There are 11 owner-reported body & structure complaints for the 2003 Nissan Muranoin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
Rusting excessively
WHILE DRIVING THE VEHICLE THE DRIVER NOTICED THAT THE VEHICLE BECAME SHAKY AND WAS DIFFICULT TO CONTROL NEARLY CAUSING THE DRIVER TO GO OFF THE ROAD. DRIVER TOOK THE VEHICLE TO A LOCAL MECHANIC WHO, UPON FURTHER INSPECTION, DISCOVERED THAT THE REAR SUBFRAME HAD NEARLY RUSTED COMPLETELY THROUGH. THE VEHICLE IS A 2003 WITH AROUND 130,000 MILES. THE VEHICLE IS USED PRIMARILY TO DRIVE TO AND FROM WORK ON PAVED HIGHWAYS. WHEN RESEARCHING THE ISSUE FURTHER, I NOTICED THAT THERE WERE MULTIPLE OTHER OWNERS OF FIRST GENERATION NISSAN MURANOS WHO EXPERIENCED SIMILAR ISSUES, INCLUDING ONE WHOSE FRAME ACTUALLY BROKE IN HALF WHILE DRIVING (THANKFULLY THAT DID NOT HAPPEN IN OUR CASE). THE ISSUE APPEARS TO RELATE TO THE FRAME AND/OR SEALANT ON THE FRAME CORRODING DUE TO THE SALT USED ON THE ROADS DURING THE WINTER TIME IN THE NORTHERN US. OUR VEHICLE IS DRIVEN IN MICHIGAN. NISSAN CONDUCTED RECALLS FOR SIMILAR ISSUES WITH OTHER MODELS (ALTIMA, PATHFINDER AND INFINITY QX4) WHICH SHOWS THIS IS NOT AN ISOLATED EVENT. AS SUCH, I FEEL THIS ISSUE IS PRESENTS A SERIOUS SAFETY RISK TO THE DRIVER, PASSENGERS AND OTHER MOTORISTS. I CONTACTED NISSAN CONSUMER AFFAIRS AND WAS TOLD THAT THERE WAS NOT RECALL AND THAT I WOULD NEED TO TAKE THE VEHICLE TO A NISSAN DEALERSHIP FOR THE REPAIR AND THEN SUBMIT A COMPLAINT WHICH WOULD BE ESCALATED TO THE REGIONAL TEAM BUT, THAT THEY WERE UNLIKELY TO PROVIDE ANY SUPPORT. HOWEVER, AS THE CAR IS CURRENTLY INOPERABLE, THIS IS NOT POSSIBLE SO THE REPAIR WILL NEED TO BE DONE BY THE LOCAL, CERTIFIED MECHANIC. IF YOU NEED ANY FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE LET ME KNOW. I CAN BE REACHED AT [XXX] OR BY PHONE AT [XXX]. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR
HATCH WILL NOT OPEN HAD PARTS CHANGED AN IT WORKED FOR A WHILE NOW HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM AGAIN WAS STATIONARY.
SEVERE RUST ON ROOF, NO OTHER PART OF CAR ONLY THE ROOF. *TR
THE LOCK HANDLE ON THE DRIVER'S DOOR CAME OUT OF THE DOOR. NO PRIOR WARNING, ETC. COMPLETE FAILURE & DOES NO OPEN CAR ANYMORE. EXCESSIVE & COUNTLESS SIMILAR INCIDENTS ON MURANO OWNER SITES & NISSAN SITES. DEALER SAYS $800 TO REPAIR! SAFETY ISSUE AS TO KEEPING CAR LOCKED, ETC. *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 NISSAN MURANO. THE CONTACT STATED THAT A LOUD BANGING NOISE EMITTED FROM THE FRONT WHILE DRIVING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A LOCAL MECHANIC AND AN INSPECTION WAS PERFORMED. THE FRONT SUBFRAME WAS CORRODED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGES WERE 116,000.
DRIVER'S SIDE DOOR HANDLE BROKE COMPLETELY OFF WITH NORMAL USE. *KB
DOOR HANDLE PROBLEM. KEY LOCK COVER FELL OFF AND KEY LOCK IS LOOSE. LOCKS STOPPED WORKING OR WORKED SOMETIME AFTER A WHILE OF BUYING THE CAR. *TR
NO ONE PARTICULAR EVENT LED TO FAILURE. THE SPECIFIC FAILURE IS THE DRIVER'S SIDE SUN VISOR FREQUENTLY AND UNEXPECTEDLY PIVOTS DOWN INTO LINE OF SIGHT OF DRIVER WHILE DRIVING. THIS HINDERS IMMEDIATE LINE OF SIGHT. VISOR HAS NO VISIBLE DEFAULT BUT FEELS "SPONGY" WHEN TRYING TO SECURE IT BACK UP. NUMEROUS FORUMS ONLINE INDICATE THE VISOR PIVOT POINT IS OF FLIMSY MANUFACTURE AND THERE ARE NUMEROUS ONLINE FORUMS REFERRING TO THIS PROBLEM. MY VISOR FALLS INTO MY LINE OF SIGHT FREQUENTLY AND DOES BLOCK MY VIEW FOR A MOMENT UNTIL I PUSH IT BACK UP. I SEE THIS AS A POTENTIAL SAFETY ISSUE. I ATTEMPTED TO ORDER A NEW PART ON MY OWN AND WAS INFORMED IT WAS OVER $300.00 FOR A NEW VISOR. THIS SEEMS OUTRAGEOUS SINCE IT OBVIOUSLY SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN "BROKEN" DUE TO MOVING IT UP AND DOWN LIKE ANY OTHER VISOR WOULD BE MOVED. *TR
OVER 20 DIFFERENT RATTLE, SQUEAK, TAP, CREAK NOISES COMING FROM INSIDE AND OUTSIDE THE CAR. NOISES COMING FROM WINDOW AREAS, DOOR PANELS, B-PILLAR (REAR SEAT AREA), CEILING, FLOORBOARDS, CARGO AREA, DASH BOARD, UNDERNEAT THE FRONT END OF THE CAR (FRONT WHEELS), TAILGATE AREA, FRONT SEATS, REAR SEAT BELT AREA, AND MORE EVERY DAY. VEHICLE HAS BEEN IN THE SHOP MORE THAN THREE TIMES (TOTAL OF 21 DAYS IN THE SERVICE BAY) TO ATTEMPT REPAIR, BUT NO RESULTS....THE NOISES KEEP COMING. NOISES OCCUR WHEN HITTING BUMPS OR ANY SLIGHT IMPERFECTION IN THE ROAD, ALSO OCCURS WHEN THE CAR IS FLEXING OR WHN THE TEMPERATURE DROPS BELOW 40 DEGREES.....IT GETS EVEN WORSE! DEALER CAN'T FIX IT.*AK
WHEN EITHER OF THE BACK OR FRONT PASSENGER WINDOW IS DOWN, THE THE WINDOWS WILL VIBRATE LOUD AND SHAKE. THE VIBRATION IS DEAFENING.*AK
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 26, 2026