The new electric Micra comes with a claim that seems written by a defense lawyer: “Yes, it’s me.” As if to say: don’t be scared, it’s not another car, it’s still that small, cheerful, somewhat careless one that for decades has done its duty on city streets and provincial roads. Only now it makes no noise, no longer has an exhaust, and runs on electrons.
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It is the sixth generation of an automotive icon, the beloved and “used” one, parked everywhere, lent to the child, loaded with shopping bags and weekend suitcases. Today it is fully electric, sharing platform, mechanics, and much of the interior with the Renault 5 E-Tech, and this is a sign of the times: industrial alliances save small cars that alone would no longer have the numbers to exist.
The style
Visually, it has rightly chosen not to look too much like its French cousin. The large oval front lights give it a somewhat surprised look, as if it is still getting used to the idea of having become electric. The bumper protrudes, the sides are protected by black inserts at the bottom, and a dark strip with the Nissan logo runs across the tailgate. It is not a clean and innocent line like the old Micras; it is more mature, a bit more serious, perhaps a bit more personal. And it has enough character not to blend in with the others.
The interior
Inside, there is an air of well-made seriousness. Pleasant materials, comfortable seats, dashboard dominated by two ten-inch screens and some physical buttons for the climate control, those “pianos” that now seem like a luxury. Up front, there is plenty of space and comfort. In the back, two can sit decently; with three, it is immediately clear that the battery has stolen precious centimeters. The trunk is decent for a city car, but the loading threshold is high (77 centimeters), and when the seats are folded down, a step appears that makes it difficult to load a suitcase or a bicycle without kneeling.
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The technology
At the wheel, however, the Micra defends itself well. It is agile in traffic, quick when needed, and the one-pedal function – which allows driving almost only with the accelerator – works naturally: you release the gas and the car brakes decisively on its own, without jerks. Even outside the city, on somewhat uneven roads, the steering remains precise and the well-tuned suspension keeps roll under control without turning the car into a block of concrete. It is a pleasure to drive, effortless and without the feeling of driving a toy.
The declared range reaches 416 kilometers with the larger battery, fast charging promises 175 kilometers in fifteen minutes, and the battery warranty is eight years. Numbers that make it credible even for those who do not only do the home-work commute. It is no longer the small “everyday and for every budget” car it once was, but it does not pretend to be. It is a mature electric city car, a bit more expensive (starting at 29,500 euros), a bit more rational, a bit less “its own” than the old petrol Micra.
The claim “Yes, it’s me” is reassuring but also a bit melancholic. Because deep down we all know: it is no longer exactly the same. It is the electric, shared, rationalized version of what it was. It works better in many aspects, pollutes less, consumes less. But that somewhat careless lightness, that sense of cheerful economy that the old Micra had, has become something else. Cleaner, more serious, more adult. Like many other things, after all, in these years.
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