Hello folks, I've recently discovered your fine forums. Allow myself to introduce.....myself </Austin Powers>.
My name is Alex and I live in Knoxville, TN. I'm investigating a Murano for my wife, in preparation for the birth of our first child this August. Other vehicles I'm seriously considering are the Touareg, XC90, and RX330. I haven't taken the time to seriously test drive any of the vehicles we're interested in, so I would imagine that would automatically rule out some of the potential candidates. I've got a couple of questions about the Murano that y'all might be able to help me with...I tried searching, and browsed around fairly extensively, so my apologies if my questions have already been addressed.
I noticed on Nissan's website that it says that the interior trim is real brushed aluminum. As I recall from a brief test drive sometime last year, all the aluminum-looking stuff inside was just painted plastic, and looked to be prone to chipping/wear over time. Is this no longer the case? I'm thinking in particular of the center console/cupholder cover and all those nook/cranny covers in between the front seats. Also, if they are still made from painted plastic, how have they held up?
One of the reasons that I'm also considering the Touareg is the dealership. I've got an Audi that I bought from the same dealership that sells VWs, and their service is fantastic. Finding a dealership that you can trust to do reliably good work is worth a lot, IMO. However, the price of the T'reg (I'd get a V8), combined with very spotty VW reliability makes it tough to justify. I have no idea about the reputation of the Nissan dealers (particularly the service departments) in my area (Knoxville, TN). Is there any resource where I can check to get peoples' experiences with my local dealers?
Any other tips/advice? Obviously there are plenty of people who really love their Muranos, and a few people who've had bad experiences. Every automotive board I've spent any time on is the same way. But any advice/insight that any of you might have to offer would be greatly appreciated.
My name is Alex and I live in Knoxville, TN. I'm investigating a Murano for my wife, in preparation for the birth of our first child this August. Other vehicles I'm seriously considering are the Touareg, XC90, and RX330. I haven't taken the time to seriously test drive any of the vehicles we're interested in, so I would imagine that would automatically rule out some of the potential candidates. I've got a couple of questions about the Murano that y'all might be able to help me with...I tried searching, and browsed around fairly extensively, so my apologies if my questions have already been addressed.
I noticed on Nissan's website that it says that the interior trim is real brushed aluminum. As I recall from a brief test drive sometime last year, all the aluminum-looking stuff inside was just painted plastic, and looked to be prone to chipping/wear over time. Is this no longer the case? I'm thinking in particular of the center console/cupholder cover and all those nook/cranny covers in between the front seats. Also, if they are still made from painted plastic, how have they held up?
One of the reasons that I'm also considering the Touareg is the dealership. I've got an Audi that I bought from the same dealership that sells VWs, and their service is fantastic. Finding a dealership that you can trust to do reliably good work is worth a lot, IMO. However, the price of the T'reg (I'd get a V8), combined with very spotty VW reliability makes it tough to justify. I have no idea about the reputation of the Nissan dealers (particularly the service departments) in my area (Knoxville, TN). Is there any resource where I can check to get peoples' experiences with my local dealers?
Any other tips/advice? Obviously there are plenty of people who really love their Muranos, and a few people who've had bad experiences. Every automotive board I've spent any time on is the same way. But any advice/insight that any of you might have to offer would be greatly appreciated.