10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
103,889 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.

Get notified about new defects, investigations, recalls & lawsuits for the 2004 Nissan Murano:

Unsubscribe any time. We don't sell/share your email.

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #68

Aug 282015

Murano

  • miles
2004 Nissan Murano with transfer case leaking like many other 2003-2007 Murano's. Nissan needs to recall all of these cars and replace the parts.

- Marlborough, MA, USA

problem #67

Jul 062015

Murano

  • 105,154 miles
Got this car from my brother and began driving it at 104,800 miles on vehicle. Within a few days, waiting to turn left into a parking lot, depressing accelerator and nothing happened. This has succeedingly happened a dozen times, more often in heavy traffic from a stopped position. My mechanic has replaced the throttle body and checked all codes. Still, it is continuing. In reading complaints, both at this.gov site and other websites, this is a common and consistent fault with the cvt transmission for 03 & 04 Nissan. Neither Nissan nor www.NHTSA.dot.gov has responded. Does someone have to die before there is a reaction? it implies not only this, but also that Nissan understands it will do better financially dealing with the very few instances of lawsuits. The car qualifies for the lemon law, if there is such a law still in effect. It is worthless unless I spend around $5000. To replace a transmission that is faulty to begin with.

- Yakima, WA, USA

problem #66

Aug 012015

Murano

  • 130,000 miles
I purchased my Murano brand new in 2004. Until recently the car worked well enough, however whiles driving on the highway recently, the car stopped accelerating. Fortunately I was able to pull to the median safely without incident. After shutting the car off for a few moments and restarting the acceleration issue appeared to be solved. The following day the car completely stalled after I stopped at a light. After depressing the accelerator for a few seconds, the car took off as if it is in a drag race. Very, very dangerous. Shutting the car off and then putting it back on seems to temporarily solve the issue, however this has become a constant routine when driving the vehicle. When the car comes to a full stop (as in traffic) it stalls. When the accelerator is pressed, the car takes off. Took the car to the Nissan dealership where I was informed that the cause of the stalling is the power train; the cost of which to replace will be upwards of $4000. After doing my own research I found out that the issues I am experiencing is common to Muranos manufactured between 2003-2009 and that Nissan has steadfastly refused to recall the vehicles and fix these faulty cvts. This is quite perplexing as many thousands of people across the country have reported similar issues. Is Nissan waiting for someone to die before they replaced the defective cvts in their older vehicles? please force them to address this issue before it's too late.

- Los Angeles, CA, USA

problem #65

Jul 262015

Murano

  • miles
The contact owns a 2004 Nissan Murano. The contact stated that while driving down an incline approximately 20 mph, the transmission failed to respond until after the gear lever was shifted into park and then into the drive position. The vehicle resumed normally. The failure recurred three times. On a separate occasion, the transmission slipped out of gear for a few moments. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unavailable.

- Mcdonough, GA, USA

problem #64

Jun 252015

Murano

  • 149,000 miles
The contact owns a 2004 Nissan Murano. While driving at approximately 55 mph, the vehicle slowed down without having to depress the brake pedal. The failure recurred six times. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the throttle bottle needed to be replaced. The vehicle was later taken to a dealer where it was confirmed that the throttle bottle needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but the failure recurred. The vehicle was then taken back to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the power train failed and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The VIN was unavailable. The failure mileage was 149,000.

- Alderson, WV, USA

problem #63

May 052014

Murano 6-cyl

  • 106,198 miles
Transmission would periodically stop working. Was replaced by Nissan under extended warranty. Eleven months later and 17,000 miles transmission stopped working again due to cross contamination from radiator. My complaint is why didn't someone tell me about the radiator problem at the time on installing the new transmission. I would have paid for a new one myself. It is impossible for me too prevent that from happening since the leak is internal. From what the mechanics are telling me. That should not be possible to happen. My car blue book value went from $8500 high end to $1000. My car now has 123,634 miles on it now.

- Seal Beach, CA, USA

problem #62

Mar 282015

Murano 6-cyl

  • 86,800 miles
Just got this Murano. The other day went to go take off from a light. And the Murano wouldn't go anywhere. Finally limped to side of the road, turned the car off, turned car on, was fine for a day or two. After driving to grocery store, left parking lot. Stopped at light. Went to take off and wouldn't even rev up, I had a baby and a small child in my car, car behind me had to go up on sidewalk in order to avoid hitting me. This is now have has become a safety issue when it happens I have to floor it for about 15 seconds before it engages the throttle. Have read that it can be everything from a bad ground, cvt failure, transfer case failure, or the ipdm or ECM is fried. Mechanic can't narrow it down to what the problem is. Nissan want to charge me over $100 just to diagnose if they can. And from what I've read they won't even do much better than suggest changing out the transmission for a cost of $6,000. Why am I changing transmission on a car that has less than a hundred thousand miles" I am really disappointed, my family has owned Datsun/Nissan forever. My dad still has his 76 280 Z. my mom still has her 79 280 Z 2+2. my mom also has her 95 Nissan hardbody, which has been through hell and never once has had a problem. I have been a fan of Nissan forever because of the reliability and ease in which you can fix them. I am severely disappointed with Nissan for not covering the problems or recalling all the problems with the Murano. My family myself and my friends have now officially decided to boycott Nissan, they have now lost life-long customers. On a side note. Electronic throttles or fly by wire, is the dumbest thing in the world. If you have a burnt out bulb no throttle, chance of accident greater than 90%. faulty stereo, no throttle chance of accident greater than 90%. am I the only one whom sees a bad pattern here"

- Portland, OR, USA

problem #61

Feb 132015

Murano 6-cyl

  • 169,000 miles
I purchased vehicle 2/9/2015 since than I have taken to get 2 total vehicle inspections. Both inspections I have been given two different estimated problems. When at a complete stop and trying to take off vehicle will not go, after about 15 to 20 seconds it will take off at a rapid speed which scares me to the point where I am glad it doesn't happen on expressway I know me and my 8 yr old would be injured. I have been told it could be the transmission and/or the trans case both I have looked up and omg more complaints than any vehicle I have ever owned. Second issue is, when turning a corner left or right it hesitates like it doesn't want to go, I have been told its the trans case. If Nissan knows there are issues with the cvt why haven't they done a recall, especially before someone dies with the delayed hesitation. I just spent $6,000 on the vehicle because I was told go foreign you won't be unhappy, and here I am being told I need to spent another $6,000 to repair an issue that's has so many complaints.

- Lansing, IL, USA

problem #60

Feb 062015

Murano 6-cyl

  • 106,000 miles
Vehicle stopped while driving. Car was still running but would not move. Took it to the Nissan dealership and they said it was the transmission and the main problem with the Murano is the universal serious problem with the cvt transmission and transfer plate which costs $4600 to replace. The technician said Nissan will not fix the problem, I have to buy/replace the transmission.

- Detroit, MI, USA

problem #59

Dec 262013

Murano 6-cyl

  • 95,393 miles
I bought the 2004 Murano in December of 2013. From day one problems with shaking while driving. It has been in the shop 12 times since then. It had transmission failure twice now. First time they found metal debris in there. The second time was just over the warranty from first time by a few hundred miles! right after that the right back brake caliper was binding so that was replaced. So far they have put on new tires, a few weeks after that they balanced them thinking that was the problem. Had to replace axle shaft carrier bearing, I should have gotten rid of it after the first transmission failure!!!

- Ione, CA, USA

problem #58

Dec 242014

Murano

  • 107,500 miles
Mechanic says the differential has to be replaced. Cannot afford a long list of repairs already spent on this car, and now this, impossible to afford and will never buy a Nissan product ever again. I just read the long list of issues with the cvt transmissions on the 2003-8 Murano that all of us are being saddled with. How does Nissan expect any customer brand loyalty?

- West Hempstead, NY, USA

problem #57

Sep 182014

Murano 6-cyl

  • 91,000 miles
My cvt housing transfer case is cracked. I am having a problem accelerating my car. My car had to be towed to my home yesterday because of this issue. This is a huge safety issue.

- Bloomfield, NJ, USA

problem #56

Sep 062014

Murano 6-cyl

  • 96,700 miles
The transmission stopped working on the high way almost causing a collision with another vehicle.

- Norwalk, CT, USA

problem #55

Dec 282012

Murano 6-cyl

  • 134,444 miles
Basically once you have driven this car for awhile or stuck in traffic the car does not go at first when you press the gas. It just sits there for about a minute or so then it takes off. It is a serious safety concern because the car stalls causing others to be forced to slam into you if you are in front of them.

- Fort Lauderdale, FL, USA

problem #54

Aug 142013

Murano 6-cyl

  • 104,678 miles
When driving my Nissan Murano especially on hot days/in stop & go traffic, the vehicle fails to respond to the depression of the accelerator. When it happens (4X/week), the vehicle will be at a complete stop & not begin to accelerate after depressing the accelerator until around 3K rpms. The problem is resolved by cycling the vehicle off then on, given that the driving conditions don't remain in the form which appeared to initiate the incident. In a few instance the vehicle was left running, with the A/C on while I made a quick run into a convienence store. After backing out of the parking space without a problem, the vehicle exhibited it's slight hesitation while in drive, but then lurched forward at ~3K rpms, and acquired the desired speed and manuevers. After waiting at the light just outside of the parking lot, the vehicle would not respond to the depression of the accelerator in the form of movement. That is, the engine would rev to as much as 5K rpms, but not move more the.5-1mph. The usual cycling of the engine off & then on, would not resolve the problem. The next destination was nearby (1mi.) & downhill, so I was able to coast, in neutral, to that location whilst being honked at & nearly rear-ended by oncoming traffic. After the vehicle had sat at that location for ~3hrs, there were no other problems of the like. Vehicle also looses acceleration while on highway.

- Minnetonka, MN, USA

problem #53

Jul 012014

Murano

  • 123,000 miles
While on a stop light the vehicle took a very long time to accelerate at least after 10 seconds. This car is owned by my wife, thank god she wasn't on the highway with my kids. I took it do my mechanic and he said this is an ongoing issue with these cvt transmissions on these Muranos' mostly between 2003-2005. This should be a must recall as this can be a very drastic safety issue and flaw design on these transmissions. In order to repair this problem my family is looking between $2400 to $3000 on repairs. I am not worry about the cost of the repair, most likely I will have to buy a new car but this is a safety concern as there are a lot of Murano owners experiencing the same issue, and I hope that we don't have any fatalities due to this issue because it can occur on any Murano between 2003-2005 as low as 75,000 miles.

- Providence, RI, USA

problem #52

Jul 112013

Murano 6-cyl

  • 99,375 miles
When vehicle is driven a bit the transmission has no power on startup at light. You have to pump the accelerator several times before regaining power. After this is happened the transmission looses power at all different speeds. This is truly unsafe and I am afraid to drive it on a freeway.

- Goodyear, AZ, USA

problem #51

May 092014

Murano 6-cyl

  • 72,900 miles
I was driving on my way to a near highway with my two children, and I heard a small knocking noise. I slowed down to a near parking lot, because I thought it was an engine cover that was loose, but the vehicle came to an abrupt stop. When I had it towed, after mothers day weekend, I was told that the problem was the transfer case. Nissan offers a warranty for the cvt transmission (due to known failures with it) that covers 10 years 120,000 miles, but does not include the transfer case (which is another known problem with the 03 04 Murano models). It cost $3,178 to fix the problem at the Nissan dealership (which I had done). When looking for this part there is a vast increase in price between the 03 04 model in comparison to any other model, because there is such a higher demand for this particular part (which indicates that this is a frequent problem with these models). I was told at the dealership that the seals from the transmission were leaking, hence why it broke. The problem is, that I was at that same dealership not too long before due to an alternator problem, and they gave me a list of problems with the vehicle which included: The belt, the belt tensioner, alternator, wheel bearing, and rear brakes, but never mentioned leaking seals on the transfer case. There are way too many factors indicating that there was a manufacturing/engineering problem with the transfer case on these two models that was fixed on later models. I do not feel safe driving vehicle. I asked Nissan to repurchase the vehicle or give me some sort of solution to this problem, because I do not feel safe driving it after the last experience with it, and they declined. Had this failure occurred at the highway it could have been fatal. On top of that the Nissan dealership returned my vehicle, after a $3,178 fix, with a cracked windshield and will not respond for it. Unbelievable.

- Hackettstown , NJ, USA

problem #50

Jan 302013

Murano 6-cyl

  • 159,000 miles
I purchased my SUV new in 2004 I have followed all required dealer maintenance. Last year the SUV began to seek to stall or ignore the accelerator. If I pressed the gas to the floor the SUV would not move, then suddenly it would take off. It seems to have this issue randomly and even seems to stall as I make left turns across traffic lanes. Today was scary, I need my vehicle to get to work, but I'm afraid to drive it. There are hundreds of consumer issues on line all with the same issue. Nissan extended warranties for this issue but never notified most of us. Like Toyota will there have to be fatalities in order for your Agency to force a recall and hold them accountable? clearly Nissan knew the cvt transmissions were faulty, are faulty. I don, T expect a response but something needs to be done. Protect us.

- Charlotte, NC, USA

problem #49

Jun 082014

Murano

  • 150,000 miles
Rattling noise occurred couple months ago then heard winding noise during slow speeds. Yesterday, there was loud clanking noise at 25mph and the car stopped.

- Daly City, CA, USA

Read the next 20 complaints »