Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2012 Nissan Murano owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
This car I purchased two months ago has the Cvt transmission in it and has proven unsafe for regular traffic let alone highway driving. It randomly "lurches" , has a loss of power and hesitates when accelerating or lane changing .
Tl* the contact owns a 2012 Nissan Murano. While driving approximately 15 MPH and turning into a parking lot, the vehicle accelerated forward and the oil consumption indicator illuminated. The contact crashed into the vehicle in front of her. The front bumper was damage on both vehicles. No police report was filed and there were no injuries reported. The dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 75,000.
On June 25th I was going down a very steep hill in guttenberg nj,07093 when about three quarters down the hill my 212 Nissan Murano convertible's engine stopped with no warning. Thank god the light ahead was green and I was able to turn the wheel just enough to avert crashing into a fence and go over an embankment. The car rolled to a stop and I wound up in middle of traffic whose light was then green coming at me from north and south.. I wrote to the us global headquarters in california and spoke several times to Nissan's regional office in tennessee. The car has been at local dealership since June 25 and they say if they can't duplicate the problem I will have to take car . But that is unacceptable because it is not safe and I cannot in good faith sell it to anyone else. Can you please help me. …
The vehicle was being driven on this date back to the dealership who had done the repair 5 days earlier Nissan of oursman of laurel md . The vehicle began to once again perfom the same was it did the 2 week earlier when the incidentoccurrence on I 295 n bound deoartibng washington dc , this Saturday the vehicle was acting erraticly in the parking lot of my loack food lion grocery story on 197 in laurel md, as I depated the parking lot I experience the grinding sould on and off and the shakking / virbrating of the steering wheel turning to the left or right without me directing it to do so...therefore I headed out the lot to go to the dealership before they closed at 3 pm... …
I bought this car used a couple years ago. Last month while driving down the road the car started jerking and I couldn't go over 20 miles an hour. I took it to a repair shop and they said the transmissions was a CVT transmission and could not be repaired or rebuilt and had to be replaced at $4,100+. They said this was a problem with CVT and Nissan was aware of it and had offered an extended warranty to 100K (at a cost). The transmission only had 80,000 miles. When I asked about the warranty on the new transmission I was told the trans was only guaranteeded for 12,000 miles or one year. It's sad that a company is aware of a situation like this. It would have been one thing to have to pay $1,500 to have it rebuilt but to have to pay $4,100+ and it's only good for a year is another thing. Now I'm in a bind. …
The car was running fine, then suddenly started shuddering violently when accelerating from a stopped position. As I continued accelerating, it smoothed out, but as I came to my next stop and started accelerating, the shuddering happened again, then I heard a pop and lost all ability to accelerate. I could hear the engine rev as I pushed the accelerator, but the car would not move. Upon doing research, I learned that there are tons of people with the same or similar issues with their CVT transmissions, for which the most common remedy seems to be full transmission replacement. Nissan needs to do the right thing and assist those of us experiencing issues with transmissions that are obviously faulty and costing owners several thousands of dollars to repair. …
My car would hesitate 4 to 5 seconds when starting from a complete stop. This was very unsafe, as I was at a light, went to turn, and the car didn't move. It finally lunged forward. Luckily the traffic was light, if I had been in heavy traffic, this would have been worse and caused me to turn in front of an oncoming car. I was making a left turn across a road with 50 MPH traffic into a subdivision. I took the car to Nissan and they said the transmission (CVT) needs to be replaced. The car only has 62,000 miles. This is not only unsafe, but unacceptable for only 62,000 miles. This is going to cost me $4500 to fix. Nissan is stating this is my fault, as I never had the transmission serviced. In the book, the first service for transmission required is 60,000 miles, but it states to inspect the fluid. There are optional services at 30K miles, but it does not indicate they are required.
While starting from a stop, the car will not accelerate for 5-10 seconds. This is dangerous in intersections and when pulling into traffic. First experienced problem at 98K and took to dealer. Dealer could not diagnose or recreate problem. No check engine lights indicated. This problem has continued intermittenly and is now happening on a regular basis. At 121K, took to dealer even though no service lights on and was told the CVT transmission needs to be replaced. As well, the motor mounts and front bushing control arms need to be replaced. All 3 of these items are reported by other owners. CVT was offered to owners with 2003-2010 models; however, the same issue is happening in later models, including my 2012. Nissan needs to recall these years as well.
Vehicle had less than 70000 when CVT transmission started to fail. While driving vehicle would shudder, and at time engine would rev at 4000 RPM. Vehicle is still driveable at this time, but is slow to accelerate, and shudders at times. We do not drive the vehicle on the highway any longer for fear the transmission would completely stop working. Was inspected at Nissan dealership and by independent mechanic and both confirm that transmission codes indicate CVT transmission is failing. This is the same issue that the Nissan Murano transmission had in the past which LED to a recall which covered model years from 2003 to 2010.
My car fails to accelerate when taking off at times. It has happened pulling into moving traffic as well as pulling away from a green light. Sometimes while moving you will feel a lapse of power as well. One dealer tried to tell me it was the tires...not the case. Another suggested it is the CVT, which is what we thought. However, Nissan is sneaky and HID the ability to fully diagnose this problem since no error code is present with the problem happens. This continues to happen and it is not safe to drive the car, so I have stopped driving it all together.
Transmission complaints in other Murano years
Frequently asked questions
How common are transmission problems on the 2012 Nissan Murano?
NHTSA has 30 complaints about the transmission & drivetrain of the 2012 Nissan Murano, 22% of the model year's 135 complaints.
Is there a recall for 2012 Nissan Murano transmission problems?
No. NHTSA lists no transmission & drivetrain recall for the 2012 Nissan Murano, though it has 1 recall for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2012 Nissan Murano transmission problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 75,000 miles, and 15% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 2 crashes, 0 fires and 1 injury to transmission & drivetrain problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.