My wife and I are very much looking forward to test driving the 2009 Murano LE. We were leaning towards an MDX but the Murano seems like a good alternative as we don't really require the 3rd row seating or slightly larger cargo capacity of the MDX.

I was very impressed with drive quality on the 2006 Murano SE but we both felt that the interior was a bit stale and lacking many options that are sort of "must haves" for us (mp3 player jack, power telescoping steering wheel, etc). It's great to see this new business suite thing that Nissan is pushing for the 09 model.

Any dealer contacts here that can release pricing? I am amazed that the car is supposed to go on sale in 10 days and still no pricing info. We are guessing that a base LE will go for around $35K with a fully loaded one going for about $40K. We would probably want the base LE, I get VPP pricing so hopefully around $33K before taxes.

 

Nissan sent me an email with a link to the 2008 Murano Propaganda Site

Enjoy

 

But there is one difference. New MO transfer up to 70% (or more but there is no detail specification)of power to rear wheels (Rouge and "old" MO only to 50%).

T-

That's no big feat. Since all 2009 MOs come with VDC and Traction Control, having TCS apply brakes to the spinning front wheels will result in 70% of the torque being routed to the rear. The same results can be achieved with a 2006 MO that is equipped with VDC and TCS.

-njjoe

 

2WD or AWD

I live in a mild climate without snow and wondered if there are advantages to an '09 2WD MO.

Would it get better gas mileage?
Would the steering be better (probably not since it would be FWD)?
Would ground clearance be less?
Any difference in ride or handling?
Thanks.

 

Re: 2WD or AWD

I live in a mild climate without snow and wondered if there are advantages to an '09 2WD MO.

Would it get better gas mileage?
Would the steering be better (probably not since it would be FWD)?
Would ground clearance be less?
Any difference in ride or handling?
Thanks.

Better GM?-Perhaps a little(under normal driving condition)
Better Steering?-Most likely not
GC would be the same.
It would be a little lighter(2WD) since there's less hardware and I suspect you wouldn't notice any handling difference under "normal" driving condition.

Again; these are estimates under normal driving condition where it would not involve the car activating the rear drive due to slippage.