded, but the damn thing just keeps on going, she works in the Talybont YHA, so it gets her backwards and forwards from home, which is near Bath, but she used to drive it up to Kendal and back. Great little car extraordinarily reliable, and easy to drive.
Mostly analog and mechanical, so easy to source cheap spares, and cheap to fix, the modern equivalent to the Morris Minor I reckon.

Can you not take her out in your car? Not sure I see the point in sorting out a dedicated car just for someone to learn in.

@hardtailonly

I’m just assuming that the central locking is powered by the battery, which, being dead, isn’t powering the central locking

All cars can be opened using a physical key which will be inside the remote key if that makes sense?

Can you not take her out in your car? Not sure I see the point in sorting out a dedicated car just for someone to learn in.

Not really. The family car is a Ford Grand Tourneo Connect (small van/7-seater)

Don’t bother until she’s passed her test, far safer & better to let just use an Instructor.

Did this for our 3 sons, and all had passed their tests before they turned 18.

Once she’s passed, give her the Micra.

Don’t bother until she’s passed her test, far safer & better to let just use an Instructor.

You would think so but time on a learner policy counts towards driving alone and personal experience demonstrated that an extra month (he failed test 1) knocked around £200 off the annual premium of the ‘qualified’ driver.