Why You Can Trust CNET 2009 Nissan Murano SL review: 2009 Nissan Murano SL
2009 Nissan Murano SL
- North American Car, Truck and SUV of the Year (NACTOY) Awards Juror
Photo gallery:
2009 Nissan Murano
The Good
The Bad
The Bottom Line
SUV once meant large, trucklike gas-guzzlers that, despite never being taken off road, seemed better suited to the actual jungle than the urban jungle. Enter the Nissan Murano. Ignoring the SUV's truck roots, Nissan created a vehicle that cast off all rugged pretenses and brought style to the boxy world of the SUV.
The 2009 Nissan Murano has received a styling evolution that is still distinctly "Murano," which is a good thing as the original model was quite a looker. The new model features new body lines that are more pronounced and muscular. The most obvious change is the new grille, which better integrates the headlamps into a single sculpted chrome element.
Test the tech: Backup Challenge
Our test model came equipped with the optional Premium Package, which included the Rearview Monitor backup camera. This afforded us the perfect opportunity to revisit the reverse obstacle course first attempted with the 2007 Audi A6 and try a new test we'd devised, a 90-degree reverse turn. Thus began the Backup Challenge.
The Rearview Monitor backup camera features guidelines showing where the Murano is headed.
The first test consisted of the backup zigzag course. Setting the cones up about a car length apart ensured that accuracy, not speed, would be ideal for success in this test. Drivers were only allowed to use the monitor to guide the vehicle through the cones.
First up was Associate Editor Antuan Goodwin. Activating the backup camera, which displays on the car's 7-inch monitor, was as simple as selecting reverse with the gearshifter. The onscreen guides adjust as the steering wheel is moved. Using these guides, he was able to easily clear the course, with three corrections to avoid hitting cones.
Next up was Senior Editor Wayne Cunningham. With experience gained from the previous test with the A6, surely he would be the obvious victor. Using an unorthodox wide sweeping technique, he managed to clear the first few cones effortlessly. It seemed as though he would taste success when disaster struck. A miscalculated midturn correction caused Cunningham to run over the last cone, disqualifying him (again) from this round of the competition.
Even the mighty backup camera isn't infallible.
The next test was a 90-degree reverse turn. We set up our cone course to simulate a narrow alley with a 90-degree bend at the end. The objective of this test was to navigate the vehicle into a parking spot at the end of the course.
Both competitors were able to complete this round with no cones touched. With a final score of 2 to 1, Goodwin was declared the winner of the Backup Challenge.
We were impressed by how useful the backup camera could be. The overlays were remarkably accurate in their depiction of where the Murano was going and what it would meet when it got there. On a vehicle like the Murano, with its huge rearward blind spots and high vertical clearance, the backup camera is definitely an option we'd recommend getting.
In the cabin
The 2009 Nissan Murano we tested came equipped with the Premium Package, which adds a nine speaker and two subwoofer Bose audio upgrade to the standard six-disc in-dash CD changer (that reads MP3/WMA CDs). The Bose system sounded great in the Murano's exceptionally quiet cabin. Stereo separation was clear and the addition of the dual subwoofers really filled the cabin with a rich, but not too boomy, sound. At higher volumes, some bass distortion and a few rattles could be heard, but with so little road/engine noise, there's really no reason to crank the system to the max.
The Premium package also includes the rearview camera tested earlier, XM satellite radio, and a 7-inch color display to tie everything together. Oddly, Nissan moved the aux-in from the dash to behind the center console and changed from a headphone jack to a composite RCA input, which adds the dual complication of being inaccessible from the driver's seat and requiring a 3.5mm standard plug to RCA adapter for MP3 players.
The LCD isn't touch screen and, as a result, you execute all commands using a rotary selector surrounded by a bank of buttons. Unfortunately, when we wanted to change sources, we had to reach down to yet another bank of buttons to do so. During the course of our test drive, we were constantly confused as to which bank of buttons we were supposed to use to navigate the system. If we wanted to check the fuel economy, we used the rotary selector and the top bank to get to our vehicle status. If we then wanted to change the XM radio station, we had to first hit the AUX button on the bottom bank twice, and then use the rotary selector to choose the station. With so much switching from this bank of buttons to that one, it was difficult to get comfortable using the system.
The interface is fairly button-heavy and seems better suited for the navigation system.
The MP3/WMA CD player doesn't decode WMA files protected by DRM. Since the unit doesn't allow navigation independent of playback, if the system comes across a folder containing DRM files, the entire system freezes while it processes. It's a bit frustrating to wait almost a minute while the player reads the folder over and over, only to return a "Cannot Read Folder" message. Sticking with non-DRM files alleviates this issue.
Bluetooth integration isn't included in the tested Premium package, but can be added with the Technology package. Also included in the Technology package are high-intensity discharge headlamps, rain-sensing windscreen wipers, a power lift gate, and an Intelligent Key keyless entry system that lets you unlock the doors and start the ignition without taking the key out of your pocket.
With the exception of the backup camera and the capability to browse MP3/WMA CDs, the monitor/rotary selector interface just complicates what are essentially very basic car stereo functions. Choosing a radio station shouldn't require multiple button presses. At this trim level, the dashboard feels as if it needs more features to justify the complexity or a more basic interface to simplify operation.
When equipped with the hard-drive-based navigation option, the interface is much more intuitive. The interface seems designed to work best in this configuration, which would explain why the middle-of-the-road Premium package seems so clunky. With this Murano, we weren't able to test the navigation system, which includes navigation, a touch-screen monitor, voice recognition, XM NavTraffic, a 9.3GB hard drive for music storage, and a CompactFlash slot for playing MP3/WMA files. However, we can assume that it performs similarly to the interface in the 2008 Infiniti M45x, tested earlier.
Unfortunately, to even be able to add the $1,850 navigation system, buyers must first include the dual moonroof and Premium, Leather, and Technology packages (which are standard on the LE trim level) at an additional charge of $5,670.
Under the hood
The 2009 Murano offers only one engine/gearbox combination, a 265 horsepower V-6 mated to the Xtronic continuously variable transmission. The lack of fixed gear ratios makes the ride buttery smooth and engine noise virtually imperceptible at cruising speeds. The sluggish response that typically plagues CVT transmissions is still apparent, but downshift lag of standard automatics has been greatly reduced.
If this sight is familiar, it's because the 3.5-liter V-6 is the heart of Nissan's lineup.
The 3.5-liter power plant is the same V-6 that also motivates about half of Nissan's model lineup in some form or other, so the company has had plenty of time to refine its performance. Tipping into the gas pedal produces decent, but certainly not neck snapping, acceleration that's good enough to make confident freeway merges.
The Murano won't win any stoplight contests, but that's not really the point. According to Nissan, in this configuration the Murano nets an EPA-rated 18 mpg city and 23 mpg highway and an ULEV rating by the state of California. Our test model hovered about 18.5 mpg during our testing, according to the trip computer.
An available all-wheel-drive system, such as the one on our test model, is the only power train option that can be added by potential buyers. Under normal driving conditions, the system behaves identical to the front-wheel-drive model, delivering 100 percent of power to the front wheels until things get slippery, at which point it can send up to 50 percent of power to the rear. When things get too slick and you need maximum traction, the differential can be locked into all-wheel-drive mode. This is a neat feature that's not very common in small SUVs and would be especially helpful in the snow. Regardless of power train layout, all Murano models are equipped with anti-lock brakes, traction control, and stability control.
Available all-wheel drive or not, the Murano is no off-roader. Although its suspension is tuned to soak up bumps, the Murano is better adapted for dodging potholes and smoothing out highway expansion joints than fording rivers and blazing trails. Through the tight turns of urban San Francisco, the Nissan handled surprisingly well for a vehicle of its size.
In sum
The Murano's suggested price of $29,480 quickly balloons to $37,000 when you add all of the packages required to get the tech options we actually wanted. The sporty Mazda CX-7 could be similarly equipped for about $3,000 less (although it still doesn't have an available Bluetooth option). While both vehicles can be had with all-wheel drive, the standard CVT on the Murano lets it get better fuel economy, despite its larger engine and more horsepower, making it the better deal over the long run.
Although the model we tested wasn't tech-laden, there are many good tech options available for the Murano, earning it a high score for our cabin electronics rating. The interface of the midlevel Premium package isn't integrated well and lowers what would otherwise be a high design score, because it complicates what should be simple functions. We liked the refined feel and smooth acceleration of the V-6 engine, but also took note of the relatively thrifty fuel economy when compared with other vehicles in its segment. The Murano also earned performance points for making the CVT standard and for offering an all-wheel-drive system with locking differential.