A few micra/march related questions

hi there from new zealand, im new to this great site!
i have a few questions regarding these little beasts.

at the moment i own an s13 nissan 200sx, which im looking to sell (as a recent rise in petrol prices has made it near impossible to afford the drive to uni and back every day).

i was looking around for something cheap, economical and a little different.
a nissan march would fit the bill nicely i think, but i need to know a few things first:
1- for economy, potential (minor) modifications and reliability, would it be ideal that i look into a march with the cvt gearbox over the manual type?

2- does the 1.3l motor come out with both manual and cvt options in the 2 door model?

3- will 15" rims fit under those little guards without too much hassle? and does the tyre wall rub on the inner guards or shocks when tyres over 195/45/15 are fitted?

4- in regards to lowering, would i have the option of simply installing lowering springs instead of going all out and getting a proper shock/spring combo?

5- would removing the 2 catalytic converters and installing an aftermarket exhaust (e.g 2" - 2.5") make the car very loud, and will it compromise economy very much?

thankyou for your time!

Hi Butters

1. The CVT 'box is very hard to get parts for, however you're from New Zealand so that should lower the costs a fair bit. I'd suggest get the manual as its slightly more economical and powerful.

2. The CVT option was only avaliable on the 5 door SLX, whereas the 2 door models are known as the LX (base model) and Super S (sunroof etc..)

3. 15's will not rub even with 195/50's on if you have the right offset. I had 15's running 195/50 with an offset of +40 before I got my new wheels and they were perfect, they sat 3mm out of the guards and never rubbed.

4. You can just lower your car using only springs however this will put the rear wheel geometry out as it uses a panhard rod. So to do this you will ideally need springs and an adjustable panhard rod which isn't very expensive anyway (AUS$130ish)

5. A 2.5" exhaust system is WAYYY too big. At the very most I'd get a 2" press bent system with 1 resonator, 1 muffler and 1 catalytic converter. This shouldn't make it too loud however that depends on your muffler selection. I have a Lukey rear muffler and it is nice and quiet, but it growls. To get the most out of the exhaust system etc.. I'd recommend getting a set of extractors too. This won't lower your fuel economy much at all, but there will be a very slight decrease.

Hope this helped mate, just covered the basics

Sean

awesome, thank for your help!

so the manual is a bit quicker to drive is it? thats good news for me, i don't fancy automatics.

cheers!

what does a panhard rod do?