2025 Nissan Murano First Drive: Friendly Confines

When planning new vehicle launch events in December, car companies tend toward warm-weather locations like Southern California, Arizona, or Spain if they want to get spendy. Smooth dry roads and blue skies make for happier driving impressions.

My test of the fully revised, 2025 Nissan Murano, conversely, was held amidst a snowstorm in Southeast Michigan. As a result, you’ll find fewer original photos in the resulting galleries and no driving notes about “at-limit handling.” But I maintain that driving a midsize crossover in some real weather is a better test of that kind of vehicle, overall.

The Murano is aimed at the fattest part of the midsize SUV market, where people (from empty nesters to moms and dads) will expect it to do everything, and do it well. And the good news is that after a day of driving I can confirm that it’ll take more than crappy Michigan roads and crappy upper midwest weather to throw the new Nissan off its game.

Complex Competition

Today the midsize SUV or crossover segments are a lot more diverse than was the case when Nissan debuted the Murano back in the early 2000s. SUVs in the $40k-$50k range with this footprint include off-road-focused rides like the Ford Bronco and new Toyota 4Runner, or three-rows like the Hyundai Santa Fe, Toyota Grand Highlander, and Kia Teluride.

Nissan likes to position the Murano in a quasi-luxury context and calls out the aging

and slightly weird

as the competitive set. But the reality is that Murano will be cross-shopped with about half of the new vehicles on sale today, at similar price points. (In terms of sales volume, the Ford Explorer and Honda Pilot are the biggest competitors here, so I’ll use those as benchmarks for analysis.)

A Techy-Meets-Trippy Cabin

The

has a great, potentially even class-leading cabin. (The accolade being somewhat dependent on where you cordon off that slippery “mainstream midsize SUV” class.)

The upholstery immediately stands out as a class above what’s expected here. Elaborately quilted seats are trimmed in two-tone leather, and are as nice to sit in as they are to look at. Nissan’s trademarked “zero gravity” seats felt nice even over my few hours in the car, but I imagine they really soar where long commutes or road trips come into play. I drove a

directly after the Nissan event, and though I’d never thought twice about them in the past, the Mazda chairs felt downright rude compared to the Murano’s seating.

I also like the vaguely trippy, color-shifting trim piece at the bottom of the dash; made from a laminate of colored films that Nissan has dubbed “Murano Glass.” It’s a neat execution with inventive materials that also makes the faux wood strip – which wraps the start button and the HVAC controls – look like an afterthought by comparison.

Duel 12.3-inch displays – one in front of the driver for the instrument panel and the other centrally located for infotainment control – give just enough real estate for easy control without creeping into the driver’s eye line. Google built-in is included on Murano’s SL and Platinum-grade vehicles, and Apple users will benefit from wireless CarPlay.

Tale Of The Tape

Murano is only available as a two-row vehicle, so if you need seating for more than five look elsewhere. And a quick look at the interior space specs back up the idea that this SUV might be better suited for drivers who more frequently utilize the front seats, as opposed to every chair in the house.

Despite the fact that the

and

have larger exterior dimensions than the Murano (and a third row), the Nissan wins the day in terms of headroom and legroom for the front passengers. Legroom especially – a critical factor for tall people like me – is generous at 44.3 inches compared with 43.0 for the Ford and 41.0 for the Honda.

Behind the first row, however, Murano loses out. The longer Honda not only has 4.5-inches more rear legroom than the Nissan, it also manages a half-inch more second-row headroom. It’s a similar story for the Explorer, which tops the Murano in second-row space, as well. And, as you’d expect, the maximum cargo room for the Nissan, at 64 cubic feet, is dwarfed by the 80-plus cubes offered by the two benchmark competitors.

Interior Dimensions

North Country Driving

While I’ve got the spec sheet out I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that the new Murano – which certainly looks the part of the sleek, urbane, mall-crawler – actually has a surprising amount of ground clearance. With 8.3-inches of clearance, the Nissan is actual a bit more capable of keeping clear of obstacles than our aforementioned Honda and Ford, which have 7.3- and 7.9-inches of clearance, respectively.

That fact was appreciated as I set out on my drive route – which was entirely suburban but so choked with snow I figured I might need to crest a small snowbank to get myself into or out of a photo location.

The Murano didn’t leave me stranded and performed admirably on surfaces that ranged from ice, to slush, to multiple-inches of unpacked snow. SL- and Platinum-grade vehicles like mine get Nissan’s standard all-wheel drive, and shod with Bridgestone’s Alenza model of all-season tires, I was really impressed with grip in the wet and traction through deeper snow. I’m still a snow tire guy but it seems like every season all-seasons get better, and Bridgestone makes some of the best.

Exterior Dimensions

Let’s Get Dynamic

Praise for AWD and good rubber to the side, I didn’t get to push the Murano in a way that let me explore performance… which is fine. The turbocharged 2.0-liter engine pushes out a completely adequate 241 horsepower and 260 pound-feet of torque, and when combined with the 9-speed automatic transmission the SUV feels quick away from a stoplight and great in city or highway traffic.

There’s no question that this powertrain – rated for middling 21 City, 27 Highway, and 23 Combined mpg numbers – makes enough power for easy performance. But I will say that it’s buzzy character was a little disappointing. That’s not because I expect a turbo four to make glorious noises, but rather that I’d hoped the Murano would be better sound insulated so I wouldn’t have to listen to the engine/exhaust much, at all.

Another curious dynamic hit-and-miss pairing was the experience of the new electric power steering system (the old Murano still had a hydraulic setup) versus the overall suspension tuning. Typically you’d expect these two systems to be somewhat in harmony – set up in more sporting vehicles for quicker response and more direct feedback, and a bit slower and softer as you approach the luxury segment.

Meanwhile, the suspension tune and resultant ride quality was less well resolved. I was surprised by how busy the Murano felt through the wheels, with lots of chatter from badly surfaced roads transmitted through the floorboards and those great seats. Weird. I’m going to try to drive the Murano under more normal, drive, and snow-free conditions to reassess but this felt like a miss.

Conclusion

The 2025 Nissan Murano starts at $40,470 for the base, front-drive SV trim, and walks up to $49,600 for the AWD Platinum with every bell and any manner of whistle. Don’t forget to add a $1,390 “shipping and handling” fee to each of those numbers, in addition to any cost-extra options.

Believe it or not that’s right in the sweet spot of pricing for a midsize SUV today, and considering that the Murano looks great, has a fantastic cabin, and a good overall suite of technology, I think it’s a fair value. For those shoppers looking for a cozy two-row SUV with a bit of flair, whether they live in a sunshine state or the snowbelt like me, the new Murano is a must for a test drive, at least.