Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge

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Thu 28 Mar 2024 20:16
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - 80sbaby_81

Hello all

Had a stop gap car for a few months but now in a better financial situation to get something a little bigger and newer. Been looking at Nissan Jukes as I've had a bit of a love affair since we hired one a few years ago. . Seen some decent used ones, around about a 12 plate and many seem to have anything between 90 and 130k on clock.

What I'd like advice on is.. How many miles is too many when buying a used Juke ?

We're going to go for diesel as we make long ish trips with sons football matches at weekends but would consider petrol too. Thoughts please.

Also any common faults and what to look for when buying in terms of what to listen for under the bonnet (bad stuff)

Any models to avoid?

Thanks!!

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Thu 28 Mar 2024 20:48
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - elekie&a/c doctor
What’s your budget?
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Thu 28 Mar 2024 21:18
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - 80sbaby_81

Around 2.5k - 3k

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Thu 28 Mar 2024 21:25
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - elekie&a/c doctor
Sorry to say , for this kind of money , this is not want you want. Avoid any diesel at this age , and certainly any automatic transmission. Better off with a focus .
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Thu 28 Mar 2024 21:46
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - Xileno

You need to have the time and confidence buying privately at that price point in order to maximise what you buy. Anything at a garage will be best left alone unless you're very lucky. The 1.5 diesel is a good engine if serviced on time but unlikely at this end of the market. One diesel-related problem such as pump or injectors and it's curtains. I had one in a Megane but it was almost new when I bought it.

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Fri 29 Mar 2024 06:42
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - madf

Juke diesels suffer from EGR problems if neglected or short journeys

Lots of other issues as well see used car guide on Honest John.

At your price range chances of neglect are high.

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Fri 29 Mar 2024 08:57
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - 80sbaby_81

Thanks all for your help. I know every car has its pros and cons and there's some nails out there but I also know there's some diamonds too. Just a matter of finding them. Not in a mad rush so can take our time when looking.

Currently driving a 07 plate suzuki swift, bought for 575 last year and its honestly never missed a beat but just far too small. Really clean little motor, be kind of sad to see it go if I'm honest as it's been excellent little car. And its only a 4 seater. .

Looking for something higher in regards to seating as I struggle with my hips so higher cars seem to be a lot better for me but want something a bit cheaper to run and insure etc. That's another reason why I wanted a juke. Previously had a vw golf gt tdi, another 07 plate which I paid 795 for back in 2019. Was only so cheap as bloke wanted a really quick sale. Best car we've ever had til some clown wrote us off last year. We bought another golf which ended up being a nail and we ended up losing over 1k. Hence why we had to find a cheap run about and enede up with the swift.

Can anyone recommend a better small SUV rather than the juke?

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Fri 29 Mar 2024 09:27
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - badbusdriver

What is your current stop gap car and does it need replacing right now?

£2.5-3k is basically banger money so there is no point swapping from a car which, while maybe slightly older/smaller/slower than you'd like, is working fine, to something which may completely expire or effectively be written off in repair costs within a few months. Better the devil you know etc!.

The fact that you occasionally do longer runs does not validate or justify getting a diesel. It is generally considered that you need to be doing at least 12k miles per year for the fuel savings to overcome the higher servicing and repair costs. But when you are looking at sub £3k cars, that goes out the window anyway. The other thing you need to bear in mind is that a diesel of that age/price is unlikely to be ULEZ compliant (though not sure about the 1.5DCI specifically)

The Juke isn't that great a car, not very spacious either in cabin or boot and with a harsh ride (exacerbated on models with bigger wheels). Reliability is patchy, petrol with manual gearbox not too bad, auto not great and diesel, while fundamentally a decent engine (as said), at this age and price point really wouldn't be wise. But for the money you are looking to spend, the 1st generation Nissan Note (2005-2012) is an emphatically better car than a Juke.

Even if the Juke was a better car, it wouldn't be wise to fixate on one particular model with your budget. If you absolutely have to change now (or imminently), you'd be better setting basic requirements re cabin and boot space and trying to find the best car available within however far you are willing to travel. Judge on condition, MOT history (which can be checked online) and any service history the car has. Best to stick with naturally aspirated petrol engine and a manual gearbox.

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Fri 29 Mar 2024 09:44
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - elekie&a/c doctor
A Ford c max will give a slightly increased height seating position. But keep to a petrol with a manual transmission. Available within your budget.
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Fri 29 Mar 2024 09:57
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - 80sbaby_81

Thank you! I've been looking at c-maxs too. Other half has an obsession with diesel cars but I'm happy to stick to petrol and wouldn't go for an auto anyway.

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Fri 29 Mar 2024 09:54
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - 80sbaby_81

We currently have a suzuki swift which we only paid 575 for last year (see my last reply). Only a 3 door though and has 4 seats which we thought we could live with as kids are all older (teens and early 20s)so not often we're all needing to get in the car at the same time but we've got a couple of events coming up which require us to need a 5 seater. Plus if we ever want to go out as a family with summer on the way we're a bit stuck. This was only ever planned to be a stop gap car while we could afford something bigger and better.

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Fri 29 Mar 2024 10:11
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - 80sbaby_81

Was thinking of viewing a few and maybe putting a deposit on one if we buy from a used car dealer. We've always bought private before. I think buying from a dealer seems appealing as we've been stung massively last year when buying private and ended up losing money plus they'll come with some kind of warranty with the option to purchase extended warranty. But then there's no room to haggle the price as any kind of warranty is out of the window if you don't pay full asking price.

Not in a mad rush but will be needing new one by end of April at the latest.

Got offered a 12 plate volvo v60 for 1500 quid last week but it was an auto, and had already done over 200k. Only 2 owners and MOT history was fab but thought at that price could it be too good to be true...

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Fri 29 Mar 2024 10:26
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - De Sisti

.. but we've got a couple of events coming up which require us to need a 5 seater. Plus if we ever want to go out as a family ...

How about hiring a car for those situations?

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Fri 29 Mar 2024 10:49
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - 80sbaby_81

Not hiring when we've got the money to buy another motor. Don't see the point. We've only hired before when we had no car at all and a family holiday to go on so it was an absolute must.

And with the amount of events we've got coming up, we'd be hiring every few weeks which we just can't do.

Swifty is going back on the market once we find another car or just before but we can't be without a motor as I've got son to get to footy training and matches, a daughter to get to dance and eldest daughter to get to work so she's not got to take 6 buses a day.

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Fri 29 Mar 2024 11:34
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - badbusdriver

So a few low budget (all petrol engined) suggestions with a higher seating position. First eight should all prove reliable assuming looked after, but particularly nice examples of my other suggestions (or others) shouldn't be overlooked:

Toyota Corolla Verso

1st generation (2005-2012) Nissan Note

Ford Fusion

Ford C-Max (not 1.0 Ecoboost)

Suzuki SX4

Kia Venga and Hyundai ix20 (same car barring minor styling and trim differences)

Kia Soul

Nissan Amera Tino

Citroen Xsara Picasso

Vauxhall Zafira

1st generation Vauxhall Meriva

2nd generation (2011 on) Vauxhall Meriva 1.4 (1.4 turbo also available within budget which has more muscle, but goes against the n/a advice!)

Just be aware that even the most reliable car can be trouble if subject to 10+ years of neglect. Also, a car not generally considered to be particularly reliable could be a wise purchase if a meticulously maintained one or two owner garage kept gem. At this price and age, luck is a big part of finding a good 'un.

Going back to the Swift, I wasn't aware these were 4 seaters?. My guess was that only three door cars were 4 seaters, and looking at examples for sale confirms this. This is a bit weird to me because the rear seats are identical in size and design, it is also a bit mean of Suzuki!.

I think buying from a dealer seems appealing as we've been stung massively last year when buying private and ended up losing money plus they'll come with some kind of warranty with the option to purchase extended warranty.

Any warranty you get on a £3k car is going to be of very limited use. Can pretty much guarantee that if anything big goes wrong, it wont be covered. But at the same time, you have to be realistic with your expectations of a car this old and cheap.

Got offered a 12 plate volvo v60 for 1500 quid last week but it was an auto, and had already done over 200k. Only 2 owners and MOT history was fab but thought at that price could it be too good to be true...

First thing is, that doesn't have a higher seating position!. Not sure, but I think a V60 auto of this age would use the Powershift automated manual also used by Ford. If so, even ignoring the mileage (which isn't necessarily a problem by itself), it should probably be avoided.

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Fri 29 Mar 2024 12:04
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - Orb>>

We have an old Venga, in good mechanical condition. It's a Tardis, room for 5, and 2 large suitcases and carry ons with the floor removed in the boot.

The previous owner had to stop driving, dementia.... and it has a goos few minor scratches all touched up. but it has been meticulously maintained all its life. when we bought it we had to fit trackrod ends, new rear shockers and tyres, not bad after 10 years.

That, Hyundai 1x20 or Soul are very good solid reliable cars

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Fri 29 Mar 2024 21:06
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - SLO76
Don’t limit yourself to one model on such a tight budget. Open that net as wide as possible and remember to keep it as simple as possible. No turbo diesels, no prestige brands, no performance cars etc etc. Look for mass market cars that are cheap and easy to source parts for.

The Nissan Juke is basically a Renault Clio underneath and isn’t the best cheap car you could buy. At this money it’ll be heavy in the miles and likely neglected. The 1.2 turbo is prone to engine failures, the 1.5 diesel is ok but still prone to plenty of costly woe as it ages and the CVT auto is made from the softest cheese you can buy. The only cheap Juke worthy of consideration is the 1.6 petrol with a manual box, but it’s unlikely you’ll get a good one at this money.

I’d include the following in your search. All petrol. Remember the Juke is barely bigger inside than a supermini like a Fiesta.

Mazda 2
Mazda 3
Ford Fiesta 1.25/1.4
Ford Focus 1.6
Ford C-max 1.6/1.8/2.0
Honda Civic
Toyota Auris 1.33/1.6
Vauxhall Astra 1.6

The best cars are up for sale privately, dealers will be wanting £3-£4k for cars that are really worth £1,500 to offset the unrealistic legal obligations put on them regarding cars of this age and value. You can’t realistically guarantee any car of this age, so you’ll need a huge profit margin to cover any repairs or legal fight.
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Sat 30 Mar 2024 08:34
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - 80sbaby_81

Thank you SLO76!

This is the argument I've had with my OH. He's insistent we get a diesel and he's got his sights set on another golf tdi 2 litre. Got to admit, I b***** love my golf's and we've had a couple of mint ones over the years. Last one was a little diamond, 07 plate, bought it in 2019 for £795 just because the bloke wanted a quick sale. It had 144k on the clock when we bought, not one issue with that car ever, apart from key barrel but that was it. . Unfortunately got wrote off last year in an RTC. Gutted wasn't the word.

So we bought another golf but had some serious issues with it and it had to go for spares and repairs so we lost a lot of money hence why we've got the swift now. We've saved our butt's off for months to be able to afford a newer car so I'm really sceptical now because if this goes wrong, we're stuffed. And while I love my golf's, I really don't want another problem, it's kinda put me off. Ideally I don't want anything with a turbo because I know the implications and tbh we don't do enough long trips to warrant even needing a diesel.

We've probs got a max of 3700 if we manage to sell the swift prior to buying a new car

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Sat 30 Mar 2024 08:42
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - 80sbaby_81

I'm also loving not having as much to pay out in fuel and insurance ?? little swifty is so cheap to run. Been a fab little car and only paid 575 for it. We had to replace the alternator belt but cost us next to nothing as we have a mechanic in the family.

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Sat 30 Mar 2024 19:31
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - SLO76
The Golf diesels (or TSi petrols) that are within budget are too troublesome to recommend I’m afraid. The older pre DPF (Diesel particulate filter) diesels were generally good news, especially the Mk IV 1.9 PD TDi’, but these are old and mostly crusty now. The later emissions control strangled Mk V’s have too many vices to be a wise buy on a tight budget in my opinion. More modern diesels are much more complex and far more likely to go wrong, they’re almost always a false economy. Stick with petrol and forget about power, speed and image, otherwise you’ll very likely lose every penny of that £3k.

Edited by SLO76 on 30/03/2024 at 19:32

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Wed 3 Apr 2024 20:55
Nissan Juke - Thoughts/opinions/knowledge - Warning

I have tried Nissan Micra, Note and Juke. All have been good. The Juke,. I had as a courtesy car, had a1.2-litre turbocharged. It was sleepy car, until I pressed sport button. After that the the engine was lively. However, the biggest drawback, was the boot space which was on the small size (even compered to smaller cars). It was a good car to drive. The tech gadgets are better, as you move up on the grades. I liked it better then the VW Golf, I had on holiday.

You are will be paying for a premium, on a car that has a "SUV shape". The tyres cost more and everything else.

higher in regards to seating as I struggle with my hips so higher cars seem to be a lot better for me

Every car is going to fell different. Even something like a Vauhall Zafira, has a higher seating position, on standard tyres. It is n't a SUV, but an MPV. That suddenly makes the car more affordable. You get a lot of car for your money, but of course, it pushed up running costs like fuel.

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