Description: Compact SUV
Base MSRP Range: $13,390 - $27,020
Invoice Price Range: $12,944 - $24,989

With stylish exterior shapes and a comfortable cabin that accommodates five passengers, the mid-size Murano wagon is a fun-to-drive vehicle that looks like a SUV but behaves more like an enthusiastic sports car.

Like the SUV, Murano shows a wagon's format with five seats and four doors for passengers plus a liftgate in back for access to the cargo bay. But like a sports sedan, Murano rides on the front-wheel-drive (FWD) chassis of a car. The platform, which also underpins Nissan's Altima and Maxima sedans, supports the 111-inch wheelbase and a wide track of 64.2 inches up front and 64.0 in back.

Pushing wheels to edges of the chassis brings stability to the stance and enhances Murano's agility when cornering. A vented disc brake stands at every wheel and all tie by computerized links to ABS with brake assist (BA) and EBD. Murano also offers high-tech hardware such as VDC with TCS and Nissan's AWD equipment for dependable grip on slippery pavement.

For locomotion Nissan pulls out the Altima's juicy dual-cam 3.5-liter V6. Output reaches to 245 hp through an advanced CVT that Nissan calls Xtronic. The 2004 SE model brings a new manual shift mode for the CVT. Also new are Sunroof and Touring packages, plus a standard ten-way power driver's seat with power lumber controls.