Nissan Note (2013 - 2017) 1.2 DiG-S Tekna 5d Owner Review

I think these on the whole get a really bad review from supposed experts. I came from the old version 1.6 to the new 1.2 supercharged and while it's not great when the engine is cold (the ECU basically disengages the supercharger after you pull away in 2nd and 3rd until the engine reaches 60 degrees I assume for emissions or economy or to stop over fuelling) once it's warmed up a bit it's far more refined than the old engine with a decent kick of torque in the mid range and I actually find it's very good on a motorway with high gearing. Generally a relaxing car to drive, I don't find it noisy at all especially after fitting decent tyres on the front and the suspension set up is about right giving excellent ride quality and good steering feel. Brilliant on fuel 46pmg in and around town and easily 60+ on long motorway runs. Only a few complaints. 2nd gear is way to high. You have a difference of over 1000 rpm between 1st and 2nd which means unlike most cars you are using 1st gear a lot as the ECU likes to cut the supercharger in 2nd gear below about 1500rpm so it basically goes nowhere unless you floor it and override the eco biased engine software but it's far better in higher gears where you can happily accellerate from about 1200 revs in 4th say at about 30mph. Also you have to make it do things, just a gentle throttle increase has little or no effect. You need a big press on the pedal to wake it up then back off again.The engine is capable of much more but it's held back by the programming to achive the magic 99g/km CO2 zero road tax (which I do like as it's a stick it to the government for once) Does NOT like supermarket fuel which makes all those problems worse and reduces economy I find Shell is best but surprisingly using V power or other super unleased makes no difference at all whereas the old 1.6 it was a noticable improvment on regular Problems wise very little has been 100% reliable, no warning lights etc starts 1st time every time even after being left for a week in the snow. I did have the dreaded creaky suspension which manifested itself during very cold weather but has been OK since the new bushes were fitted under warranty, does sometimes still do it when cold and you go over say a humped bridge or very high speed bump but it's only a minor annoyance. Aircon needed to be re gased at about 3 1/2 years which is apparently normal and is a ridiculous price now thanks to the EU. Both front discs and pads needed replacing at 38000 which again is apparently about average, likely due to there being drum brakes on the rear but not horrendously expensive as they are not big. Few other little niggles but all sorted under warranty and quickly. Servicing very reasonable even using main dealer which when you consider you get free full breakdown cover thrown in for free makes it even better value saving £80-100