# 2018 Murano ghost



## 1upsetAmerican! (Jul 18, 2019)

Sorry for the lengthy post, but read it all the way through and tell me if I'm being unreasonable.

42 days ago, my wife and I purchased a pre-owned 2018 Murano Platinum with 16,xxx miles from a non-Nissan dealer. We could have bought new, but decided to pick up a pre-owned model that someone else took the depreciation hit on. We test drove the car and decided to purchase it. This is primarily my wife's vehicle and she absolutely loves it! We traded our 2015 vehicle (just to be fair, I'm not naming the brand) with 78,xxx miles that had been a great vehicle with ZERO warranty claims against it. After driving the Murano for a couple days we noticed the car would "jump", "buck", "stumble" for just a split second when accelerating away from a complete stop. We did notice this when we test drove it, but it was so slight we figured it was just us getting used to a different vehicle than what we were accustomed to. We contacted the selling dealer and asked where we should take the vehicle (it's obviously still well under the factory warranty which we transfered). The selling dealer asked that we take it to them just so they could verify the issue. We did so exactly one week from the day we drove it off the lot. They did indeed verify that the car had an abnormal issue and sent it to a local Nissan dealer of their choosing (a very reputable dealer in our area) where a service order was opened. The selling dealer generously gave us a new vehicle off their lot to drive. The servicing dealer did not start on our car until about 4-5 days after it showed up. I have no issues with this at all as I understand their sales customers need to be taken care of first. Following basic diagnostic protocol, the servicing dealer was unable to find anything linked to the issue. They then leaned on Nissan tech service for help. The service manager requested that his Nissan field tech rep be dispatched to inspect/diagnose the issue. Nissan denied his request. Nissan sent diagnostic recommendations to the servicing dealer one at a time in an effort to resolve the issue. The servicing dealer had to wait for a response each time they tried something and it didn't work. I'm told at times the response time was over a day. Over the next week, Nissan had the servicing dealer try a multitude of different things to rectify the issue, all to no avail. After 13 days, we were notified that we would likely get the car returned to us NOT repaired as Nissan requested a transmission fluid sample be sent to them for analysis. What? How much does it cost to just change the transmission fluid and rule that out as an issue? Later the very same day we were notified that Nissan decided the ECM was likely the culprit and they were sending a new one (regular UPS ground freight) that would arrive in about 3 days. At this point, I contacted Nissan Consumer Affairs and had a case number opened. I spoke with the rep assigned to my case about the issue in an effort to gain some information as to where we stand. [On a side note, I'll add that I'm not "that guy" who yells, curses, jumps up & down and throws out "or else" demands. That doesn't get an issue resolved.] Nissan does train their reps well. My rep totally avoided answering any logical question I asked in a non-scripted fashion. In short...I got nowhere except hearing how sorry they were and that they were "doing everything they can to resolve the issue". 4 days later when the new part showed up, the servicing dealer installed it and it would not communicate with the rest of the vehicle. Software updates also had no effect on the issue. After talking with the service manager face to face on day 18, he said he couldn't understand why Nissan was giving them the run-around on this repair. He also said he again requested a field tech rep be dispatched. I received a call from my CS rep notifying me that the field tech rep would be at the dealership to evaluate my vehicle within the next 7-10 DAYS!! On top of that, the selling dealer called my wife and requested that we take the service loaner car back to them as it was up in the rotation to be sold. I don't blame them at all for this. They let us drive their NEW vehicle for 18 days to the tune of nearly 1,000 miles with no questions asked. Keep in mind this sale was a pre-owned vehicle of a brand they do not sell new. THAT's customer service! I told my CS rep about having to return the vehicle and she said Nissan would reimburse me for a rental vehicle. WHAT? I have to pay to rent a car and then get reimbursement? Unreal! Being left with no alternative, we returned the loaner car to the selling dealer and got set up through the servicing dealer for a rental. I paid a visit to the servicing dealer on July 18th (day 23) to see where things were. He told me that the field tech rep was due to be there on 7/31, (just 36 short days after the vehicle was delivered to them). He also told me that the field tech rep was working with them over the phone now in an effort to see if they can resolve the issue before he gets there. 6 days ago, they took a reading from the crankshaft position sensor and found the readings to be "erratic". They replaced the sensor and found the new unit also showing erratic readings. They removed the transmission and inspected the flex plate (flywheel) which holds the reluctor that sends the signal to the crankshaft position sensor. No luck...same issue. Since the car was delivered to them, per Nissan's protocol, they have driven the car with the tail lights removed, checked the brake light switch adjustment, removed the intake manifold and all 6 fuel injectors to check the sealing O-rings and a whole host of other things that I don't even know about. Am I wrong to think this whole situation is just ridiculous? Am I wrong for feeling like I'm being treated like a second-rate pre-owned buyer? Nissan attached a warranty to their product. It doesn't matter who owns the product. The warranty is NOT attached to any one owner, but to the product. I have been a long-time loyal customer to a non-Nissan brand. Through the style, features and performance (not to mention being a very reputable and trusted brand) Nissan managed to sway me into their brand. My car has been taken apart and put back together chasing a ghost. We made the first payment a week ago for a vehicle we've had in our possession for 7 days. I work in the construction and rental equipment industry as a manufacturers rep for 26 different manufacturers. If ANY of my manufacturers handled an issue like this in this manner they would be out of business. Thank you for reading my "book" and please...tell me how you'd feel if this was your experience. Never in my life have I been treated with such lack of caring.


----------



## 1upsetAmerican! (Jul 18, 2019)

*UPDATE* On 7/30/19 (day 35 of being in the shop) the DTS field tech rep showed up a day early to inspect the vehicle. He drove it with the tech and asked if the fuel pressure had been checked. The tech said it had not. Both checked the fuel pressure to find it dead on spec. The DTS said he "thinks" it's the CVT. He authorozed a replacement unit and left. A replacement (I'm not sure whether it's new, or a reman) was sent which showed up at the dealership on day 37. The dealership is replacing the CVT and will call me with the results when completed, hopefully today 8/2/19 (day 38).


----------



## 1upsetAmerican! (Jul 18, 2019)

UPDATE #2 We got our Murano back on 8/5/19 just 40 short days after it was taken in. The CVT was replaced with a factory re-man unit and thus far it drives like new. After much persuasion, Nissan did step up with some restitution for us. However, I still have a huge issue with a CVT failure in a vehicle with under 17,000 miles. With any luck, this one will hold up. Either way, I've decided this vehicle will be traded before the powertrain warranty expires.


----------



## smj999smj (Jan 1, 2006)

Once you stated what your problem was, the first thing that came in my head was that it sounded like a bad CVT. I'm a former Nissan Master Tech (retired in 2003) and the CVT has been nothing but problems since Nissan started using it in the 2003 Murano. I've heard that the last couple of years have been more reliable than earlier CVT's, but as you found out, they still have their issues. It sounds like the dealer did everything they could do to diagnose and fix the problem, but sometimes they get "hand-cuffed" in what they want to do or try by the folks at Nissan's warranty department. It also sounds like you did what I would recommend by starting a report with the consumer hotline at Nissan. The Murano does have a good reputation for being a reliable vehicle, so hopefully you won't have any more problems in the future and can actually enjoy driving your newly purchased vehicle sans problems! Hopefully, Nissan will come to their senses and start going back to conventional automatic transmissions soon!


----------

