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Nissan Murano
Car Review
Nissan Murano
The Nissan Murano offers loads of practicality for a family, and comes highly equipped as standard. The Murano gives buyers exceptional value for money and shouldn’t easily disappoint.
Nissan Murano Car Review Summary
Nissan Murano
Nissan originally didn’t plan to release the Murano for sale in the UK. The car awas received so well Stateside that the company launched it in the UK as well. The Murano is a well-equipped 4x4 that is only limited by the car’s lack of a diesel option.
The Murano utilizes a 3.5-litre V6 engine, and combines it with the electronic four-wheel drive system. Add that to the car’s extremely stylish exterior design and you get a car that is modern, stylish, and practical from the inside and out. The vehicle is large even for its class.
The Murano’s interior is modern yet classy, and the iPod generation will appreciate its clean lines and sharp edges. The car’s cabin is very spacious and passenger room is good all-round.
The Murano is a large vehicle and hasproven to be too wide for many British roads. Judging the car’s extremities is made easier with the large wing mirrors.
The Murano is quite at home however cruising along on open stretches of road. Off-road ability is limited to light patches of mud, gravel, or sand.
The Nissan Murano standard level of equipment is quite impressive including such features as satellite navigation, leather upholstery and a high-grade stereo system. This high level of specification beats out the competition, but the company’s inability to offer a diesel option may seriously hinder sales.
Practicality
Despite the relatively low purchase price maintaining and servicing the Murano will become costly. Being a full size SUV, fuel economy will suffer. The Murano is reliable but when repairs are needed servicing charges will not be cheap.
The Nissan Murano cabin is large and spacious. Passengers will not be compromised as far as space is concerned. The boot is slightly smaller than one would expect due to the fact that the rear seats have been pushed back.
The controls in the Murano are of good quality and all of the car’s instrumentation works well. The fascia is uncluttered and buttons and knobs have a weighty, quality feel. The parking brake is operated via a foot pedal.
The Nissan Murano cabin is spacious, especially for front-seat passengers. Head and legroom are more than sufficient, and seats are very wide and supportive.
The Murano is lower and slightly easier to climb into than other vehicles in its class. The boot aperture is on the narrow side, but shouldn’t pose too much of a problem.
Parking the Murano can be very difficult. The car has very large wing mirrors but even with a rear-mounted camera, getting the massive Murano to fit into just any parking space will be a challenge.
Nissan Murano
Life Style
Steering the Nissan Murano is light, and accelerate quickly and the engine sound turns into a whine. When the car is switched into manual mode it provides nicely timed changes that are quick to engage. Off-road ability is less effective and is better when driven in front-wheel drive only. The car delivers power to the rear wheels when necessary.
This is a stylish and functional family car. The car works best in the suburbs due to its large size. The cabin is spacious enough to accommodate a family with plenty of room for comfort and durable enough to withstand the abuse that children dish out.
This is not the ideal first car in any sense of the word. It’s too expensive, too big, too powerful, and fuel economy is bad. There are definitely better first cars available for new drivers.
The Murano will be somewhat of a special sight on UK roads due to limited production. The company is seen as a very credible manufacturer of 4X4’s. More practical buyers will gladly opt for the Murano, while more fashion conscious buyers will probably opt for a more stylish badge.
Nissan Murano
Security and Safety
The Nissan Murano security package includes an engine immobiliser, but the company didn’t include a security alarm. This was probably a bit short sighted on Nissan’s part.
The Nissan Murano safety features include six airbags including side curtain airbags. ABS (anti-lock braking) and ESP (electronic stability programme) are also provided as standard.
The Finishing Touches
The Nissan Murano standard audio unit includes a Bose seven-speaker system. The system is very powerful and the sound quality is excellent. Also standard-fit is Nissan's DVD sat-nav system.It's among the easiest to use and most accurate guidance systems being offered by a major manufacturer.
The Nissan Murano interior comes with an excellent quality of leather seats. The car also comes standard with 18-inch wheels, xenon lights, a rear parking camera, tinted windows and an automatic gearbox.
