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Nissan

Test Drive: Nissan Murano remake is striking, smooth

James R. Healey
USA TODAY
Nissan says it wanted the styling of the 2015 Murano crossover SUV to be dramatic, provocative. It resembles the Resonance concept car at the Detroit auto show in 2013.

Nissan revolutionized the look of crossover SUVs when it sprung the distinctive 2003 Murano on the world.

After a tepid first year, while shoppers got used to the look, Murano began selling well, so it must have hit the right buttons.

Second-generation Murano was evolutionary, and Nissan decided, "Let's go back to the original concept. Be revolutionary" for the third time around, says product planner Nolian Diaz.

Now the remake is here ... and what odd styling the 2015 has.

Those gratuitous juts or spikes above the rear wheels have an unsettling resemblance to the hips of gaunt fashion models.

Of course, reasonable people often disagree on matters of taste, so you might like the look. Nissan — worried the design would be too polarizing — ran it through consumer clinics to reassure itself it wasn't out in left field, and says the clinic participants were overwhelmingly positive.

It does hew closely to the appearance of the Resonance show car from a couple of years ago, so it is arguably exotic, advanced.

Keep in mind the target buyers: Kid-free, fashion-forward professionals, ages 35 to 45, who want little to do with truck-like attributes but favor the ride height, interior room and cargo space of a crossover utility — and who get a kick out of being provocative.

Their shopping lists probably include the Ford Edge, Hyundai Santa Fe and, among those eying the high-end Murano Platinum, the Lexus RX, Nissan says — though the RX isn't provocative or fashion-forward.

Our tester, a prototype of the Platinum series all-wheel-drive — $43,745 in production form — had a beige interior that was striking, mainly in a good way. The white-gray shadings in the trim seemed a bit garish, but Test Drive won't be surprised if that interior's chosen by many buyers.

The trim finish is called "jasper pearlescent" and is supposed to resemble mother of pearl, for a premium appearance, says Scott Gorte, senior marketing manager.

Behind the wheel, the main thing we noticed is how easy it is to drive the new Murano smoothly. That's satisfying. And if you tote humans very often, they'll appreciate it, too.

Diaz says bingo: "Our target was precisely to develop a vehicle that's comfortable to ride in and to drive on a day-to-day basis. It's not for the enthusiast who likes to drive fast."

Contributing to the smooth personality: Brakes that apply smoothly, if a bit softly for our taste. Steering that points the machine where you intend without fuss, but also without the direct road feel that would add a sporting touch. A chassis that handles bumps with a shrug, though it lacks the crisp agility that would add a measure of fun.

The new Murano has Nissan's Zero-Gravity seats, which are uncomfortable to Test Drive, though your physique might like 'em, as another driver on a seven-hour road trip did. And now they're in the back as well as up front.

Nissan wants them to be no-pressure seating, but even after trying adjustments interminably, they felt the opposite to Test Drive — pressure just where it wasn't wanted or needed.

Damning with faint praise? Not at all. In Murano's favor:

•The everyday usefulness and reward of smooth driving without special effort.

•Standard features that include some of our favorites, such as a tire-pressure monitor with actual readouts for each tire. And one-touch auto-up/down front windows even on the base model, not just auto-down.

•A friendly infotainment/connectivity system that fell in love with Test Drive's Windows phone. By the time we looked at the phone screen, it was connected for voice and music. That's how it's supposed to work.

•A back seat that has actual adult-size legroom.

•And — ta-da! — the CVT (continuously variable-ratio transmission) shifts, and that makes it livable. "Our goal is to have a more natural rising-rpm feel," says Steve Powers, Nissan powertrain senior manager.

So, accelerate hard, let up a tad as you reach your intended speed, and the transmission drops into a different gear and the engine speed falls. The transmission doesn't just ease back on engine rpm, as CVTs usually do. Stomp the gas and the gearbox likewise behaves like one, downshifting to a definite ratio for acceleration, instead of revving the engine in nagging fashion until the car's speed catches up.

It'll still behave as a pure CVT in some cases. That, and the fact it picks the right ratio for shifting instead of using pre-sets, improves mileage, Power says.

The re-done CVT and a 146-pound weight reduction result in a government combined rating of 24 mpg, up from 20 in the previous version with the same engine.

Murano's not our cuppa. We don't believe it's necessary to sacrifice a sporting feel to get smoothness, nor to dramatize the styling the way Nissan has. But we think the new machine should satisfy a lot of buyers.

2015 Nissan Murano highlights:

•Styling: Ugly to our eyes, maybe not yours.

•Driving feel: Easy to be smooth, a big plus.

•Interior: Well-done, roomy.

2015 Nissan Murano details:

•What? Redesign of midsize, four-door, five-passenger crossover SUV. Front-wheel drive (FWD) or all-wheel drive (AWD).

•When? On sale since Dec. 8.

•Where? Made at Canton, Miss., for U.S. and most other markets.

•How much? $30,445, including $885 shipping, for base S FWD to $45,860 for Platinum AWD with all available factory options. Add another $1,190 for Nissan-listed features such as floor mats and mud flaps that the dealer can install.

•What makes it go? Carryover 3.5-liter V-6 rated 260 horsepower at 6,000 rpm, 240 pounds-feet of torque at 4,400 rpm; Xtronic CVT (continuously variable-ratio automatic transmission).

•How big? Similar to Ford Edge, its main rival.

Murano weighs 3,790 to 4,017 lbs. Cargo space is 39.6 cubic feet behind second row seat, 69.9 cu. ft. when second row folded flat.

Turning-circle diameter 38.7 ft.

Rated to tow up to 1,500 lbs.

•How thirsty? FWD and AWD both rated 21 mpg in the city, 28 highway, 24 combined.

AWD test vehicle registered 22.4 mpg (4.46 gallons per 100 miles) in 700 miles of mostly highway cold-weather driving, 15.7 mpg (6.37 gal/100 mi.) in suburban short-hop driving in cold weather.

Burns regular, tank holds 19 gal.

•Overall: Provocative styling, roomy interior, easy to drive smoothly.

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