Nissan Murano Forum banner

05 Murano completely turns off while driving..

106K views 27 replies 19 participants last post by  Pilgrim 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
My 2005 Murano (160K miles) has started doing this several times in the last two days. While driving and without warning, the car would completely turn off. I mean no radio, engine, no dashboard lights, nothing. The only thing on is the blinking P-shift light on the cluster that tells you to shift into the park.

It's the same as if you started your car, put it in neutral and then turned it off. You'll see the blinking P-shift light.

After this happens, I can put it in N while coasting and start the car right up. I just put in a brand new battery at the end of January, but I went to Autozone to check it out, and the guy says it read 12.9v but registered as bad, so they replaced it. The following day I only got around the corner from my house, and it did it again, so I don't think it's the battery.

Any thoughts?
 
#3 ·
Not exactly sure what it could be either, but you may want to check your Cam Position sensors. Before I changed my Cam Position sensors, Mina lost power while driving, had to pull over a few times to restart her. now she runs great. That was about 5 or 6 months ago when i had all those stalling/ hard starting problems.
 
#5 ·
My 2006 Murano is doing the same thing! It started about 2 weeks ago and has been getting worse. At first the car would shut off while I was driving and turn back on a split second later (engine and electronics). Then a few days ago my wife was driving and the car shut off on the highway (engine and electronics) only a battery and brake light were on she said. She was able to coast to the side of the road put it in park and restart the car. She went straight to the auto shop and the only code they got was a P0463 Fuel level sensor fault. The Service engine soon light did come on around the same time that all of this started. I doubt that the fuel level sensor is the cause of the vehicle turning off though...... Any thoughts?

I had the battery checked at a parts store and they said it was good and that the alternator was working too. I do have a little corrosion on my Positive battery cable but the alternator should keep it running if that was the case.
 
#16 ·
My 2006 Murano is doing the same thing! It started about 2 weeks ago and has been getting worse. At first the car would shut off while I was driving and turn back on a split second later (engine and electronics). Then a few days ago my wife was driving and the car shut off on the highway (engine and electronics) only a battery and brake light were on she said. She was able to coast to the side of the road put it in park and restart the car. She went straight to the auto shop and the only code they got was a P0463 Fuel level sensor fault. The Service engine soon light did come on around the same time that all of this started. I doubt that the fuel level sensor is the cause of the vehicle turning off though...... Any thoughts?

I had the battery checked at a parts store and they said it was good and that the alternator was working too. I do have a little corrosion on my Positive battery cable but the alternator should keep it running if that was the case.
I know your post is old, but i wanted to mention what I found with my Wife's 2009 Murano. I has been a pain in the a** to say the least. Replaced battery and Alternator the very first time my wife mentioned brake and battery light..
I believe the battery and alternator were fine (all you had to do was touch the terminals like you were gonna jump it off - and it would work a few days). Off the positive terminal of the battery there is a plate with several wires attached. This plate and all connectors bolted to it should be copper in color. After cleaning this plate all my problems went away.

Just FYI
 
#6 ·
When I was having all the problems stalling, my symptoms s were sudden loss of power, sometimes the power came back, but most of the time I had to coast to a stop and restart. My engine threw code p0345, camshaft position bank "A". It was also getting to be tougher to start. I swapped pout both cam sensors and its running fine now. They are easy to locate on a 1st generation. Drivers side of the engine, top of each bank. Look for the green connectors. Each sensor costs abput $60 - $80 depending on if you go generic or OEM.
 
#7 ·
has never happened with my MO but i would get your ecu checked bc that is what the prob. was in a 09 Honda fit my friend has. Honda replaced it to her for free said something shorted it out also said it seems like some techs put parts on ur positive terminal and that causes it
 
#8 ·
Well here's an update to this problem.

So even though it wasn't throwing any codes when this happened, I decided to just replace both cam shaft position sensors. Well, it appeared that solved the problem. It ran great for little more than a week after I did that.

Then it died again. Frustrated, I decided to have it towed to our Nissan dealership and let them diagnose it. They said the problem was the aftermarket remote starter had shorted and causing the ECM to reset/clear. Wanting to have this car working, I let them remove the remote start and have it back to Nissan spec.

Well, seemed to work fine after that....for a few days. BAM! Died again. Sigh. What....the....f$ck! So frustrating and my wife is now terrified to drive her Murano. Now I have to take it back to Nissan and see what they find. Problem is reproduce-ability. It happens infrequently that I'm afraid they'll have the car but it won't die on them.

Would the mass airflow sensor cause this type of issue??
 
#13 ·
2005 murano shouts off

Well here's an update to this problem.

So even though it wasn't throwing any codes when this happened, I decided to just replace both cam shaft position sensors. Well, it appeared that solved the problem. It ran great for little more than a week after I did that.

Then it died again. Frustrated, I decided to have it towed to our Nissan dealership and let them diagnose it. They said the problem was the aftermarket remote starter had shorted and causing the ECM to reset/clear. Wanting to have this car working, I let them remove the remote start and have it back to Nissan spec.

Well, seemed to work fine after that....for a few days. BAM! Died again. Sigh. What....the....f$ck! So frustrating and my wife is now terrified to drive her Murano. Now I have to take it back to Nissan and see what they find. Problem is reproduce-ability. It happens infrequently that I'm afraid they'll have the car but it won't die on them.


Big Dz

have you resolved your issue? I'm having the same issues, I have changed everything everyone talked about, even when I know it is not right but no luck

thank you
Remy
 
#9 ·
The mass air flow sensor problem would likely stall the car when you shifted out of Park, not stall the engine when in motion. Losing ignition completely sounds like a bad battery cable (maybe not at the battery but wherever it connects at the other end).
 
  • Like
Reactions: Maxx Scott
#11 ·
Hey, just thought I'd chime in here. A couple months ago I was having similar problems...car wouldn't start (no power locks, nothing), car turned off while driving and flashed the battery light, and then instantly everything came back on. I had very limited power (40 MPH at 4000 RPM on a flat road isn't really what a CVT does...). My problem is fixed now, and I know what the problem was.

This may sound really stupid/simple, but check your actual connectors to the battery and make sure they are securely connected to the terminals, and clean of any corrosion.

I thought it was something much worse with the problems I had been receiving - fixed the battery connections (cleaned/tightened) and the past few thousand miles have been smooth sailing.

By the way, my problems were very random as well. All it takes is a bump in just the right way to get the connector to not sit correctly (or to sit correctly) and that'll cause the car to not function properly.

So if you haven't tried that yet, I'd try that and see what it does for ya.
 
#12 ·
2005 murano shouts off

My 2005 murano (160K miles) has started doing this several times in the last two days. While driving and without warning, the car would completely turn off. I mean no radio, engine, no dashboard lights, nothing. The only thing that's on is the blinking P-shift light on the cluster that tells you to shift into park.

Its the same as if you started your car, put it in neutral and then turned it off. You'll see the blinking P-shift light.

After this happens, while coasting I can put it in N and start the car right up. I just put in a brand new battery at the end of January, but I went to autozone to check it out and they guy says it read 12.9v but registered as bad and so they replaced it. The next morning I only got around the corner from my house and it did it again, so I don't think its the battery.

Any thoughts?
Big DZ
You are my only hope have you fixed your issue with the Murano, I have the same exact issue and no one understand me...
 
#15 ·
Normally if a car dies with no warning, the problem is electrical. It can be a fine line to analyze, because gas problems also can happen fairly fast.

In general with most cars, the things to look for are things like loose battery cables, poor wiring connections, bad connections to alternator (although if your alternator isn't working, the dash lights normally come on and the engine will run on the battery until voltage drops too low), or a faulty ignition switch that turns off. Switch problems on transmission shifters are usually a source of No Start, not sudden engine dying.

It could be a fuel pump that shuts down, but that's usually not a "off like a switch" engine stop...it usually falters before stopping.

I hoped the remote starter would solve Maxx's problem, because aftermarket installations are famous for creating problems. If someone develops a problem after having something like a remote start accessory put in, I usually counsel them to return the wiring to stock and start over. Doesn't sound like that applies to most of these problems, and I suspect there are a variety of causes.
 
  • Like
Reactions: MuranoSL2003
#20 ·
HELLO- HELLO, Im reading a few posts about Murano shutting off randomly . Has anyone had luck pinpointing the exact issue? Im desperate at this point. Wifey afraid to drive it as it may or may not shut off while she is commuting. Our 2007 Murano is doing the random engine shut off also. When i pull over put the gear selector in P and attempt to start it cranks very strong but takes several tries to fire up. Taking to another shop for diagnose while paying their hourly rate is making life difficult. ANY ASSISTANCE FROM THIS 6 MONTH OLD THREAD WOULD BE SO APPRECIATED ! If its easier to respond by email- here it is... generaljoe67@gmail.com
2005 murano shuts off



Big DZ
You are my only hope have you fixed your issue with the Murano, I have the same exact issue and no one understand me...
[/QUOTE]
 
#22 · (Edited by Moderator)
HELLO- HELLO, Im reading a few posts about Murano shutting off randomly . Has anyone had luck pinpointing the exact issue? Im desperate at this point. Wifey afraid to drive it as it may or may not shut off while she is commuting. Our 2007 Murano is doing the random engine shut off also. When i pull over put the gear selector in P and attempt to start it cranks very strong but takes several tries to fire up. Taking to another shop for diagnose while paying their hourly rate is making life difficult. ANY ASSISTANCE FROM THIS 6 MONTH OLD THREAD WOULD BE SO APPRECIATED ! If its easier to respond by email- here it is... generaljoe67@gmail.com
2005 murano shuts off

Big DZ
You are my only hope have you fixed your issue with the Murano, I have the same exact issue and no one understand me...

I have the same problem. Any help will be appreciated!!
 
#24 ·
Just started having this exact issue. Replaced alternator, didn't help. Codes reading camshaft b.s but machanic tested wiring and apparently is fine.
For the first time I was driving it tonight and something new happened.. my car died and coasted, ( usually starts back up ) pulled over and it started but now my gas dial said empty and light was on. ( that turned off and went back up to 1/4 tank.. weird.. made it home..
I try looking over battery connections tomorrow..
Dud anyone figure out anything?
 
#25 ·
Just a thought on this. There are many places that any vehicle can have a bad electrical connection. The very first thing to do is make sure the main ground from battery to all points on the car are good and clean, corrosion free, as well as both battery terminals. Next is look for bad wiring mice love wires. Next is any connector that could have or been around water or moisture. Next are the main components that have circuit boards in them, there can be bad solder joints, and a huge contributor to strange intermittent problems.
 
#26 ·
All connections were cleaned, a new ground was ran before the cleaning and the car ran better in two days than it did the week before... it stalled a couple times, then all of the sudden my car would jerk going about 45 miles an hour. The cam sensor was coming up on the codes. So now we're gonna try that. Cam sensor.
 
#28 ·
I suggest that everyone take this post with reservations. Absent evidence, it makes little sense to start ordering and replacing sensors.
 
  • Like
Reactions: deeman
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top