Beach wheels: Nissan Murano 2019 solidly refreshed

The 2019 Nissan Murano sports an updated, more aggressive styling.

The 2019 Nissan Murano sports an updated, more aggressive styling.

I recently test drove the 2019 Nissan Murano SL and came away impressed with the care and quality that Nissan put into this crossover sport-ute.

The designers of the Murano made artful choices with the Murano’s sheet metal styling. The design conveys a sense of speed while still being true to its utilitarian SUV roots. For 2019 Nissan redesigned the Murano’s grill, headlights and taillights, giving the vehicle a more aggressive feel. 

My tester, which came in the SL trim line, offers a handsomely designed cabin with leather quilted supportive seats. I found the Murano’s two-row cabin to be spacious and quiet but wasn’t terribly impressed with the Murano’s steering, which I found composed but a bit dead. I also found there to be a fair amount of body roll.

My tester had a heated, leather-wrapped steering wheel, heated front and rear seats, power moonroof, an intuitive, 8-inch nav-entertainment touch screen and a great sounding 11-speaker Bose audio system. Nissan includes both Android and Apple CarPlay and no less than four USB ports.

The Murano sports a 3.5 liter, 260 horsepower V6 engine that produces 240 lb. feet of torque, giving the vehicle quite a bit of get up and go. The engine is mated to a smooth-shifting, continuously variable transmission.

Safety equipment includes blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert, high-beam assist, lane departure warning alert, and rear emergency braking. The Murano in this trim line also comes with LED-based headlights, fog lights and taillights.

My tester offered a mid-range, 31 cubic feet of cargo space — 65 cubic feet with the back seats folded down.

Gas mileage is 20 mpg in the city and 28 mpg on the highway.

My tester, with its SL trim line, came in with a manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $42,885. The Murano competes generally with the Ford Edge, the Hyundai Santa Fe, the Chevrolet Blazer and the Honda Passport.

First premiering in 2015, the Murano for 2019 is refreshed for this model year. The vehicle represents a solid value in the mid-sized, sport utility vehicle segment and was fun to drive.. 

My suggestion is that you shop around but take the Murano out for a good long test drive. I think you will come away suitably impressed.

Jeff Mitchell is a South Bay freelance journalist. ER

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