Described as “audacious, assertive and funky”, the new look takes inspiration from the bulbous Mk3 Micra of 2002, especially for its circular daytime-running lights at both ends.
Cho added that “it was tough” when his designers were tasked with creating something that would differ visually from the “already good-looking” 5, especially given the fixed underpinnings.
One change from the 5 is at the front, where the bonnet is higher, longer and features slightly more bulky arches in order to give the Micra a different silhouette.
“We wanted to carry more volume to the front,” said Cho, who added that this gives the Micra more of a crossover feel – like the Renault Megane – than the 5, which is more overtly a hatchback and “sporty”.
Another differentiator is at the rear, where a lip was added, and at the side (visually where the twins are most obviously related), where there’s a shoulder line that looks “like it’s been scooped by a gelato scoop”.
These design elements combine to make the Micra “a grandma car no more”, claimed Cho.
The interior is essentially identical to the 5’s, with the same twin 10.25in screens, same switchgear and same materials, but its colour offerings – white, grey and black – are more muted.
