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To be truthful, the Sunny name dates from another era. It was originally applied to a family Datsun range back in the late Sixties - one of the products that really gained the Japanese a foothold in Britain.
After that of course, we had numerous Sunny spells, but the only two worth worrying about as far as the used buyer is concerned are the final generations, both of which appeared long after Datsuns became Nissans and the company had improved its rather cheap and cheerful image.
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What you get
There were no fewer than five body styles offered across the two Sunny line-ups, including three and five-door hatchbacks, a four-door saloon, a five-door estate and a rare coupe. Arguably, you could also include the little 100NX sports car, since it was based on the 1.6-litre Sunny's mechanicals and is now priced from £3,000 (92J) to £6,000 (95M).
Most Sunnys came well equipped. Take the special edition Nissan launched for the lucrative 1st August 1994 M-reg market, the Sunny Spray. Offered with either three or five doors, it came with an electric sunroof, power steering and a split-folding rear seat. Funnily enough, the trade prices this £200-£300 cheaper than the LX on which it was based.
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What to look for
High mileage '86-'91 examples often suffer from worn first and second gears. Look out for signs of early corrosion on exhausts and check for noisy transmissions on older models and worn driveshaft joints on post-'91 cars. Experts suggest also that you check for heavy front tyre wear, oil leaks and signs of engine coolant loss, which could indicate cracking or warping of the alloy cylinder head.
The interior trim isn't particularly durable and you need to check for rust around the wheelarches and the bottom of the rear tailgate. Exercise the usual hot hatch caution if you're looking at a GTi version; look for suspension and underbody damage and remember that a full service history is desirable.
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Replacement parts
(approx based on a 1995 Sunny 1.4) A clutch assembly will be around £85, an alternator should be close to £195 and a radiator around £140.
Brake pads are around £35 a set, a replacement headlamp is close to £95. A full exhaust is about £300 (including catalyst) and a starter motor around £240.
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On the road
If you're in the market for a used car of this class, then you've probably heard enough to include the Sunny on your shopping list. Indeed, you may even have included it in the first place if, as thousands of motorists did, you learned to drive in one of the older ones.
Those ex-Sunny graduates who can remember that far back will probably recall that the car was as simple to operate as a payphone - and not much more expensive to run. In the last smoothly styled models, those qualities remain.
The gearbox clicks from ratio to ratio with the minimum of effort while the steering - even when not power assisted - is light enough to making parking simple. Slip inside and the driving position is excellent with every switch conveniently to hand.
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Overall
Nissan's success has always been based on giving customers exactly what they want whether it be sporting flair, competent family transport or room for five kids and a dog. And common to all, of course, has been Nissan reliability, strong build quality and lots of extra equipment as standard. If all that makes sense to you, the Sunny will, too. Guaranteed.
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