Nissan Murano History
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The Nissan Murano is a five-passenger crossover vehicle that leans more toward the wagon end than the SUV side of that spectrum. More sporty and more athletic than some of the duller entries in the field, the Murano shares some running gear with the Altima, Nissan's best-selling sedan. As such, it's more an on-road, all-weather utility vehicle than a towing and off-road vehicle.
See our review of the 2013 Nissan Murano for more information, including pricing and more pictures.As Nissan's very first crossover, the Murano has never been a truck-based sport-utility, though that category has dwindled fast--even Nissan's own, larger Pathfinder is now based on car underpinnings. These days, the Nissan Murano sits neatly in the lineup between the lookalike but smaller Nissan Rogue and the Pathfinder. It's now on its second generation, which was launched as a 2009 model.
With the Murano, Nissan has aimed directly for families with good handling and gas mileage--always a coveted trait for family vehicles that haul kids, their friends, and their belongings all over creation. It's also perceived as a more urbane alternative with a dash of style to set it apart from other "Mom-mobiles."
The first 2003-2007 Murano model had a pleasantly edgy, urban shape. Sized like the competition, the Ford Edge and the early Toyota Highlander, the Murano took the styling kudos. Mechanically, it also had an edge over the Ford and the Toyota, with better steering and a more nimble feel, thanks to its family-plan architecture based on Nissan's well-received Altima four-door.The first Murano's interior offered five-passenger seating and a decently roomy cargo space as well. Safety proved very good, with the crossover earning the federal government's top ratings for front and side-impact protection (under test criteria that have since changed).
Power in the first-generation Murano came from a 245-horsepower version of Nissan's corporate 3.5-liter V-6. The power flowed to front-wheel or all-wheel drive via a continuously variable transmission--a gearless, stepless unit that uses belts and pulleys to vary transmission ratios. While CVTs can improve fuel economy, they also generally add to powertrain noise and feel slow to respond. The Murano's CVT was easily the least attractive part of its package.
After Nissan skipped the 2008 model year altogether, the 2009 Murano didn't differ too dramatically from the original underneath, but the sheetmetal changed nearly all for the better--save for a toothy grille slotted in up front. The running gear migrated to the fourth-generation Nissan Altima platform, and the powertrain was updated to 265 hp (it's now rated at 260 hp). The CVT was upgraded to include programmed "gears" that gave the transmission the feel of an automatic gearbox, with paddle shifters enabling driver choice of the ratios.
Nissan expanded the Murano family for 2012 with the unusual CrossCabriolet convertible, and also spun off a new 2013 Pathfinder seven-seat crossover along with a similar Infiniti JX35 seven-seater--which gets a new name, Infiniti QX60, for 2014--all from the same basic architecture.
For 2013, Nissan added a few features and options, and made several active-safety systems--Moving Object Detection, Blind Spot Warning, and Lane Departure Warning--optional on the Murano.
