An ode to the mundane - Nissan Sunny

[The Vicar]

In about June of last year this came into my possession:

It’s a 94 Sunny, 1.4 automatic and on Monday it just ticked over 60k miles. It belonged to a convent in Dublin who, seriously, had forgotten that they owned it. I happened to be visiting for another matter in June of last year and spotted it looking a little forlorn in the far end of the garden. I queried it’s fate with its owners, and after a bit of confusion and a description of the car, one replied; “I thought we had gotten rid of that car ages ago”

I dread to think what poor old car was indeed scrapped in its place, but whatever about that mix up that meant this little dinger was mine for the taking. After a bit of to’ing and fro’ing, and a search for the keys, I left the convent that day the proud owner of a 94 Nissan Sunny hatch. 

The car had been off the road about four years prior to my acquiring it. Undeterred I returned a few days later with a battery pack and socket set and after scones and tea and the exchange of pleasantries in the parlour I got to work, but I needn’t have worried at all because the old girl only fired into life almost immediately. 

For an NCT (MOT) I treated it a set of new Continentals and gave it a quick once over, and it only went and passed with flying colours. Since then it’s had a service (oil, plugs and filters) and nothing else, and it’s been utterly faultless. I’m sure the timing belt is living on borrowed time but it’s on the agenda. Despite originally living fairly close to the sea it is remarkably, and without exaggeration, completely rust free too. 

As I don’t live full time in Ireland it sees very little use and I don’t have loads of photos. Earlier this year I loaned it to a friend who let the tax run out and left it parked on a public road, so it was lifted by the police. It spent about three days in captivity before said friend even noticed it gone, and another week before I could have it released into the custody of someone else (there were some complications as I was 1500 miles away) and unfortunately it picked up the ding that can just be made out on the drivers wing in this photo: 

This has caused me considerable grief because it is now always the first thing I notice on the otherwise blemish free bodywork. Of course nobody, friend or police, want to own up to it!

Anyway, here are a few more photos for your perusal. I have no idea why I am writing this thread, because I don’t imagine very many will have much interest in an old bread and butter Sunny, but like my other threads, if I can find the time and will, I may update them from time to time for my own record keeping. The joy of this car, for me anyway, is it’s unremarkable ordinariness, it has cost me practically nothing to get it on the road and it costs me practically nothing to keep it, and for my troubles I now have a perfectly capable runaround for the rare occasions I am in Ireland.

Heres to the boring and mundane.

P.S - I’m undecided on the hubcaps. I only have two of the originals. 

[PhilA]

You did see the title of this place, yes?

Of course, what a lovely example. They all seemed to have vanished though.

 

Phil

[ETCHY]

That's brill !

[junkyarddog]

I think those 1.4 sunny engines are a timing chain and not a belt.

 

[Tadhg Tiogar]

I passed by the saloon version of this earlier, near North Finchley....

Forgot to take photos 

[The Vicar]

7 minutes ago, junkyarddog said:

I think those 1.4 sunny engines are a timing chain and not a belt.

 

It just gets better! Thanks for that. I always assumed these were belt driven like similar Toyota and Honda of the time were. 

[eddyramrod]

2 hours ago, The Vicar said:

 I don’t imagine very many will have much interest in an old bread and butter Sunny,

Excuse me?  Have you read the title of this forum?   Your Sunny is exactly what we're about here!  The unloved, the unwanted, the forgotten.  Welcome home, little Sunny!  4 and 59 if that time ever comes, please.

[Soundwave]

That's ace!

Shame about the wing, although a competent PDR specialist would probably be able to massage that crease out without buggering the finish. I imagine it wouldn't be cheap mind you, so maybe just treat it as its first battle scar!

[Dick Cheeseburger]

Lovely! I hope you disowned your mate for letting the poor old girl be lifted away - that sort of thing doesn't always end well...

My father-in-law owned a Sunny saloon of the same era and it was a bombproof little thing. The only issues he ever had were tired steering and carb issues - it always seemed to have a flat spot and never pulled quite as well as it seemed like it should. 

Anyway, thanks for sharing. It's a lovely looking little thing and should last forever!

[The Vicar]

1 hour ago, Dick Longbridge said:

Lovely! I hope you disowned your mate for letting the poor old girl be lifted away - that sort of thing doesn't always end well...

To his credit, he coughed up the release fee and assorted costs from the debacle without needing to be asked (and it wasn’t cheap), so we’ve been able to make amends. 

I’ve learned a lesson though, and I won’t be so quick to loan it out in future. Only when it was behind bars for that week did I really acknowledge that it’s just too nice a little car to be treated so poorly. My initial plan was to keep it as a cheap runaround for when I am in the country, and that hasn’t changed, but I’ve pledged to be a bit more sympathetic towards it going forward!

[High Jetter]

My impressions from my trips to Eire is that they just drive them, mostly without care or caution. That's worth a little pampering, to be sure.

[lexi]

It's a gem and totally useable.

[The Vicar]

By way of an overdue update to this thread; I've just picked up another one. Practically identical save for the colour. 1994 3 door 1.4 LX automatic, they even have the same mileage on the clock (60,000). This one isn't as nice as the last one but shouldn't need much to make it so:

1 owner from new, and its had hand controls on since day 1. A few bumps and scrapes on the 4 corners

[ETCHY]

So mundane, so ordinary, basically just dull street furniture at the time.

Now, as cool as Polar Bear piss.

[jamescarruthers]

“Previous owner: a convent of nuns” trumps the fuck out of “one lady owner”!  Sadly, no one at all will believe you if you were to write it in it’s for sale advert.