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Nissan Murano Smell

7769 Views 25 Replies 17 Participants Last post by  jaak, 
N
Just got a Black on Black Murano SL...and I am psyched!

I have driven a good 300 miles with it, highway, and in-town.

The SL emits a foul smell after pushing it slightly. It smells like either:

--burning oil possibly
--burning rubber mostly though (could it be the CVT rubber belt in the tranny being pushed or the brake-pads?????)

its not gas smell, and not "new car smell", it clearly coming from the engine. I have owned many cars, this is the first time a new car smell is so pronounced...

The smell comes into the cabin and lasts about 10 min after you run the vehicle hard. Even smells outside the car for 2-3 minutes after you stop...

Anyone had this issue? Please advise. Anyone addressed it with their dealer?

Thanks,

Nikos
Boston, MA, USA

:D but also :(
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D
it might be some coat that they spray on the engine. that would wear off later.

if it's oil, you should check for leaks and/or have it checked out.

if i'm not mistaken, the belt on the tranny is steel/metal, not rubber.
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8
I agree with the coating theory. I have bought several brand new cars and they all have that kind of smell. The manufacturers generall treat all the steel in the engine compartment to preserve during shipping and just sitting. This oilish treatment will burn off after a few days (usually).

I drove a brand new SL (7kms - right off the back of the truck) and it had a very distinctive smell like you are describing. It was very strong, almost enough to give you a headache, but I am almost positive it is a temporary thing. I also drove one that had about 1200kms and it didn't have that smell.

Having said that, you should visually look for any leaks, and if the smell persists for too long (like a week of good driving) then you should maybe take it to the dealer and let them have a look.
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N
Engine and underbody treatment it must be...

I took it to the dealer guys and gals...

Thanks dubfly and 87gta...you where right on.

Nissan treats all its engines with this foul smelling protectant apparently that eventually burns off. This was my first Nissan so I was not aware.

I have had Subaru's, VW's and a Honda before wher the smell was not as bad...87gta was right, at times the smell coming off the Murano's engine was giving my family and I a headeache. We had to keep windows open in 15F degree weather.

The dealer did however instruct me to go right back if the smell had not dissipated at 1K miles (just to cover their a...es).
:lol:

Thank you both,
Nikos

Boston, MA
:wink:
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L
Re: Engine and underbody treatment it must be...

Nikos said:
I took it to the dealer guys and gals...

Thanks dubfly and 87gta...you where right on.

Nissan treats all its engines with this foul smelling protectant apparently that eventually burns off. This was my first Nissan so I was not aware.

I have had Subaru's, VW's and a Honda before wher the smell was not as bad...87gta was right, at times the smell coming off the Murano's engine was giving my family and I a headeache. We had to keep windows open in 15F degree weather.

The dealer did however instruct me to go right back if the smell had not dissipated at 1K miles (just to cover their a...es).
:lol:

Thank you both,
Nikos

Boston, MA
:wink:
Click to expand...


1700 miles and when you push the car -drive a little hard , that burning smell is back

Now What
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J
Well, mine stinks like Scotchguard! I just sprayed the whole interior (I have cloth). Gotta be careful not to get high going down the road!:eek:
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A
i smelled something similar right when i had bought the car but it was gone when i parked in my garage.

must have been some protective spray.
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L
Ds

I have 500 miles on my '04 SL and threw it into Ds the other day, and I got "the smell" . . .

as soon as I put it back into 'D' the smell went away.
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zebelkhan
My MO had the burning stinking smell yesterday. Turned out I had somehow picked up a plastic bag stuck to the resonator. I scarped it off and the smell was gone. ;)
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SugarRushMurano
I saw some posts in this forum during initial ownership

of 03 muranos, some of us smell coolant. Brought it back to the dealer for compresion test, leak test on the coolant system. Nada! Everything was fine. After several thousand mile, the coolant smell are gone by itself. I wonder whenther nissan cooling system's rubber gasket/hosts were allowing some coolant vapor to escape during vehicle break in.
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Kris
03 here. No smell at the beginning whatsoever..........later on, however yes. But got rid of it thanks to SugarRushMurano......:D
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L
Nikos said:
Just got a Black on Black Murano SL...and I am psyched!

I have driven a good 300 miles with it, highway, and in-town.

The SL emits a foul smell after pushing it slightly. It smells like either:

--burning oil possibly
--burning rubber mostly though (could it be the CVT rubber belt in the tranny being pushed or the brake-pads?????)

its not gas smell, and not "new car smell", it clearly coming from the engine. I have owned many cars, this is the first time a new car smell is so pronounced...


I have the same thing only when getting off the highway from playing a little What now??
The smell comes into the cabin and lasts about 10 min after you run the vehicle hard. Even smells outside the car for 2-3 minutes after you stop...

Anyone had this issue? Please advise. Anyone addressed it with their dealer?

Thanks,

Nikos
Boston, MA, USA

:D but also :(
Click to expand...
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elliotgb
I think I remember that smell. It's very distinctive, but not a familiar smell. To me it was more of a noxious odor like I was being gassed or something than an oil type smell.
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M
Mine had odors when new...

At first it smelled like antifreeze. That went away in about 4 or 5 tanks of gas.
Then I smelled rubber. That took longer to go away.
But, I remember a thread where someone had a theory that it was the rubber exhaust hangers. That was agreed upon by many to be the likely culprit. I guess after you cook them good, they stop stinking. It does readily explain the smell after playing in Ds—the exhaust has to be much hotter at higher revs.
I don't think the CVT has much to do with it, I don't think it vents.
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GripperDon
When I Ceramic painted my middle muffler, etc. It smelled first couple of times it got hot and then went away. Have you tried "Right guard":D
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SugarRushMurano
Ahh, Kris. I remember that one..

03 here. No smell at the beginning whatsoever..........later on, however yes. But got rid of it thanks to SugarRushMurano......
Click to expand...
I rememeber that one. The fungus smell (like pee smell). Very common on vehicles in four seasons area...
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C
Burning smell

I have over 3k+ miles on the car and I still have that smell. If it keeps up I am just going to pressure wash the engine bay when it gets warm outside...
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A
I have an '03 and it also had the burning and/or coolant smell for the first couple thousand miles as well.

A few weeks ago we bought an '05 Audi A4 and it smelled way worse than the Murano ever did the first night we got it home; however, the dealr had warned us this would happen when we left with the car that night.
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GripperDon
Andrew 77 You have a sweet stable with a MO and a 2005 Audi A4 Quattro Special Edition. What is it color, initial reactions, etc. and If possible a pic. :D
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A
Thanks, it's a great car and I am continually impressed by the refinement it has in fit, finish, and the precision of the controls. However, the Murano has it beaten hands down on comfort!

So, far, I love it. we had a bad ice storm for 5 days over the holidays and had about 3-4" of sleet packed on the roads. The Murano was all over the place so we parked it but the Audi Quattro held its own when we were on hills, etc.

I'm thinking of trading the MO soon to get one with NAV and, based on the Audi, have considered a Tourag, but sure I'll be back in another Murano because after 2 years in mine I still smile every time I get in it!

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