2005 Nissan Murano Problems

What owners report

Owners of the 2005 Murano most often describe the driver's seat frame or bracket fracturing, which leaves the seat rocking or tipping to one side, and sun visors that drop on their own and block the driver's view. Both are reported across a wide mileage range, commonly under about 60,000 miles but also well past 100,000, and dealers generally treated them as wear items rather than warranty work.

1. 1
   Seats

   Driver's seat frame/bracket breaks, seat rocks or drops

   • 428 complaints (43%)
   • median 67,000 mi at 5.5 yrs old (387 state mileage)
   • 11 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $1,000 (median of 124 quotes)
   • filed 2007–2022

   Complaints describe the driver's seat suddenly rocking, tilting to one side or dropping at a corner, usually traced to a broken weld, bracket or anchor where the seat frame meets the rail or floor. Several owners say it happened during normal driving or when getting in, sometimes with a snap or thump they felt through the seat. Dealers commonly quoted around $800 to $1,100 for a replacement seat base or assembly, and some owners reported being told it was a known issue but not covered under warranty even with an extended plan. Reported from roughly 38,000 to over 200,000 miles, with many complaints clustering between 50,000 and 100,000 miles and no clear weather or driving pattern.

   What to check: Sit in the driver's seat and push your weight back and side to side while watching the rear inboard corner of the seat frame for movement, and inspect the welds and bracket under the seat for cracks. Ask whether the seat base has ever been replaced or welded.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “After buying a used 2005 Nissan Murano from a ct dealership, 8 months later my driver seat guide went completely bust while driving on the highway. I started feeling more and more loose as I drove and once I got off the highway I was completely thrown from left to right at every slight curve as my seat was completely detached on one side. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10289337, filed 2009-10, 57,000 miles

   “I've been having a problem with the power driver's seat in my 2005 Nissan Murano, the driver's side power seat just started to tilt to one side, and also forward. It is loose and will tilt forward/backward when I decelerate/accelerates. According to my mechanic, it's sort of structural failure with the anchor of the left rear side of the power driver seat.”

   NHTSA complaint #10336512, filed 2010-06, 75,000 miles
2. 2
   Visibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)

   Sun visor drops and blocks the driver's view

   • 144 complaints (15%)
   • median 59,950 mi at 5.4 yrs old (124 state mileage)
   • owner-quoted repair $372 (median of 38 quotes)
   • filed 2008–2018

   Owners describe the driver-side sun visor, and sometimes the passenger side, no longer staying in the raised position and flopping down in front of the windshield, often after bumps or while driving at speed. Complaints say the visor pivot cannot be adjusted or refurbished, so the fix is a full replacement; dealers quoted roughly $300 for the part and some owners were told it was not covered under warranty. Appears from very low mileage up to about 200,000 miles, with many reports between roughly 30,000 and 100,000 miles, independent of temperature.

   2 related service bulletins

   What to check: Fold both visors down and let them go several times to see whether they hold in the raised position, and check the pivot for looseness.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “My 2005 Nissan Murano drivers side sun visor will not stay up. This has been going on for months. It falls several times, every time we driver the car. Have seen hundreds of posts on this issue. This is a serious safety issue. When the sun visor falls my husband can not see out the window. He almost ran into the back of another car the last time he drove. This should be a safety recall.”

   NHTSA complaint #10347924, filed 2010-08, 43,000 miles

   “Approximately two months ago my driver side sun visor began to drop, unexpectedly without my touching it. It now no longer stays up at all and I have had to remove it entirely. I have not yet sought its replacement but understand that it can not be repaired and must be replaced at an exorbitant cost, ~$300.”

   NHTSA complaint #10264465, filed 2009-04, 60,000 miles
3. 3
   Seats

   Sudden loss of power or stalling while driving

   • 131 complaints (13%)
   • median 72,315 mi at 6.5 yrs old (114 state mileage)
   • 1 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $600 (median of 20 quotes)
   • filed 2005–2026

   Several complaints describe the vehicle losing power or refusing to accelerate while already moving, with speed dropping sharply, and in one case the engine stalling in traffic and not restarting. Owners report warning lights such as check engine, SLIP or VDC coming on and dealers being unable to reproduce or diagnose the fault with their scan tools. In one account a transmission replacement left the vehicle unable to start or display mileage. Reported in miles ranging from under 2,000 to about 155,000, so it is not limited to high-mileage vehicles.

   1 related service bulletin

   What to check: Ask for any stored diagnostic trouble codes and service history for throttle and transmission work, and test drive at both low and highway speeds, including from a stop.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “My Murano sl awd 2005 just stopped in traffic and also while it was idling. It was moving and when I got to traffic, it stalled and wouldn't budge even thought the lights were still on. This is a real problem because an 18 wheeler can just ram into me when this mishap happens. Updated 08/05/11”

   NHTSA complaint #10399865, filed 2011-05, 88,000 miles

   “I had a transmission put in my Murano but no one can program it I've already spent 2,300.00 I'm so frustrated my Murano only has 123,000 miles on it now the car want start ,won't show mileage or anything”

   NHTSA complaint #11382973, filed 2020-12, 123,000 miles

Buying note. Have an independent mechanic look underneath at the rear subframe and check the driver's seat frame and both sun visors, since those are the items owners report most and repairs can run into the hundreds. Ask for service records on the transmission and any stored diagnostic codes before buying.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.