Nissan Pulsar is King of the Hill

“A CAR for the lost generation

? – that was the buzz phrase used when Nissan launched their new Almera in Ardmore, West Waterford in November last year.

The reason Nissan came up with this phrase is because the car, which replaces the Almera, marks their return to the

‘C’ segment after an eight-year absence. In the

‘C’ segment the Japanese company take on old reliables like the Ford Focus, VW Golf, Toyota Auris, Opel Astra and Hyundai i30.

So it’s definitely a competitive segment to get back into and also the sector with the biggest volume of sales in Ireland.

Nissan hope that that they have their finger on the pulse and they are confident that this new hatchback with gain a seven to eight per cent share of the Irish market this year.

Jeanne McGann, Marketing Manager for Nissan, says they hope to recover some of the lost generation with an attractive PCP offer where you can get a new Pulsar for

?¬134 per month. It’s generally accepted that Nissan’s Qashqai is the king when it comes to motoring in Ireland and the Pulsar does share some of the king’s mechanical and electrical parts.

But it’s a much smaller car than the Qashqai and while it’s a big improvement on the old Almera, if you saw the two of them together you would know that they are related.

I drove the 1.5 diesel version and it was very quiet. It was also very comfortable and relaxing to travel in. My back seat passengers commented on the huge amounts of leg and head room they had.

On the drive to Ardmore last November I thought the dash and rest of the interior was too dark. They say first impressions are lasting and four months on I haven’t changed my mind, but then as my son reminded me the interiors of most cars nowadays are all very dark.

The stats from SIMI show that after two months of very brisk trade the Pulsar is in the top 20 of best selling cars in 2015. The version I drove had an excellent reversing camera. Although it’s not an extremely long car it’s always nice to know what’s behind you when reversing. The boot is a decent size and you get a

‘mini’ spare wheel.

Prices start at

?¬19,995 for the 1.2 petrol. However, Nissan expect the 1.5 diesel, which starts at

?¬21,595, to be the big seller in Ireland. Road tax is

?¬180 for diesel versions,

?¬200 for petrol. Every week on these pages I say that prices

‘start from’ and really it is a starting point because there are so many extras that you may want or are coaxed into – metallic paint, fancy alloys, fog lights etc.

Really it’s a marketing ploy, which is adopted by ALL car companies to give you, the consumer, the lowest possible entry level price.

I found the Pulsar to be very lively and the fuel gauge is the slowest moving part; the engine in 1.5 diesel version I drove was very frugal.