2.3

hardly worth mentioning
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
65,769 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2004 Nissan Murano transmission problems

transmission problem

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2004 Nissan Murano Owner Comments (Page 1 of 3)

problem #48

Jul 212011

Murano

  • 160,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I have a 2004 Nissan Murano. I did only a little bit of research before I bought it because I really liked the way they looked and drove. Shortly after the purchase, I began to read about the poor quality of the cvt transmission. I bought the car with 100,000 kms on it so I was quite worried as I don't think many people can afford a new transmission at several thousands of dollars, especially me. Not long after that, Nissan came out with an extended warranty on the cvt's because pretty much every Murano owner has a problem with it sooner or later. Needless to say, im at 160,000 kms on it right now and sure enough, im having big problems now. A huge knocking noise is coming from the transmission that kind of sounds like a helicopter taking off. Every once in a while for some time now, when I've been at a stop light, I can literally put the gas pedal down to the floor and there will be no response for about 5 seconds, then the car will jolt forward. My Murano is at the Nissan dealership right now and they're telling me the problem is coming from the front differential and that they won't cover it under the new warranty. The differential is inside of the transmission and therefore part of it, yet they won't cover it. So right now im pretty much at the point where I need to get rid of this thing asap and get something else. If Nissan refuses to step up to the plate with this worldwide problem, unfortunately im going to have to turn my back on Nissan from here on out which is really too bad, because this is the 3rd Nissan I've had with only minor issues until now. The magnitude of this problem is more than enough for me to never buy a Nissan again. Somebody needs to do something about this. I wish I would have known that Nissan teamed up with fischer price to build the Murano. I never would have bought one!

- Kitchener, 00, USA

problem #47

Jun 042011

Murano 6-cyl

  • 150,000 miles
My vehicle does not respond to depression of the gas pedal. It does this spontaneously, which is dangerous when making a left hand turn through an intersection with oncoming traffic. I took my car to a restaurant last night and when we left to come home the vehicle would not travel at speeds over 10mph. We had to turn the vehicle off and back on at all stop signs/lights in order for it to go at all after making a stop. Immediately drove the vehicle straight home, after research found out that many people have the exact same problems with their early year Nissan Muranos. Nissan needs to do a major recall and own up to their mistake before someone's life is taken as a result of their faulty mechanics. My car has approximately 155K miles on it.

- Washington, MO, USA

problem #46

Oct 122008

Murano

  • 80,000 miles
The contact owns a 2004 Nissan Murano. The contact stated that after stopping and depressing the accelerator pedal the vehicle did not accelerate. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where a leak in the transmission was diagnosed. The contact was advised to replace the throttle body and catalytic converter. The vehicle was repaired but the failure continued. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but did not offer any assistance because the vehicle was not included in any recalls. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 80,000 and the current mileage was 120,000.

- San Jose , CA, USA

problem #45

Mar 142011

Murano 6-cyl

  • 52,533 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I had brought my car for regular scheduled service when I was informed about transmission transfer case seal requiring repair. It is one of the most common and expensive problems regarding this car however Nissan refuses to issue a recall on this defect.

- East Brunswick, NJ, USA

problem #44

Mar 062011

Murano 6-cyl

  • 248,000 miles
Nissan Murano 2004 transfer case and rear differential failure. Need to replace both at a cost of $6,200.

- Cambridge, 00, USA

problem #43

Dec 172010

Murano 6-cyl

  • 64,000 miles
Our 2004 Nissan Murano broke down about 4 weeks ago on the freeway. There were loud grinding noises, and would not accelerate over 40 mph. It was towed to the nearest Nissan dealer, and is still there over three weeks later. The dealer says it is the transmission, and that a new transmission has been ordered, but is on back order. We have contacted the Nissan dealer where we bought the vehicle, and they so far have not taken any responsibility. It is supposed to be covered by warranty, but have been reading about all the other Nissan Murano owners with the same transmission problem. Our Nissan has 64,000 plus miles on it.

- Portland, OR, USA

problem #42

Jan 042011

Murano 6-cyl

  • 72,613 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Nissan Murano transfer case oil seal leak the third time within few months.

- Danbury, CT, USA

problem #41

Nov 252010

Murano 6-cyl

  • 75,000 miles
On thanksgiving our 2004 Nissan Murano started making a banging noise. It continued to get louder and within about five minutes the car was completely immobilized. The car smelled of transmission fluid. We called Nissan and they informed us that the transmission is covered under a 120,000 mile warranty, which is what we thought it was without anyone looking at it yet. We had it towed to apple Nissan in york. The service manager then looked at the vehicle and informed us that it is the transfer case not the transmission and that it is not covered under the warranty and that the cost to repair it would be $4000. The vehicle is still at apple Nissan with the broken transfer case because we cannot afford to replace it.

- York, PA, USA

problem #40

Sep 272010

Murano 6-cyl

  • 135 miles
My 2004 Nissan Murano transmission/transfer case/differential is shot. There was this loud whistling sound a sudden jerk and then a rattling sound which I found out from the Nissan dealership the transmission needs to be replaced. Upon leaving the dealership I went to accelerate and there was a delayed response and then the vehicle just took off. It appears that above 1000 RPM the transmission kicks into gear otherwise the truck will not move faster than 2 mph. This is extremely dangerous because it happens without warning. The makers of Nissan has been notified by hundreds of consumers that own the Nissan Murano 2003-2009. Yet Nissan will do nothing, but blame the consumer for lack of service on the vehicle. Will someone have to die before there is a recall??!!

- Tampa, FL, USA

problem #39

Sep 202010

Murano

  • 66,089 miles
While driving my 2004 Murano at 65mph the car all of sudden lost complete power, I was lucky to be able to get it over to the side of the freeway. The cars power train would not engage. I had the car towed to the dealership and they informed me the car had a recall that they would fix as well. This model seems to have many issues and Nissan should extend a larger warranty to cover them or buy back the vehicles.

- Pinole, CA, USA

problem #38

Jun 192009

Murano

  • 116,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I have a 2004 Nissan Murano that not running due to the transmission. I took mt vehicle to the Nissan dealership several times complaining about noise, acceleration on the gas pedal out of the blue, speed decreasing while driving on hwy at 70mph, to 10 or less mph. I've spent about $3000 on a calculator conversion and exhaust system, that I might not even needed. I had to have my truck towed to the Nissan dealership that has been servicing my truck. They said my transmission was out of warranty. My transmission was under warranty when the problem began last year, but the dealership P tech choose to word the problems a different way not to reflect transmission issue. Dealership nor Nissan want to assist to fix my truck. I have about 152,000K on my truck now, but I had way less when problems began. I need assistance to get truck fix, I'm sill paying the $9000. I owe in it. Nissan is not stepping up to the plate when they knew there were transmission issues in the Murano truck. I'm very unhappy, discussed, sad that I'm trapped in a truck that's not safe.

- Cartersville, GA, USA

problem #37

Jan 262010

Murano

  • 50,000 miles
2004 Nissan Murano AWD leaks fluid from transfer case and/or cvt transmission assembly resulting in eventual failure of the transfer case and/or transmission.

- Hailey, ID, USA

problem #36

Feb 012008

Murano

  • 54,000 miles
2004 Nissan Murano would periodically not shift from neutral into reverse or park. This problem began to appear about 2 years ago. Sometimes the problem lasted for a day or two sometimes for a week or more. It only happened in the winter. The first 2 times I brought it to the dealer they could not find any problem. There is a work around (bypass) for the reverse lockout problem in the owner's manual so the manufacturer was aware of a potential for trouble. About March 2010 the problem appeared and did not disappear. I brought it to the dealer they had the car for 2 days and could not identify the cause. They recommended replacing the entire shifter. I requested they disconnect the lockout mechanism. They said they couldn't because it was a safety device. So I told them it should be repaired at no cost to me. About a year ago I filed a complaint regarding this problem with Nissan. I asked the dealer to talk with Nissan and gave them the complaint file #. Nissan said the vehicle was no longer under warranty so I had to pay for the repair. My internet search indicates there is a problem with the reverse lockout on the 2004 Murano that was covered by Nissan in most instances but there is no tsb on the issue and Nissan says it is normal wear and tear.

- Homer, AK, USA

problem #35

Oct 012009

Murano

  • 100,000 miles
Under normal driving conditions my 2004 Nissan Murano becomes unresponsive to the throttle in stop and go conditions. The vehicle then suddenly surges as the accelerator is depressed further causing the driver to quickly slam on the brakes to avoid collisions. This creates unexpected dangerous conditions.

- Leominster, MA, USA

problem #34

Sep 292009

Murano

  • 100,125 miles
I am owing a 2004 Nissan Murano with 100125 miles on it. 2 days back while driving on a freeway, the SUV suddenly lost it's acceleration power and now when ever I try to apply the acceleration after stand still, the car does not move for 5 seconds and then suddenly moves forward. This is a serious hazard as it could lead to accidents on highways and I consider myself to be lucky that I was able to pull over. I have read lot of forums where many Nissan Murano customers are having the same issue. I contacted the Nissan dealer and they are saying this is not an issue with Nissan's transmission. I would definitely consider this a Nissan issue as many customers are having the exact issue. Requesting your help in resolving this issue. Thanks, manoj

- Valencia, CA, USA

problem #33

Jul 012009

Murano

  • 120,000 miles
The contact owns a 2004 Nissan Murano. While driving the vehicle in heavy traffic at a low speeds ranging from 10 mph and engaging the accelerator pedal, the vehicle failed to increase in speed. The RPM's were high and all of the gauges moved up; however, the vehicle would not move forward. Within minutes, the vehicle suddenly accelerated at a rapid speed. The failure almost caused the driver to crash into another vehicle. This defect only occurred while driving at low speeds or in an idle position. The dealer performed a diagnostic test and was unable to determine what caused the failure to occur. The dealer diagnosed the failure a second time and was unable to make any repairs. On the third attempt to diagnose the failure, the dealer asked the contact to drive into heavy traffic and they were still unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle is currently at the dealer. The contact stated that the failure is related to a manufacturers defect. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 120,000 and the current mileage is 140,000.

- Methuen, MA, USA

problem #32

May 012009

Murano

  • 70,000 miles
The cvt transmission went out in my 2004 Murano with 70,000. Prior to it going out I was experimenting unexpected acceleration and deceleration from the transmission. When approaching a stop light I let off the accelerator only to have the vehicle to accelerate before slowing down.

- Kaukauna, WI, USA

problem #31

Aug 302009

Murano

  • 62,000 miles
Slip vdc off light came on all the time of and on.. engine light couple of times I have being to service to Nissan.. and always come up with different story. Now the car wont even start today will two it again tomorrow!

- La, CA, USA

problem #30

May 292009

Murano

  • 67,000 miles
Nissan Murano cvt transmission causes delayed acceleration. After 65,000 miles the vehicle did not immediately respond when the accelerator was pushed. It would inch forward then surge. At one time I barely avoided a major accident when merging into traffic and the engine did not respond to the accelerator; then suddenly shot forward a couple seconds later almost causing a collision from the delay. When I took it in they said I needed a new transmission; but I noted that there was not a rise in RPM's when it did not accelerate as would be the case if it was slipping. When I asked about that they said it was probably the solenoid switch that keeps the engine from revving when there is a transmission problem. After checking on the internet I found web sites with many people reporting the same problem. Many said they found it was the switch getting dirty and then shutting down the rpms. I tried a transmission fluid change and it solved the problem for about 30,000 miles then starting doing it again. I changed again and it is once again resolved. Besides the fact that Nissan has a manufacturing issue here this problem is very dangerous. When you step down on the gas and there is a delay it causes you to divert your attention from driving; typically you automatically pump the gas again. Then the sudden surge forward is unexpected and may put you in a place you did not now (after the delay) want to be; especially if merging into traffic.

- Peoria, AZ, USA

problem #29

Jul 282009

Murano

  • 84,000 miles
When pushing down on the accelerator, the car does not accelerate smoothly and at some points doesn't accelerate at all and looses power. It occurs in frequently. I had to replace the valve body that cost $1800K.

- Boulder, CO, USA

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