Hunting for a driver’s car - Nissan March Nismo S

The tail end of March sprung many unwanted surprises - there’s the earthquake that shook the capital - totally unheard of. And summer storms as we approach Songkran. Seriously? Without these 2 anomalies I’d figured that it’s almost the perfect time to go car hunting…

Because what I crave for involves dry weather and a clear mind. I did look up on a couple of EG6s - at THB150,000 they don’t really command big money. But condition and language barrier did hinder the process (and enthusiasm).

A couple of March Nismo Ss popped up on Facebook Marketplace. A black one was “restomodded” recently, and it looked great apart from the rims. It remained for sale till this day. A white one popped up a couple of days later. I contacted the owner, he spoke great English, and I secured a viewing effortlessly.

It’s three times the price of a CVT, 1.2 NA March, this, but they shouldn’t be compared tbh. Having grown up in Singapore I can’t help but feel how Thailand’s car market is more affordable, comparatively. Engine swaps, chassis refreshes - all these are possible, legally, so long as the officer signs off on the car’s Blue Book and the IDs match.

I went in somehow blindfolded and took a leap of faith. It’s a foreign market, dealing with a stranger, but thankfully all went well. I did as much research as I can pre-test drive, did up a checklist and tried not to let excitement lead to a panic buy.

But boy, was it good. Paint was great, even more so for one that accrued 66,000km (62,000km in Japan). Interior was near spotless, apart from a hairline crack on the gearknob and a tear on the driver's seat bolster. Suede on the steering wheel was smoothened off after nearly 11 years of toil, and that’s understandable. Nismo labels aplenty to remind me that I’m in something way more special than a March…

I’ll be back to document driving impressions. It’s not a car I take to flip - tbh I don’t see myself gaining any momentum in terms of finance. Who wants such a car anyway?! EVs are faster!!

I bought it to drive. Manual, 1,000kg, NA, hatchback form factor, will it live up to my expectation? We’ll see…