Nissan Problems

You've missed my pick, and our current Car of the Year, the Kia Sorento. It's better than any of your contenders and a top car that gets The Tick from me.

You said it yourself; it's tired, so I wouldn't fit a turbocharger without rebuilding the engine. You'd be asking for trouble to do it without doing the engine.

The three cars you name all have merit, none has any major issue to be concerned about and all fit your needs, but you will have to shop around to find them within your age and budget limits.

We test all cars in the real world, on the toughest corners and worst surfaces we can find, and I've been doing the job for nearly 40 years. Hyundai has focussed its suspension work on European-style handling, not a cushy American-style ride, but that's no different from many other brands. For your needs I would probably have steered you to a Nissan Pulsar, but also advised not to buy anything without a proper test drive on road you know.

The Qashqai is the right pick because of its bigger cabin, even if the Honda has lots of flexibility in its magic seats, but I would not commit without driving the Mazda CX-5, which is the class leader.

As much as you love it the reality is that it's an old car and not worth repairing. It's obviously done you proud, but it's time to move on to a newer car.

If there are any warning lights on it could be a problem with the electronics and it’s gone into ‘limp home’ mode. If there are no warning lights on it’s likely to be a fuel issue, and not getting enough fuel to keep it running when under load, which it is when in Drive or Reverse. I would change the fuel filter, check the fuel pressure, and clean the throttle body.