Problem: how to stop this becoming a protracted whinge about Nissan Customer Services. Solution: not available. You see, Nissan’s appeal is in its customer service ability, which is, after all, the bedrock of all good businesses. But on this occasion it failed in spectacular style. I booked a test-drive through Nissan UK’s website and waited… and waited… and waited… Eventually — three generations, five beards and a minor ice-age later — came the centralised customer-service person who sounded as if she’d been shipped in from Japan for the job, who called me to arrange dates. This was around Christmas time, so it was a case of choosing a date when the good folk of Nissan UK were disposed towards getting back to work. Two ‘phone-calls later, we arrived at 27th December. So far, so glacial. To cut a long story a little less long, come December 27th, I went to Nissan West London, having had to find its location on the internet (despite having asked the cheery oriental Customer Service agent to email me directions). Imagine, dear reader, my disappointment at discovering, when I arrived, that the booking had not. Not only that, but my name was not on their system. However, I was undaunted and insisted on a test-drive anyway, although the car which I had booked (the Micra Sport 4-door) was nowhere to be seen. Instead, I was bundled into a 2-door of indeterminate specification… To be honest, the Micra is not exactly a bad car. True, it looks like a particularly ugly person mid-sneeze, from the front, and merely work-a-day from the side, but it has all the Nissan hall-marks of reliability and build-quality. The standard car is well-equipped also, making it quite good value for money. I say “quite good”, because this does not factor in depreciation; the car loses half its value almost as soon as you drive it off the forecourt. This caused another bone of contention — this time with our friendly salesman. When I asked him about depreciation (you can take it that I didn’t learn about it from him), he said that “if there were a war tomorrow, it would be worthless anyway”. Where do they get these people? Mind you, he wasn’t much cop on the test-drive either, because I complained that the steering-wheel was blocking my view of the speedometer, but he didn’t tell me the steering-column could be tilted and so obviate the problem. All in all, it’s a good car, but let down by the organisation around it. In a straight fight between this and a Mini, the Mini wins every time. Category:Home › Autos • Will the trend toward economy-size car models lead Americans back to buying smaller-sized cars? — part 2 • You should never use after-market auto parts when maintaining or fixing your car • Should a new car be rust-proofed? • Will the trend toward economy-size car models lead Americans back to buying smaller-sized cars? — part 1 • Five safest cars in North America • How to ensure your teen drives safely after getting a license • Pros and cons of using an hydrogen generator for your car • DIY automotive maintenance: How to change the oil
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