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9 speed, Automatic w/OD
Intercooled Turbo Regular Unleaded I-4
All Wheel Drive, Front Wheel Drive
From its inception more than 20 years ago, the Nissan Murano crossover SUV has marched to the beat of a different drummer. Its adventurous design made it stand out as more of an artistic style piece than a purpose-built utility machine, a sedan substitute with a personal luxury persona. The all-new, fourth-generation 2025 Murano again defies convention with an attention-grabbing design that differentiates it from competing midsize five-passenger crossover SUVs.
It's a compelling choice for young professionals looking for a distinctive offering with near luxury-level features, the latest in driving-assistance and infotainment tech, and on-road driving sophistication without venturing into Infiniti's price territory.
Photo: Ron Sessions
To my eye, the 2025 Murano's exterior design, while unique and distinctive, takes some of its overall shape and proportions from the Nissan Ariya electric vehicle and more than a bit of inspiration from the four-bar horizontal grille and thin, slit-like LED headlamps from the also redesigned Nissan Kicks. The Murano's grille also artfully integrates an array of daytime running lamps that produce a V-motion design graphic that's quite striking.
At the rear, a full-width LED light bar, downward sloping roofline, and hidden exhaust outlets present a clean and modern appearance. Multiple two-tone paint upgrades and newly available 21-inch wheels add curb appeal.
The Murano sports dual 12.3-inch dashboard displays inside the well-kitted cabin, available massaging front seats, and a 64-color ambient lighting scheme.
Under the hood, Nissan's variable-compression turbocharged (VC-Turbo) 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine and nine-speed automatic transmission replace the previous 3.5-liter V6 and continuously variable automatic (CVT).
The two-row 2025 Nissan Murano has three trim levels: base SV, mid-level SL, and range-topping Platinum. The SV comes standard with front-wheel drive (FWD) or optional all-wheel drive (AWD). The SL and Platinum feature standard AWD. For 2025, base prices range from $41,860 for the SV FWD to $50,990 for the Platinum AWD, including the $1,390 destination charge.
For this 2025 Murano review, Nissan provided a test vehicle equipped with Platinum trim and the following options:
The test vehicle's manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRP) was $53,525, including the $1,390 destination charge to ship the SUV to your local dealership from the Smyrna, Tennessee, assembly plant.
Photo: Ron Sessions
As expected of a crossover SUV with slightly elevated seating, getting into the Murano is as easy as sliding your body sideways. There are no hard bottom seat bolsters to navigate past on your way to the standard, power-operated Zero Gravity front seats, a design that supports your legs and lower torso in all the right places. There's no scrimping for back-seat passengers either, as the outboard sections of the 60/40 rear bench also get Zero Gravity perches.
Moving up to the test vehicle's Platinum trim substitutes quilted, buttery semi-aniline seat coverings for the SV and SL's faux leather and adds seat cooling and massage functions to the lower trim's heated feature. During an hours-long road trip, the seatback massage session, activated by a tiny switch by the seat's other power controls, was tailorable for massage speed and intensity via the center infotainment screen.
The Murano's interior gives an upscale vibe with a clean, tech-forward dashboard that sweeps artistically into the doors. Wrapped, soft-touch surfaces grace the dashboard top and all touch points on the doors, console, and armrests. Ambient accent lighting—standard in all but the base SV—adds low-light drama. The dashboard is free of most switchgear, save for the pushbutton Start button and a band of backlit, touch-sensitive climate controls above the console.
The center console is home to the transmission's pushbutton shifter, dual cupholders, a small tray for keys and such, a small shelf, USB-C ports ahead of the shifter buttons, and a deep cubby under the generously padded center armrest. A large, floor-level tray under the console is perfect for a purse or tablet.
Although a tad cozy, I could easily fit my 6-foot, 2-inch frame in the back seat, which also comes with standard outboard heated bottom cushions in Platinum trim.
There are 32.9 cubic feet of cargo space behind the raised rear seat and a midsize-appropriate 63.5 behind the front seat. More stash space is available under the cargo floor around the spare tire well and in pockets for gallon jugs in the cargo area's rearmost corners.
Photo: Ron Sessions
The redesigned 2025 Murano comes standard with dual 12.3-inch landscape-format screens butted end to end—one for the driver and another for the infotainment system. The driver display includes the digital instrument cluster with access to the Murano's driver-assistance systems and offers custom configuration modes. The infotainment touchscreen provides access to audio entertainment, smartphone connectivity, vehicle settings, camera views, ambient lighting, climate controls, and various apps.
Standard equipment on all trims includes:
Additionally, SL and Platinum trims include:
The Murano SL and Platinum have a rich-sounding 10-speaker Bose premium audio system that replaces the base SV model's six-speaker AM/FM stereo. The Platinum test vehicle's Bose system provides pleasing fidelity over a broad sound spectrum.
Pairing my Samsung phone with the infotainment system and activating Android Auto was a breeze. Using Android Auto, I could make and receive calls easily and stream music from my Blues channel on Pandora.
The native Google Built-in system worked seamlessly for tasks such as selecting a SiriusXM channel or finding and navigating to remote points of interest using the steering-wheel voice-control button or the "Hey, Google" voice prompt, even for out-of-town destinations. The Google Maps feature provides highly detailed map views with topographic detail that one might expect from an overhead drone video feed.
Photo: Ron Sessions
For 2025, Nissan moves the Murano from the previous iteration's 260-horsepower 3.5-liter V6 and CVT powertrain to one using the brand's advanced, 241-hp, 2.0-liter four-cylinder VC-Turbo engine and a conventional nine-speed automatic transmission. The new Murano loses 19 hp in the swap but gains 20 pound-feet of torque.
Despite the 19 fewer horses, the new Murano sometimes feels punchy with eager bursts at heavier throttle application, but acceleration is uneven, with dips between gearshifts. Nissan uses a sound-enhancement system that gives the 2025 Murano a semi-sporty, more intense engine note, but the more melodic sounds and fluidic power flow from last year's V6 seemed to me more in keeping with the stylish crossover SUV's near-luxury product position.
The Murano has never been what you might consider a fun-to-drive machine for carving up twisty roads. That said, the new Murano's handling feels sharper, with flat cornering in curves and a firm but well-damped suspension that is more communicative with the road. Brake feel is excellent, with confident stopping power. Also, the steering is satisfyingly linear, but the effort feels artificially heavy at highway speeds.
Cruising on the highway, the new Murano felt solid, planted, and near-luxury-appropriate quiet with hushed road and wind noise.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the combined estimated fuel economy of both the FWD and AWD versions of the 2025 Murano is 23 mpg—the same as the outgoing 2024 model, despite the move from a naturally aspirated V6 to a turbocharged four-cylinder. I ran my 62-mile test route of city, highway, and residential roads and saw an indicated 24.3 mpg on the Murano's trip computer.
Photo: Ron Sessions
Nissan equips the 2025 Murano with an extensive array of standard safety and advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS). Nissan markets the core base-trim contents of the ADAS collection as Safety Shield 360. Elements include:
Also standard but not considered part of Safety Shield 360 are:
With the Murano's new electric power rack-and-pinion steering, lane-keeping assistance tidied up my driving on well-marked curvy road sections if I wandered slightly over the lane marker, coaxing the SUV back into the lane. On one occasion, the forward-collision warning system activated when another car cut sharply in front of me, triggering an alert, but not so much that the automatic emergency braking kicked in.
Nissan equipped my Murano Platinum test vehicle with ProPilot Assist 1.1, a hands-on driver-assistance technology that uses adaptive cruise control and lane-centering. It keeps the SUV centered in its lane and maintains a set speed and distance to the traffic ahead. It also works with the navigation system to slow for curves and can automatically adjust the set speed to match that displayed by the traffic-sign recognition system.
With the Murano's cozy coupe-like design, the high dashboard cowl, thick rear roof pillars, sharply sloping rear roofline, and small rear window reduce outward visibility. The active blind-spot warning system applies some opposite steering torque if the driver ignores the audible and visual warnings when a fast-moving car zooms into the Murano's rear-quarter blind spot.
Also, a big help with the Murano's reduced sightlines is the standard front and rear sonar parking sensors and automatic front or rear braking that activates if the driver fails to heed the warnings.
Nissan equips the Murano Platinum with a surround-view camera that offers an overhead view and eight selectable camera angles that are a big help when maneuvering around a crowded parking lot. One such view is an “invisible hood view” that displays the areas just ahead of and under the engine compartment. It shows the steering angle of the front wheels, which proved handy when I was angling into an automatic carwash.
At the time of writing, neither the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) nor the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has published crash-test results and safety ratings for the 2025 Nissan Murano.
According to the JD Power 2024 Initial Quality Study (IQS), the Nissan Murano ranks highest in the Midsize SUV segment. The Chevrolet Blazer and the Ford Edge are the next-highest-ranked models.
According to the JD Power 2024 Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study, the Hyundai Santa Fe ranks highest in the Midsize SUV segment. The Nissan Murano and the Chevrolet Blazer are the next-highest-ranked models.
Other 2025 Murano competitors include the Honda Passport, Subaru Outback, and Toyota Venza.
