A manual Nissan Note Mk2 is the better bet, as long as the front anti-roll bar bushes are quiet over bumps; skip the X-tronic CVT automatic, which owners have seen fail outright before 28,000 miles.
10 known faults, 3 rated high severity in our database; owners report 47.3 mpg, 84% of the official figure. Everything below is built from that data and the archived owner history, not from a press car.
Found a Nissan Note for sale? Check the advert before you go and see it
Paste the Nissan Note advert and we read it against its 10 known faults, the MOT history and the DVLA record, then tell you what to ask the seller and what to look at on the day. Free, about a minute, no card.
Check a Nissan Note advert (free) →Buy a Mk2 Note (2013 to 2016) with a manual gearbox, but only once you've checked the front suspension doesn't creak, since worn anti-roll bar bushes are a known fault on it. The Mk1's the riskier buy because its front end carries three known faults: the subframe mounts at the bulkhead crack, steering racks fail and front coil springs break, and one car needed two racks while others have had replacement springs snap too.
Don't buy a Mk2 with the X-tronic CVT automatic. It's a known fault on 2013 to 2017 cars with the 1.2 DIG-S: owners have had a drivetrain clunk at 14,000 miles and a hard judder when they accelerate after lifting off. The newest Notes, including cars first registered in 2017, share it: one 2017 car's gearbox failed outright at 27,884 miles and was replaced under warranty, so a late automatic isn't a safer one.
If a Mk1's what your budget runs to, a 1.4 or 1.6 petrol is the simpler choice, and on a 2006 1.5 dCi the early EGR valve can jam shut and take the turbo with it. That doesn't make the petrols spotless: one 2013 1.4 lost compression in a cylinder at 37,000 miles. Whichever engine it has, a Mk1 still needs its subframe mounts, steering and springs checked, and proof the passenger airbag recall's been done.
A manual gearbox is the one to have on a Mk2, because its X-tronic CVT automatic, paired with the 1.2 DIG-S, is a known fault between 14,000 and 28,000 miles, with noise, judder and loss of drive. One owner's 2015 car shudders when pulling away from a roundabout after coasting. The manual isn't spotless either: one 2015 car's clutch gave out at 14,000 miles.
On the Mk2, the 1.2 DIG-T petrol is the engine to check for oil use. It's a known issue between 30,000 and 70,000 miles, and one owner's car got through 2 litres in 11,000 miles with its oil gone black. There's less on record for the Mk2 1.5 dCi, though one 2016 car's engine warning light kept coming back from its first year, and a 2015 car threw red and amber warnings at 41,000 miles, one of them for boost pressure.
In the Mk1, early 1.5 dCi engines carry a known fault: the EGR valve can stick closed, driving exhaust temperatures up until the turbo bearings fail and oil reaches the intake. Renault modified the valve, and reports stopped after 2006. Its injection pump can also give up at around 6 years old when it hasn't had high-lubricity diesel. That makes the 1.4 and 1.6 petrols the lesser risk, though one 2013 1.4 lost compression in a cylinder at 37,000 miles.
The Mk1 1.6 automatic has a mixed record: one 2009 car wouldn't shift up into fourth at 28,000 miles, while another 2009 car's carried on without trouble after regular gearbox oil changes. If you're buying one, ask for receipts showing the gearbox oil's been changed, and make sure it goes up through every gear on the drive.
Get down with a torch and look where the front subframe bolts to the bulkhead on a Mk1, checking for cracks and bushes that have split or come away, then look along both front coil springs for a snapped coil. Fast or uneven front tyre wear gives it away; one 2009 dCi was eating front tyres in 10,000 miles. Check the windscreen's bottom edge for cracks, and look for water sitting in the front strut top mounts.
On the drive, listen for knocks from the front over bumps on a Mk1, and creaking or rattling over speed humps on a Mk2, where the front anti-roll bar bushes wear out between 20,000 and 60,000 miles. Turn the wheel from lock to lock: knocks, clunks, free play or heavy, uneven assistance mean a Mk1 steering rack is going, which is a known fault on that generation. One owner traced a screech at start-up to the auxiliary belt slipping on the alternator's pulley.
On a CVT, coast for a moment and then accelerate gently, feeling for a judder and listening for noise from the gearbox. In a Mk2, try the wipers, every light and the indicators in the door mirrors, since one owner's badly sealed screen let rain into the wiper motor and knocked out circuits sharing its power supply. Make sure the air con blows cold, as Mk2 systems have needed regassing between 20,000 and 50,000 miles.
Ask for receipts for any subframe, spring, steering rack or anti-roll bar bush work, plus proof of recall work: the passenger airbag inflator on 2006 to 2013 cars, the steering rack inspection on some 2008 cars and the push-start switch on some 2013 and 2014 cars. On a 2006 Mk1 1.5 dCi, ask what's been done to the EGR valve, and on a CVT, ask whether the gearbox has already been replaced and when.
Paste the advert into the free check and it runs these against the listing, the MOT history and the DVLA record before you travel.
A Mk1's worth buying as a 1.4 or 1.6 petrol with a front end that's been checked over, and if it's a 1.5 dCi, a car built after 2006, when the early EGR valve fault was dealt with. Every version shares the same suspension and steering faults, and the petrols aren't spotless either: one 2013 1.4 lost compression in a cylinder at 37,000 miles. It earned a 4 star Euro NCAP rating for adult occupants.
The front suspension is where it goes wrong. The mounts joining the subframe to the bulkhead crack and its bonded bushes can come away, bringing knocks, worn front tyres and MOT failures; one 2010 car's subframe bushes had come adrift at 51,000 miles, and a 2008 car failed its MOT on its subframe bushes just 18 months after they'd been replaced. Front coil springs break too, one 2012 car's at 70,000 miles, and some owners have had the replacements snap as well.
Steering racks are a known failure, and one 2006 car had two replacement racks fitted by 2009. A separate recall covered some 2008 cars whose racks could have been built without a lower pinion bearing, and the passenger airbag inflator recall covers Notes from 2006 to 2013, taking 2 to 3 hours to put right. Rain also drains off the screen into the front strut top mounts, and windscreens have cracked from the bottom edge.
Real-world economy on this generation: Nissan Note 46.8 mpg, Nissan Note 48.1 mpg.
The manual's the Mk2 to buy, because the X-tronic CVT automatic is a known failure between 14,000 and 28,000 miles, and you'll still want to check the windscreen seal and front bushes on whichever one you view. The manual isn't bulletproof, as one 2015 car's clutch went at 14,000 miles, but that's a single report against a known gearbox fault. It gained a 4 star Euro NCAP rating in 2013.
Front suspension noise is the Mk2's most reported fault: seven owners have had creaks and rattles over speed humps between 20,000 and 60,000 miles, traced to worn anti-roll bar bushes, and Nissan's redesigned parts haven't always cured it. One 2014 1.2 DIG-T had its bushes done twice, the second time with modified parts, and was creaking again within a year. Two owners have also reported a squeaking rear bush after a couple of years.
On one 2016 car a badly sealed windscreen let rain reach the wiper motor, which took out the wipers and every light at once, with repairs lasting weeks. The air con is a known weak spot on 2013 to 2017 cars, needing regassing between 20,000 and 50,000 miles with the costlier R1234YF gas, and one owner's 2017 car had air con trouble by 6,600 miles.
Engine-bay noises have turned up too: one 2014 1.2 DIG-T's auxiliary belt tensioner squeaked, and another 2014 car rattled from a failing auxiliary belt pulley. One owner's 2013 car got through 5 litres of oil over 5 months at 36,000 miles, so check the dipstick. Ask whether the push-start switch recall, which fixed a button that could stay pressed in on some 2013 and 2014 cars, has been done.
Real-world economy on this generation: Nissan Note 48.1 mpg.
Sellers rarely admit these faults outright
Paste any Nissan Note advert and we check it against the faults, the MOT record and these figures in seconds.
Check an advert now (free) →Owners report 47.3 mpg across the Nissan Note engines with data, about 84% of the official figure, from 1,228 submissions.
Nissan Note Real MPG by engine →A manual Nissan Note Mk2 is the better bet, as long as the front anti-roll bar bushes are quiet over bumps; skip the X-tronic CVT automatic, which owners have seen fail outright before 28,000 miles. Our database holds 10 known Nissan Note faults, 3 rated high severity, and the sections above say which generation and engine carry them.
Get down with a torch and look where the front subframe bolts to the bulkhead on a Mk1, checking for cracks and bushes that have split or come away, then look along both front coil springs for a snapped coil. Read the MOT history for repeat advisories and ask for invoices for any work the seller mentions. Then paste the advert into the free check, which reads it against every known Nissan Note fault before you travel.
Owners report 47.3 mpg on average, about 84% of the official figure, from 1,228 submissions. The known faults page lists a rough repair cost against each fault. Nissan Note Real MPG by engine.
If you used the Honest John car-by-car reviews before the site closed in 2026, this is where the Nissan Note buying advice now lives. It is written from the archived owner reports and model notes (archived page, 65 items read for this model), our own known-faults database, the confirmed service intervals and the Real MPG figures. Every number on the page comes from that data, not from the text. The same data feeds our free advert check.
CarAdCheck is not affiliated with Honest John or Volkswagen Financial Services. What happened to Honest John, and where each feature lives now.
The Nissan Note is one decision. Reading the advert, the history and the seller are the rest, and these cover them.
Looking at a Nissan Note right now? Check the advert before you go and see it.