[Muracca]

Has anyone filed a Lemon Law complaint on their Murano yet?

I just filed one for mine due to 21 days in the shop over the past 6 months with no resolve for my long list of problems.

Just want to hear if anyone has gotten results....Nissan is not going to help.

 

[Kris]

very interesting. Keep us informed. I wish you luck!

 

[Eric L.]

What problems did you bring your vehicle in for?

 

[Muracca]

Problems

1. Loss of power steering at low RPM's (happens quite frequently)
Almost has caused several accidents.
2. The brakes are MUSH. The pedal goes all the way to the floor with only slight pressure. A panic stop would put a hole through the floor.
3. Loud rattle coming from underneath front end of the car (sounds like the wheels are going to fall off).
4. CONSTANT LOUD Window rattles - Front
5. CONSTANT LOUD Tapping sounds in the front doors from every bump
6. CONSTANT LOUD Tapping/Rattle noises coming from the back seat area from EVERY bump or slightest imperfection in the road....or from the flexing of the body (around turns)
7. Loud THUD noise coming from the tailgate area over any size bump.
8. Transmission SURGES when approaching a stop. Car lunges forward.
9. Front seats VIBRATE while driving
10. creaking noises from the front seats
11. tapping noises from the ceiling area and the floor area
12. 21 Days in the service bay and more than 3 attempts to fix the rattles.....it never works. The last stint was 18 days long, and when I got it back, the rattles were even stronger! Plus, they did something to the doors that made the stereo sound like a muffled cheap piece of garbage.
13. EVERYONE who has ever been in my car has said, ":What the H*ll is wrong with this car?!!! Isn't it brand new?"
14. I couldn't even trade it in for something else....the appraiser would reject it.
15. 6 letters to Nissan, 1 month of phone calls to consumer affairs, and 1 (yet to be returned) call to the executive offices of NMAC.
16. PURE FRUSTRATION....For $30K........this is unacceptable!


there's more.....but that's enough for now.

 

[Muracca]

More

I forgot:

I was told that the brake problem is "NORMAL".

Hmmmm.......I've never had that problem on any of the other 4 BRAND NEW Nissan cars that I have bought....or ANY other car I have ever driven.

They won't acknowledge that there is any issue with the power steering loss.....even though it happens on a daily basis in my Murano. Plus, even Consumer Reports and others have seen the problem....and expressed SERIOUS concerns about it in their reviews.

Am I angry? Yes!

 

[XOC]

Are rattles considered when you try to invoke the lemon law, or are only mechanical problems deemed worthy of consideration?

 

[Eric L.]

Are rattles considered when you try to invoke the lemon law, or are only mechanical problems deemed worthy of consideration?

The lemon law varies by state, but it usually specifies a certain number of days the car is in a dealership shop over a certain time period. If the problem cannot be resolved past a certain time, it may qualify for the lemon law. However, since interior rattles won't "strand" a car in the shop for any extended period of time, I doubt it can be used in the lemon law.

Muracca - were your problems detected after you purchased your Murano, or were they already present during your test drive? I am curious to find out whether some Murano owners were so excited to buy the car, they might not have given the car the complete going over before purchasing it. I had some minor problems with the interior trim as well, but I pointed these out before purchasing the vehicle, and got it in writing from the dealership that they would repair it to my satisfaction (else i would fill out there dealership survey to be completely satisfied). It took about a month, but the dealership fixed everything I pointed out to them.

 

[Muracca]

Rattles

Eric,
No, the rattles were not present during my 65 mile test drive. If they were, I'm sure I would not have purchased it.

The rattle issue has stranded my car in the shop for a total of 21 days in 6 months......a few more and it's official.

The rattles are a CONSTANT source of frustration. It's to the point where I won't allow anyone in the car.....it's too embarassing! That's what is fueling my anger, but the loss of power steering and the mushy brake pedal are starting to scare the h*ll out of me. It keeps on happening!

Along with filing the Lemon Law complaint, I've filed several complaints with the NHTSA (www.nhtsa.com) and a phone call into the executive office of Nissan N.A. The Nissan Consumer Affairs department was not able to help.

It's far from over........

 

[Matrixnyc]

have you taken a look at this site?

http://cartalk.cars.com/Got-A-Car/Lemon/States/lemon_georgia.html

There might be some useful info for your case.

BTW, from some experience, you will have better luck trying to work it out with the dealer than using the lemon laws. There are so many loop holes for the car companies and dealers, that you end up with little or nothing resolved.

Good Luck with it.

 

[liquidiq]

muracca:

i'm in florida and tomorrow is my first arbitration meeting through bbbautoline to request nissan to repurchase my POS murano. in florida, if your car is in the shop for 30 days or more within a certain time period (18 months i believe) then it is a lemon, no questions asked. there was one murano so far lemon-lawed in florida - it was in the shop for more than 30 days waiting for parts to fix the cvt slipping out of gear.

my murano is a piece of junk. been that way since i took delivery. i'm embarrased about my purchase and vow it will never happen again. nissan "customer service" is a joke and i will never again purchase a new/used nissan or infiniti as long as i live. i started a website, mymuranosucks.com, to get the word out. i haven't put too much effort into it yet as i plan to use it as a bargaining chip.

hopefully my meeting will go well and i can get rid of this piece of crap and get on with my life. right now i'm collecting posts to present as evidence in that very meeting. i've heard enough "can't duplicate problem" to last a lifetime.

 

[Muracca]

Liquidig

I love your review on e0pinions!!! I just wish you would have wrote it before I bought this POS car back in May. It would have saved me a lot of trouble.

Please keep us updated or send me a private message with your progress.

I personally will NEVER buy another Nissan product again.

 

[Matrixnyc]

liquidiq, do you think you will have a problem with you case, because you bought a Murano that was used with 700+ miles on it?

I know it shouldn't make a differance, but why did you buy a new car with 700+ miles on it already. You have no idea what the previous driver did with the vehicle.

 

[hfelknor]

Liquidiq
do you think it will hurt your case since Nissan North America now knows that you abused the CVT by putting it in drive while going backwards, Sometimes while going fast?
Or at least that's what you said in THe Hesitation thread.

Homer

 

[Doombringer]

A scathing review of the MO by liquidiq on Epinions. I had to weigh in with my own thoughts in a comment for his 'review'.

Won't link it. Surf to Epinions for it.


Oh, a perfect world it would be if every vehicle, every year, everywhere were perfect in every way for every day of its life... a perfect world indeed.

 

[Eric L.]

liquidiq, do you think you will have a problem with you case, because you bought a Murano that was used with 700+ miles on it?

I know it shouldn't make a differance, but why did you buy a new car with 700+ miles on it already. You have no idea what the previous driver did with the vehicle.

That was exactly what I thought after reading the epinions post. Esp with the warped brake rotors - 700 mystery miles on the car, why would a new car have so many? If it was used, there is a reason why it was traded in at only 700 miles! If it was a dealer demo, you know they probably beat on it, so problems will arise. That may help to explain the rattles. It is true that the dealer should not refuse to address the problem, but if they have tried every factory approved method to fix it already (via the TSBs), then what more can you ask the dealer to do? It is unfortunate your Murano is plagued with problems, but you do have a unique circumstance with 700 miles on the clock when you bought the car.

As for the alternator problem, I try to tell it again and again over here - there was an alternator recall on the Maxima a few years ago, and it stemmed from a defect in the alternator that Nissan refused to acknowledge when my Maxima alternator died before the recall existed. So, it is not surprising that alternator problems continue - if you did an NHTSA complaints search on all Nissan VQ equipped vehicles, you would have found ample evidence for defective alternators across the board. I do not believe the alternator problem alone is grounds for the lemon law. Usually the lemon law applies to a car that is in the shop for a certain number of days because it is disabled and does not run. For example, if the CVT died and it took over 30 days, then thats lemon law territory. But if you crapped out the CVT by shifting into D while you were still rolling backwards you are just asking for trouble - its a good thing there is software protection to prevent the transmission from being damaged by that practice.

 

[Doombringer]

That's something I thought about. I cannot see a lemon law applying to squeaks or rattles. Sure, it's in-shop time, and it is annoying and a sign of poor fit/finish/workmanship, but it is not a mechanical or safety problem preventing the use of the vehicle (or making use unsafe).

And as for abusing the CVT... well...

Seriously, I get dumbfounded when I hear of people hot-rodding their Murano/FX/BMW/etc. Maybe *I'm* the wrong one here, but these vehicles are precision engineered and designed to work optimally WITHOUT user input. These are NOT muscle-cars that you can do a neutral drop in. The engineers who design these vehicles do not make them for peel-outs or power slides... and if you perform these maneuvers, or attempt to, and your vehicle breaks.. well.. DUH.

I remember a preview DVD I received for the Infiniti M45. Nice car. They had a pro driver race two muscle-cars. It was a pretty cool little movie (and display of the M45's power), but what I remember most is how they had to disable the M45's "VDC" to allow for a power slide (or something like that... he basically slid the back end of the car around to turn around on the spot), because otherwise the vehicle would not allow it. They tried it, and it would just not slide until they manually turned off the system.

Whenever I hear someone with a MO trying to pull some fancy manuever that worked in their last 1987 manual Mustang, I think back to that video and realize how foolish that person is.

 

[Eric L.]

That's something I thought about. I cannot see a lemon law applying to squeaks or rattles. Sure, it's in-shop time, and it is annoying and a sign of poor fit/finish/workmanship, but it is not a mechanical or safety problem preventing the use of the vehicle (or making use unsafe).

And as for abusing the CVT... well...

Seriously, I get dumbfounded when I hear of people hot-rodding their Murano/FX/BMW/etc. Maybe *I'm* the wrong one here, but these vehicles are precision engineered and designed to work optimally WITHOUT user input. These are NOT muscle-cars that you can do a neutral drop in. The engineers who design these vehicles do not make them for peel-outs or power slides... and if you perform these maneuvers, or attempt to, and your vehicle breaks.. well.. DUH.

I remember a preview DVD I received for the Infiniti M45. Nice car. They had a pro driver race two muscle-cars. It was a pretty cool little movie (and display of the M45's power), but what I remember most is how they had to disable the M45's "VDC" to allow for a power slide (or something like that... he basically slid the back end of the car around to turn around on the spot), because otherwise the vehicle would not allow it. They tried it, and it would just not slide until they manually turned off the system.

Whenever I hear someone with a MO trying to pull some fancy manuever that worked in their last 1987 manual Mustang, I think back to that video and realize how foolish that person is.

I've seen the M45 video as well, its very cool. I could not agree with you more about how silly it seems to me when people talk about how they drive the Murano like a sports car. Why would you even want to slide the tail of the Murano out on turns? And with an unproven $6000 transmission, is brake torquing such a good idea (or even accelerating from L, for that matter)?

If you want a sports car, get a sports car. If you want a fun to drive SUV, then the Murano is the ticket, but its not a car to do crazy stuff in.

Treat your car well, and it will treat you well. Abuse it, then be prepared for breakdowns, but don't blame the car. I sympathize with people who have had quality issues with the Murano, but I would not go so far as to declare it to be a terrible car and to have it recalled or bought back by Nissan.

 

[esemes]

as a rule of thumb, the Lemon Law applies to 'safety related ' issues mostly...


say you were to bring the car back three seperate times, each for the brakes not working.....

this is possibly a lemon law issue

if ALL MO's have a rattle or squeak, the concensus is that it is NOT a lemon, but rather an expected design (flaw?), since all (or a majority) behave the same way......

to go up against any dispute settlement board is a very long shot, but best of luck if you do.... (they pay alot of money to corporate attorneys to find any and every reason to negate your claims...


but, if you have a genuine safety concern, which is repeated NOT repaired by the dealer, then you stand a chance....

 

[hfelknor]

It may vary slightly from state to state.
The Florida legislature modified our law in 1998.

Here, basically is the Florida Lemon law.

You have to be able to answer YES to all 6 questions to qualify.
Note that "safety" is but one parameter. It does not have to be "safety related" at all. Although should it go to arbitartion, I should hope that Safety Related would carry some weight with the Arbiter.



-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Did you purchase or lease your vehicle NEW in the State of Florida? Yes No

Does your vehicle have a defect or condition that substantially impairs the use, value or safety of the vehicle? Yes No

a) Have you taken the vehicle to the dealership or an authorized service agent at least 3 times for the SAME substantial defect or condition? Yes No

-OR-

b) Has the vehicle been out of service for at least 15 cumulative calendar days due to one or more substantial defects or conditions? Yes No
(NOTE: If you answered yes to 3b, keep in mind that you must have at least 30 days out of service before requesting arbitration.)

Have you mailed by registered or express mail, return receipt requested, to the manufacturer of your vehicle (not dealer) the Motor Vehicle Defect Notification (MVDN) form which is located in your Lemon Law Handbook provided at the time of purchase? Yes No

Have you had a final repair attempt/inspection after the manufacturer received the MVDN? Yes No

Do you have work orders to verify the repairs to your vehicle? Yes No
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you answered YES to the six questions above, you could qualify for protection under the Lemon Law, please call 1-800-321-5366 or (850) 410-3788 to receive a Request for Arbitration package.


---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As you can see, certain things absolutely do not qualify in defining a lemon.
Rattles for instance will probably not "substantially impairs the use, value or safety of the vehicle".
Or at least if you believe that "reasonabale men can come to reasonable agreement" then rattles are not covered.



But OTOH, this is a law written by attorneys for attorneys. So, no one can state without reserve, exactly what "substantial" means.


Homer

 

[Matrixnyc]

If that is the law in Florida, all the dealer will say is that he bought the Murano used with 700+ miles on the Vehicle.

I tried myself to get a car repurchased under New York Lemon law, and basically you have to have a car that is worthless before you will be even considered to get anything from them.

Its not an easy thing. I know people say, i am protected by the lemon law, but i really think it is all an illusion to help protect the dealer and car companies.

Your best bet is to take it to a dealership that is near the one you bought it from, explain the situation and problems you are having with the Mo. let them know the other dealers were not able to fix it. They will love the chance to take business away from a competitor. That was the only way I got anything fixed with my older car.

Yelling and screaming will not get you anywhere, and you have to have realistic expectations. If you hear a noise, or rattle, realize that every car on the road has them. You cant bring it to a dealer each time you hit a pot hole and expect them to buy back you vehicle under lemon law.

Treat you Murano well and it will do the same for you.