MURANO STANDS THE TEST OF TIME
Nissan crossover proof buyers should not always be seduced by newest model
Even in the face of new-andimproved technology, there’s still a place for tried-and-true.
In the interests of fuel economy, many automakers are outfitting their larger vehicles with tiny turbocharged engines, churning a lot of power out of small displacement.
But I’m still a fan of naturallyaspirated engines, and that includes the V-6 that Nissan continues to put into its Murano crossover.
This vehicle’s been around for a long time — it was introduced in 2003 but still makes a very good impression in this increasingly crowded segment, with its comfortable and comprehensive all-around package.
It comes in four trim levels, starting at $31,498 for the base S, which powers its front wheels only. The other three are allwheel drive, ranging from the SV at $37,998 to the top-level Platinum at $44,598. My tester was the SL, which slots between those two at $41,648. It was further equipped with the Midnight Edition appearance package, exclusive to the SL, which adds 20-inch black wheels, black trim, illuminated sill plates and rubber floor liners for $42,648.
The Murano gets some upgrades for 2018, including forward-collision warning, emergency braking, GPS navigation, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as standard on all trim levels.
A hands-free power liftgate and dual-pane sunroof are now added to everything above the S trim, while the SL gets heated rear seats and an auto-dimming rear-view mirror.
The driving experience is pretty much what most people want in an everyday commuter vehicle. I like the smoothness and simplicity of non-turbo engines, and the Murano’s 3.5-litre V-6 delivers just that, with 260 horsepower and 240 lb.-ft. of torque that builds with linear acceleration on moderate throttle, but with more than enough grunt when needed to make your move on the highway.
It’s mated to a CVT that, under almost all conditions, is so well done that you might not realize at first that there aren’t any conventional gears inside it.
Should you want to take it a step beyond, you can use the shift lever to manually move between pre-set points in the transmission that mimic gears. The all-wheel-drive system primarily powers the front wheels, but sends torque to the rear ones as needed for driving conditions.
Against the published figure of 9.9 L/100 kilometres in combined driving, I got 10.1 over a week with it, which seemed more than fair. One thing to remember when comparing this segment: Those small turbo engines can have impressive fuel numbers on paper, and they are far more efficient than turbocharged engines of times past, but getting that bigger-engine power out of them can often have a noticeable effect on how much fuel you’re using. Rather than just compare numbers, consider how you’re going to actually load and use it.
The Murano is not a sports car; the nicely-light-for-tightmanoeuvring steering gains just enough heft at higher speeds, but there’s very little road feel through the wheel. The suspension soaks up bumps but isn’t too soft, and the cabin is quiet. That makes it ideal for longer road trips, especially with its comfortable and supportive seats.
The rear chairs aren’t quite as curvy as the front ones, but they still work well, especially since back-seat drivers get a decent amount of legroom. Those rear seats are easy to fold flat to give you extra cargo space, but the Murano is a little challenged on cargo capacity in comparison to some of its competitors — that extra legroom has to be made up somewhere. There’s also a shortage of space to conveniently stash small items up front, with just a small open cubby in the centre console, aside from the covered console box.
The dash mimics the Murano’s curving grille, where the centre stack provides plenty of buttons for operating the climate control and infotainment system — always a plus in my book, where frequently-used functions should be up front and dead simple, rather than buried in computer screens. Even when you do have to delve into the touchscreen infotainment system, everything is intuitive and with large, straightforward icons.
The sharply pitched back window robs the Murano of some of its rearward visibility. All models come with a rear-view camera while the SL and up include a 360-degree bird’s-eye view that you can pinpoint to show what’s ahead, behind or alongside.
The saying goes that “time will tell” if a new product has long-term appeal, and the Murano has passed its test with flying colours.