17 September 2002: Well, we showed you the first hints from last year’s Frankfurt Motor Show, and now the European version of the new Nissan Micra is to be officially launched at next week’s Paris Show. But alongside the bread-and-butter new contender in the Fiesta/Corsa class will be a sweet C+C derivative concept aimed at the niche garnered by the Peugeot 206cc coupe-cabriolet.

The style of the basic car reflects a growing trend towards roundness in small cars, and the latest Micra will be the third all-new Nissan to be launched in just 12 months, and will continue to be Nissan's biggest volume seller in Europe. It joins the new Primera and X-TRAIL to spearhead Nissan’s resurgence in Europe.

The car is described by its designers as a ‘revolutionary evolution’, and epithets such as ‘cosy’ are used in the advance release. And those of us old enough to remember the little prisms on top of the lights in cars in the 50s will be very interested in their return as ‘sights’ to help park the car.

The new Micra has a 72mm increase in wheelbase that offers more room for passengers and their luggage, and space is increased further through a sliding rear seat. Available technology includes automatic wipers, automatic air conditioning and an ‘Intelligent Key’which allows the doors and tailgate to be locked and unlocked, and the engine started without having to insert either a key or a card into the vehicle. This 'smart' system allows the vehicle to detect when the Intelligent Key approaches within 80cm of the car - the doors are then locked and unlocked by simply pressing a button mounted on the door handle mechanism.

In the same way, once Micra detects the presence of the key inside the car, the engine may be started simply by turning the ignition switch. The owner may therefore complete a shopping trip for example without once having to taking the key out of a pocket or bag.

Also at the Paris Show, X-Trail will get an extra engine,a new 2.5-litre petrol unit, probably not for Ireland. The show will also have the public debut of a revised Almera range, with a new look front, revised rear styling and a new style of alloy wheel, while the interior ambience of the car has been improved with new colours and fabrics.

The latest generation Almera goes on sale across Europe in October.