Driven: 2025 Nissan Murano Makes Some Infinitis Obsolete

It’s been over a decade since Nissan last gave a full design to its midsize crossover, the Murano, and it clearly showed from behind the wheel. The third-generation Murano featured an aging but surprisingly efficient V6 engine, dated interior, and uninspiring continuously variable transmission. There’s some great news for the all-new 2025 Nissan Murano, as all of those detrimental pieces have been replaced. This is an important vehicle for Nissan, and a much-needed overhaul for the Murano.

The fourth-generation Murano is more than just a facelift, and you can tell by looking at it. An all-new design looks reminiscent of the all-electric Ariya, as does the totally revamped interior. Nissan has finally retired the Murano’s tried and true V6 in favor of a familiar 2.0-liter Variable Compression turbocharged four-cylinder that was previously used in the Altima, and is currently found under the hood of the Infiniti QX50, soon-to-be-retired QX55, and QX60. Are these changes enough to take the Murano from outdated to date-worthy? We found out after a week behind the wheel.

Exterior Looks: Well, That’s Different

After looking the same for over a decade, the Murano gets a much-needed styling revamp. The front end features what Nissan calls “Crystal Cube” LED headlights, which sit at either side of a black strip that looks a bit like the new Ferrari 12 Cilindri if you squint hard enough. Beneath the strip, the daytime running lights are hidden in the streaks of the V-motion grille, which is another unique touch. The back end looks wide thanks to a body-length LED taillight strip and exaggerated rear fenders. Not everyone will dig the styling, but we have to applaud Nissan for creating such an interesting design.

There are some interesting colors available, including Scarlet Ember Tintcoat, Deep Ocean Blue Metallic, and our tester’s Aurora Blue Metallic. Unfortunately, the premium colors cost $425 and most of the two-tone options with a Super Black roof are $925. 20-inch gloss black wheels come standard on the SL trim, while the SV gets a different style wheel with black aero covers. Upgrading to the Platinum brings 21-inch machine-finished wheels with Gun metallic aero covers. They look intricate, but may become dated in 10 years’ time.

Overall length stays mostly the same, growing by just a tenth of an inch to 192.9 inches. The wheelbase remains identical to the outgoing model at 11.2 inches. The width has been increased by 2.6 inches, giving this new car a more athletic stance than before.

Interior & On-Board Technology: Infiniti Luxury

The outgoing Murano was horribly outdated by the time it left the market, but Nissan is starting strong with this new third-generation model. It features modern technology, interesting design, and luxurious materials, especially on the top Platinum trim that we tested. There’s a nice amount of storage up front thanks to the push-button shifter design, and there’s a nice amount of space in the back for passengers and cargo. However, there are some oddities to these numbers. Rear legroom is lower than the outgoing model, but front legroom is higher, resulting in an overall increase. Cargo volume is slightly larger behind the second row, but 3.5 cubic feet smaller overall.

The base SV and mid-level SL trims include heated leatherette seats in either Gray or Graphite. All trims get an eight-way power-adjustable driver’s seat and a six-way power-adjustable passenger seat; a two-way power lumbar comes standard, while the SL and Platinum upgrade to four-way lumbar with a driver’s memory seat. Upgrading to the Platinum brings semi-aniline leather seats with diamond-quilting that wouldn’t look out of place in an Infiniti product. These front seats are ventilated and massaging on the Platinum and the rear seats are heated. Customers get a more interesting color selection, including Graphite Mahogany, Ivory Caramel (pictured), and a bold Twilight Blue.

Infotainment: Welcomed Update

Every trim gets a dual-screen setup with a 12.3-inch digital gauge cluster and a 12.3-inch touchscreen infotainment system. This exact setup is found in other Nissan products, and we like its functionality. The interface is intuitive, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are included, and there’s even built-in Google assistance on the SL and Platinum grades. A 10-speaker Bose Premium Series audio system sounds decent on the SL and Platinum, while the SV gets a basic six-speaker setup. If we had just one complaint, the touch-capacitive climate controls are hidden behind a wood panel, and are difficult to click multiple times without straining your finger.

Performance: Good Riddance, CVT

Nissan swapped out the outgoing Murano’s naturally aspirated V6 engine in favor of the Variable Compression (VC) Turbo four-cylinder used in various other group vehicles. It essentially swaps the horsepower and torque figures with the V6, producing 241 hp and 260 lb-ft of torque (260 hp and 240 lb-ft from the V6). Most notably, power is now sent to the front wheel or optional all-wheel-drive (standard on SL and Platinum) through a nine-speed automatic transmission. The much-maligned continuously variable transmission (CVT) from the previous model is gone. Hooray.

Performance Impressions

Though the internet seems to have nothing but complaints about Nissan’s CVT, we never minded it in the Murano. Combined with a smooth V6, it delivered healthy, albeit less-than-sporty acceleration. This new four-cylinder is down on power (though torque is up), and our recorded 0-60 mph time of 7.61 seconds is slower than the outgoing V6 model. Most customers won’t notice, however, but they will notice that there is no longer a dreaded “CVT drone.” The Murano now has a geared transmission, meaning it has real shifts that provide a sportier sound under acceleration. There’s a decent amount of noise from the four-pot engine, but the cabin is so nicely insulated, it’s not overwhelming.

Ride and Handling

As before, the Murano is a comfortable vehicle that borders on luxury levels of softness. It’s not exactly sporty, but the new transmission helps the powertrain feel more eager during spirited driving. We particularly love the Murano on the highway, where the soft suspension and quiet cabin make for a great road trip vehicle. It’s odd that Nissan didn’t give the Murano the latest ProPilot Assist 2.1 system, instead opting for 1.1, meaning it doesn’t have hands-free driving available. This is a fine omission though, since our previous experience with Nissan’s hands-free driving was frustrating at best.

Fuel Economy

Despite losing two cylinders and gaining a turbocharger, two changes that typically improve fuel economy, the Murano is actually less frugal than the outgoing model, depending on what kind of driving you do. FWD and AWD models are both rated at 21/27/23 mpg city/highway/combined, compared to 20/28/23 with the old V6. If you plan to do mostly city driving, you will see a slight improvement, but highway fuel economy is slightly worse. We’d love to see Nissan offer a Murano hybrid to bridge the gap between this and the all-electric Ariya.

Verdict & Pricing: Why Buy A QX50?

Driving the 2025 Murano makes us wonder why anyone would still walk into an Infiniti dealership to purchase a QX50 or QX55. Those vehicles will be discontinued after the 2025 model year, and we won’t miss them because the Murano is superior in nearly every measurement. It’s larger, more modern, and cheaper than the Infiniti models; it even has the same engine (albeit with slightly lower output) and a nicer transmission. The SV trim starts at $40,470 ($41,470 with AWD), which is $2,530 less than the entry-level QX50 and $9,680 less than the QX55. The SL trim gets AWD standard starting at $46,600 and even the top Platinum trim undercuts the QX55 at $49,600.

Nissan took the Murano from laughably old to impressively different. It features a nice engine that’s no longer hampered by an economy-minded transmission, fresh technology, and styling that stands apart in a sea of bland crossovers. Is this the game-changing vehicle that will turn around Nissan’s corporate misfortunes? Probably not. But it is a nice step in the right direction as a vehicle we wouldn’t hesitate to recommend.