Nissan Almera

Nissan Almera at a glance

You will find all Nissan model lines in our Nissan catalogue.

Generations of the Nissan Almera

N15 (1995-2000)

The first Almera arrived in late 1995 as the replacement for the Sunny N14. It was almost identical to the Japanese Pulsar N15, apart from trims and petrol engines. Customers could choose a three- or five-door hatchback or a four-door saloon; in the UK nearly all buyers took the hatchback, while Irish buyers favoured the saloon. Power steering, an airbag, electric mirrors and a stereo were standard on all versions.

The engine range started with a 1.4-litre GA14DE petrol of 55 kW (75 PS) and a 1.6-litre GA16DE of 66 kW (90 PS), plus a 2.0-litre diesel with 55 kW (75 PS). About a year after launch Nissan added the three-door GTi with the 2.0-litre SR20DE: 105 kW (143 PS), 178 Nm, 0-100 km/h in 8.2 seconds and 210 km/h according to ADAC. A Phase 2 facelift for the 1998 model year brought new bumpers, and from 1999 the GTi gained ABS and air conditioning as standard.

N16 (2000-2007)

The second Almera was launched in January 2000 and built at Nissan's plant in Sunderland. It was Nissan's first car developed on the MS (Medium/Small) platform after the alliance with Renault, shared with the Primera P12 and the Almera Tino compact MPV. Nissan said the new "two zone body" was 30% stiffer than its predecessor. The saloon was derived from the Japanese Bluebird Sylphy with a different front end. Its 2,535 mm wheelbase was slightly short for the class, and rear legroom suffered.

A facelift for the 2003 model year (on sale in Germany from December 2002) brought a new front, a central display in an upgraded cabin, retuned suspension and new engines, including Renault's 1.5 dCi diesel. ESP became standard on the SE, SVE and SXE trims. Production in Sunderland ended on 28 November 2007. In several countries the Tiida replaced it, but the Tiida was never officially sold in the UK. The N16 also lived on outside Europe as the Renault Samsung SM3 (from 2002) and, from April 2006, as the Almera Classic in Ukraine.

N17 and N18: the Asian Almera (since 2011)

From 2011 the name moved to a smaller saloon on Nissan's global V platform, sold as the Sunny in China and India and as the Versa in the Americas. Thailand received it as an Almera "Eco Car" in October 2011 with a 1.2-litre HR12DE engine, other markets with a 1.5-litre HR15DE; Malaysia followed in October 2012 and Australia sold it from August 2012 to July 2014.

The current N18 moved to the CMF-B platform of the Renault Clio V and Micra K14. Thailand launched it on 14 November 2019 with a 1.0-litre HRA0 turbo three-cylinder and a CVT, Malaysia in November 2020 and the Philippines in October 2021 (imported from Thailand). A facelift reached Thailand on 11 May 2023.

Engines, transmissions and performance

The N16 petrol engines came from Nissan's QG family. The 2.2-litre YD22 diesel was offered first as a direct-injection Di with 81 kW (110 PS), later as a common-rail dCi with 82 kW (112 PS) or 100 kW (136 PS); with the 2003 facelift it gained a six-speed manual gearbox. A four-speed automatic was available for the 1.8.

Dimensions, space and boot

Fuel economy and running costs

ADAC lists 6.7 l/100 km (about 35 mpg US) and 160 g/km of CO2 for the facelifted 1.5 with 72 kW, 7.5 l/100 km for the 1.8 and 5.9 l/100 km (161 g/km) for the 2.2 dCi with 100 kW, all on the old NEDC cycle. The N15 GTi was rated at 8.1 l/100 km. Our fuel cost calculator turns these figures into yearly costs at today's fuel prices.

Trims, equipment and prices

In Germany the pre-facelift N16 was sold as Comfort, Sport, Elegance and Fresh, from EUR 13,690 for the 1.5 three-door (2000) to EUR 19,340 for the 1.8 Elegance automatic. After the facelift the trims became Visia, Acenta and Tekna, with "Plus" editions from 2004: the 1.5 Visia three-door cost EUR 14,490 (2002), the 2.2 dCi Tekna five-door EUR 21,530 (2003).

Safety

Euro NCAP tested a five-door N15 1.4 GX in 1999 and gave it two stars for adult occupant protection, with the second star flagged because of a high risk of chest injury to the driver in the frontal test; pedestrian protection was described as poor. The N16 was a big step forward: Nissan reported in March 2001 that the Almera and Almera Tino had achieved four stars, then its best Euro NCAP result, helped by active head restraints, head and thorax side airbags, belt pretensioners with load limiters and ABS with brake assist. More recent ratings are in our safety section.

Reliability and known issues

The 1999 Euro NCAP report notes that the N15's restraint system had been updated after a seat belt failure and recall. ADAC also lists a recall from December 2005 that concerns the N16 with the 2.2 dCi engine. Beyond these, we found no well-documented systematic faults in our sources, so we do not list any; any Almera on sale today is at least 18 years old, and condition matters more than the model.

Rivals

In the early 2000s the Almera's main opponents were the Ford Focus, Toyota Corolla and Volkswagen Golf. The comparison tool shows how they line up on paper.

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