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    Estimating the Micra's fuel economy (before the official numbers were published)

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    NOTE: the discussion below shows the calculations we used to estimate the Micra's fuel economy before it was officially published.

    Turns out we were very close to the official numbers, which you can see here: 2015 Nissan Micra fuel economy / mileage / mpg (NRCAN, EPA)


    -----------------------------

    The short version:


    The 2015 Micra should have essentially the same fuel economy rating as the cancelled Versa sedan with the same 1.6L, 5-speed manual or 4-speed automatic drivetrain. The Micra may get slightly better mileage in the city due to its lighter weight, and slightly worse mileage on the highway due to the sedan's better aerodynamics. So the combined figure will be about the same.

    NOTE:

    If you're used to optimistic (some would say unrealistic) Canadian fuel economy ratings may find these numbers much "worse" than expected. They're NOT directly comparable to 2014 NRCAN ratings for other cars. That's because for the 2015 model year, NRCAN is changing its testing approach (to 5-cycle) to make it more like "real world" results (bringing them in line with post-2008 EPA ratings). To compare against pre-2015 models, you can now search on the NRCAN site to find the "updated" ratings for 2014 and older cars. (The initial search results currently show the old ratings; to see the updated ones, click the vehicle make/model name in the search results.)

    The long version:

    NRCAN / EPA (2015+ model year 5-cycle testing), estimated:

    2015 Micra
    1.6L, 5-speed manual
    2015 Micra
    1.6L, 4-speed automatic
    City 8.7 L/100 km
    27 mpg (US)
    32 mpg (Imp)
    9.1 L/100 km
    26 mpg (US)
    31 mpg (Imp)
    Highway 6.5 L/100 km
    36 mpg (US)
    43 mpg (Imp)
    6.7 L/100 km
    35 mpg (US)
    42 mpg (Imp)
    Combined 7.8 L/100 km
    30 mpg (US)
    36 mpg (Imp)
    7.8 L/100 km
    30 mpg (US)
    36 mpg (Imp)

    Here's how we got those numbers...

    Nissan hasn't released official fuel economy ratings yet, but we can predict the numbers by comparing ratings in the Mexican market for the Micra (sold there as the March) and Versa which use the same 1.6 L engine and transmissions that the Micra and Versa will use here. We can also compare those results against the U.S. market Versa sedan and Versa Note hatchback, which also share the same 1.6L drivetrain.

    Mexico first...

    5MT = 5-speed manual transmission
    4AT = 4-speed automatic transmission
    Mexican figures are given in km/L, and converted below (with rounding)

    Mexican fuel
    economy ratings
    Micra (March)
    1.6L, 5MT
    Micra (March)
    1.6L, 4AT

    Versa sedan
    1.6L, 5MT

    Versa sedan
    1.6L, 4AT

    City 15.0 km/L
    6.7 L/100 km
    42 mpg (Imp)
    35 mpg (US)
    14.9 km/L
    6.7 L/100 km
    42 mpg (Imp)
    35 mpg (US)
    15.0 km/L
    6.7 L/100 km
    42 mpg (Imp)
    35 mpg (US)
    14.6 km/L
    6.9 L/100 km
    41 mpg (Imp)
    34 mpg (US)
    Highway 20.9 km/L
    4.8 L/100 km
    59 mpg (Imp)
    49 mpg (US)
    20.7 km/L
    4.8 L/100 km
    59 mpg (Imp)
    49 mpg (US)
    21.1 km/L
    4.7 L/100 km
    60 mpg (Imp)
    50 mpg (US)
    20.9 km/L
    4.8 L/100 km
    59 mpg (Imp)
    49 mpg (US)
    Combined 17.7 km/L
    5.7 L/100 km
    50 mpg (Imp)
    42 mpg (US)
    17.5 km/L
    5.7 L/100 km
    49 mpg (Imp)
    41 mpg (US)
    17.7 km/L
    5.7 L/100 km
    50 mpg (Imp)
    42 mpg (US)
    17.4 km/L
    5.8 L/100 km
    49 mpg (Imp)
    41 mpg (US)

    (Source: Nissan Mexico, Micra/March & Versa)

    The first thing to note is the Mexican ratings are much more optimistic than the EPA/NRCAN 5-cycle testing.

    The Micra beats the Versa in city driving by a hair -- no surprise, given its lighter weight (see weights below).

    On the highway the Micra slightly lags the Versa -- again no surprise, given the Versa's slightly better aerodynamics. Nissan gives a drag coefficient as low as 0.288 for the U.S. 2014 Versa sedan vs. 0.315 for the Canadian Micra. Frontal areas are similar, with the Micra being slightly narrower (1665 mm) but taller (1528 mm) than the Versa (width 1695 mm, height 1414 mm -- Nissan Mexico specs).

    The end result is the combined ratings are equal for the two cars.

    The same result is seen in the U.S. market when comparing the Versa sedan to the Versa Note hatchback: both cars share the same 1.6L engine and 5-speed manual or CVT automatic, and the cars have the same mileage ratings.

    So, based on these ratings, it's a safe bet that the Micra's ratings will be very close, if not identical to the Versa sedan. However, when the NRCAN ratings are released, it's possible we'll see small variances from these numbers, because there's more resolution when estimating to tenths of L/100 km than when rounding to the nearest whole MPG (US).

    ---

    Curb weights (Mexico):

    - The base Versa 5MT weighs in at 1056.0 kg / 2328 lbs.
    - The base Versa 4AT weighs in at 1070.1 kg / 2359 lbs.
    - The Micra 5MT with 15 inch wheels weighs in at 974.5 kg / 2148 lbs.
    - The Micra 4AT with 15 inch wheels weighs in at 994.7 kg / 2193 lbs.

    ---

    UPDATE - new data: Chilean ratings support our estimates. See post #8 for details.

    ---
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        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Micra S manual: 5.0 L/100 km ... 56.5 mpg (Imp) ... 20.0 km/L ... 47.0 mpg (US) ...


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