NHTSA Complaint #10241227 — 2003 NISSAN MURANO

PURCHASED THIS VEHICLE WITH 20,000 MILES ON IT, KEPT WELL MAINTAINED, DROVE 90% HIGHWAY MILES MOSTLY COMMUTING TO CARE FOR ELDERLY PERSON. FRONT STRUTS LEAKED AND FAILED WITHOUT WARNING AT APPROX 60,000 MILES, THEN HAD LOSS OF POWER, TRANSMISSION/DRIVESHAFT BEGAN "HOWLING NOISE" AND WE COULD SMELL FAINT OIL SMELL, TOOK TO DEALER WERE TOLD IT WAS THE TRANSMISSION VALVE BODY WHICH THEY FIXED UNDER WARRANTY, THAT THEY COULD DETECT NO OIL SMELL OR SOURCE FOR SAME, AND THAT CVT HOWL WAS JUST THE NORMAL SOUNDS OF THAT TYPE OF TRANSMISSION. WE SPECIFICALLY ASKED WHETHER THERE ARE ANY KNOWN PROBLEMS OR FAILURES WITH DRIVETRAIN ASSEMBLE COMPONENTS, BECAUSE WE HEARD OF MANY OTHER STRUT FAILURES BY MURANO OWNERS AFTER OUR STRUTS FAILED PREMATURELY. WE WERE TOLD THERE WERE NO REPORTS OF ANY TROUBLE, NOT TO WORRY ABOUT IT. THE HOWL NEVER WENT AWAY, AND THE OIL SMELL CAME AND WENT. SEPT. 4, WE PULLED OUT OF OUR DRIVEWAY DROVE ABOUT 50 YARDS DOWN THE STREET AND HEAR A HORRIBLE THUMPING NOISE, LIKE A FLAT DRIVE, WE STOPPED IMMEDIATELY AND CHECKED, NO FLAT TIRE. WE STARTED THE CAR AGAIN AND DROVE A FEW FEET, SAME NOISE. WE PARKED THE CAR AND HAD IT TOWED TO DEALER. WE ARE TOLD THE TRANSFER CASE "GRENADED" THAT WE MUST HAVE BEEN DRIVING IT HARD (WE WERE GOING ABOUT 10 MPH), THAT IT WOULD BE $4000 TO REPAIR! THE TECH ASKED IF WE HAD BEEN HEARING ANY UNUSUAL NOISES BEFORE THE FAILURE, WE TOLD HIM WE HAD, AND WE HAD REPORTED IT TO THE DEALER WHEN IT WAS UNDER WARRANTY, BUT THEY REFUSED TO HELP WITH THE REPAIR COSTS. I CHECKED ON THE INTERNET AND SPENT 6 HOURS READING THOUSANDS OF SIMILAR TRANSFER CASE FAILURE STORIES ON MURANOS WITH ALL LEVELS OF MILEAGE ON THEM, MANY HAD BEEN TOLD, LIKE WE WERE, THAT WARNING SIGNS WERE NOTHING WHEN THEIR VEHICLES WERE STILL UNDER WARRANTY. THE DEALER ALSO TRIED TO CHARGE US $2800.00 FOR THE PART, WHICH WE FOUND FOR $1518.00 FROM ANOTHER NISSAN DEALER. THIS IS A KNOWN PROBLEM, HAS CAUSED VEHICLES TO STOP IN TRAFFIC AND SHOULD BE A RECALL DEFECT. THANK YOU *TR