2012 Nissan Murano Problems and Recalls (134 Complaints)

The most-reported problem on the 2012 Nissan Murano is Transmission / driveline (20% of 134 owner reports). There are 1 safety recalls. Check the VIN and inspect Transmission / driveline — this is the NHTSA file, not a score.

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-09-07 134 complaints · 1 recalls

What problems show up on the 2012 Nissan Murano?

27 of 134 filings named Transmission / driveline (20% of the file). That is what owners wrote, not a shop diagnosis of the vehicle in the driveway.

Second is Airbags (20 reports).

There are 1 official safety recalls on this year. They were filed about Tires. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov — a campaign on this page can still be open on a specific truck.

The 2011 has 148 reports on file; this year has 134. A smaller lifetime total is not a clean bill of health. If you need a fairer comparison, use the equal-time view.

What to check before you buy a 2012 Nissan Murano

A useful visit to this page takes five minutes. YearTell does not score years and cannot see the vehicle in front of you.

  1. Look up the VIN for open recalls at nhtsa.gov. This year has 1 campaigns on file below.
  2. Transmission / driveline. Have a shop drive it and check the transmission: hard or delayed shifts, burnt-smelling fluid, and 4WD engagement if equipped.
  3. Airbags. Confirm the airbag light behaves normally and that open airbag recalls are closed.
  4. Glass / wipers / cameras. Check windshield, wipers and any camera or sensor the listing claims is there.
  5. Skim a few owner reports below for Transmission / driveline. Look for the same symptom repeating.
  6. Take that list to a mechanic. Do not turn the complaint total into a score.

What owners reported

System named most often: Transmission / driveline 27 complaints · 20.2% of the file
Crashes, fires, injuries and deaths in those filings:
  • Crashes 4
  • Fires 1
  • Injuries 4
  • Deaths 0
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-09-07 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Which systems owners named

Share of owner complaints filed against each vehicle system. These shares are not adjusted for how many vehicles were sold.

Which systems owners named Transmission / driveline (POWER TRAIN) appears in 27 of 134 owner complaints (20.1%) in this vehicle snapshot. Transmission / driveline (POWER TRAIN): 27 complaints, 20.1% of reports Transmission / driveline (POWER TRAIN) 2 crash reports 27 · 20.1% Airbags (AIR BAGS): 20 complaints, 14.9% of reports Airbags (AIR BAGS) 2 crash reports 20 · 14.9% Glass / wipers / cameras (VISIBILITY): 18 complaints, 13.4% of reports Glass / wipers / cameras (VISIBILITY) 18 · 13.4% Brakes (SERVICE BRAKES): 10 complaints, 7.5% of reports Brakes (SERVICE BRAKES) 10 · 7.5% Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM): 9 complaints, 6.7% of reports Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM) 9 · 6.7% Engine (ENGINE): 7 complaints, 5.2% of reports Engine (ENGINE) 1 fire reports 7 · 5.2% Body / frame (STRUCTURE): 5 complaints, 3.7% of reports Body / frame (STRUCTURE) 5 · 3.7% Steering (STEERING): 3 complaints, 2.2% of reports Steering (STEERING) 3 · 2.2% Suspension (SUSPENSION): 3 complaints, 2.2% of reports Suspension (SUSPENSION) 3 · 2.2% Unclassified NHTSA leftover: 39 complaints, 29.1% of reports Unclassified NHTSA leftover 39 · 29.1% 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

“Unclassified NHTSA leftover” is not a car part. It is a filing bucket and always sits last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
Transmission / driveline (POWER TRAIN) 27 20.1% 2 crashes · 0 fires
Airbags (AIR BAGS) 20 14.9% 2 crashes · 0 fires
Glass / wipers / cameras (VISIBILITY) 18 13.4% 0 crashes · 0 fires
Brakes (SERVICE BRAKES) 10 7.5% 0 crashes · 0 fires
Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM) 9 6.7% 0 crashes · 0 fires
Engine (ENGINE) 7 5.2% 0 crashes · 1 fires
Body / frame (STRUCTURE) 5 3.7% 0 crashes · 0 fires
Steering (STEERING) 3 2.2% 0 crashes · 0 fires
Suspension (SUSPENSION) 3 2.2% 0 crashes · 0 fires
Unclassified NHTSA leftover 39 29.1% 0 crashes · 0 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-09-07 Open source record

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

When reports and recalls showed up

When owners filed reports, and when recall campaigns showed up.

When reports and recalls showed up Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Jul 2012; the first recall shown was reported in Feb 2012. 2012-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2012-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2013-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2013-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2013-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2013-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2014-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2014-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2014-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2014-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2015-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2015-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2015-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2016-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2016-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2016-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2016-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2017-Q1: 6 owner reports 6 2017-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2017-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 2017-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 2018-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2018-Q2: 5 owner reports 5 2018-Q3: 11 owner reports 11 2018-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2019-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2019-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2019-Q3: 8 owner reports 8 2019-Q4: 6 owner reports 6 2020-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 2020-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2020-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2020-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2021-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2021-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2022-Q1: 6 owner reports 6 2022-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 2022-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2023-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2023-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2023-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2024-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2024-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2025-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2025-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2025-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2026-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2026-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2026-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 Owner reports Feb 2012 Jul 2026 Recall campaign 12V068000 ◆ Recall campaign 12V068000
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
2012-Q3 Owner reports 1
2012-Q4 Owner reports 2
2013-Q1 Owner reports 1
2013-Q2 Owner reports 1
2013-Q3 Owner reports 1
2013-Q4 Owner reports 2
2014-Q1 Owner reports 2
2014-Q2 Owner reports 3
2014-Q3 Owner reports 2
2014-Q4 Owner reports 4
2015-Q1 Owner reports 2
2015-Q2 Owner reports 3
2015-Q4 Owner reports 2
2016-Q1 Owner reports 2
2016-Q2 Owner reports 3
2016-Q3 Owner reports 3
2016-Q4 Owner reports 2
2017-Q1 Owner reports 6
2017-Q2 Owner reports 2
2017-Q3 Owner reports 4
2017-Q4 Owner reports 3
2018-Q1 Owner reports 3
2018-Q2 Owner reports 5
2018-Q3 Owner reports 11
2018-Q4 Owner reports 2
2019-Q1 Owner reports 1
2019-Q2 Owner reports 4
2019-Q3 Owner reports 8
2019-Q4 Owner reports 6
2020-Q1 Owner reports 4
2020-Q2 Owner reports 2
2020-Q3 Owner reports 2
2020-Q4 Owner reports 5
2021-Q1 Owner reports 1
2021-Q3 Owner reports 2
2022-Q1 Owner reports 6
2022-Q3 Owner reports 4
2022-Q4 Owner reports 1
2023-Q1 Owner reports 3
2023-Q2 Owner reports 1
2023-Q3 Owner reports 3
2024-Q1 Owner reports 1
2024-Q2 Owner reports 2
2025-Q2 Owner reports 1
2025-Q3 Owner reports 1
2025-Q4 Owner reports 1
2026-Q1 Owner reports 1
2026-Q2 Owner reports 1
2026-Q3 Owner reports 1
Recall campaign 1 12V068000
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-09-06 Open source record

Safety Recalls (1)

Official campaigns. Each one says what could go wrong and what the dealer was told to fix.

In short, these campaigns were filed about Tires.

  1. Recall campaign 12V068000

    Tires

    Report date
    Component:
    Tires (TIRES)
    Consequence:
    A NON-ACTIVE TPMS CANNOT WARN A DRIVER THAT A TIRE IS UNDERINFLATED. UNDERINFLATED TIRES CAN RESULT IN TIRE OVERLOADING AND OVERHEATING, WHICH COULD LEAD TO A BLOWOUT AND POSSIBLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    ALL OF THE AFFECTED VEHICLES ARE STILL IN DEALER INVENTORY. DEALERS HAVE BEEN INSTRUCTED TO ACTIVATE ALL OF THE TIRE PRESSURE MONITORING SYSTEMS.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-09-07 Open source record

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

What owners actually wrote

Short excerpts from the public NHTSA file. Look for the same symptom repeating.

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-09-07
Safety incident filters
Showing 7 of 134 complaints · page 1 of 6
2026-08-23FUEL SYSTEM
NHTSA ODI 11758894
CrashFireInjuryDeath
My tire light is on a my 2012 nissian murano. It flashes at startup, with the light on, telling me I have low tire pressure. I put air evenly in all four tires. The light still remains on; how can all four TPMS go bad? I wouldn't know if i have a leak or low pressure due failed TPMS. My check engine light is on due to air/fuel ration on bank 1 sensor 1. This issue is causing poor fuel economy and filing emissions.
2026-06-04Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM)
NHTSA ODI 11742137
CrashFireInjuryDeath
The contact owns a 2012 Nissan Murano. The contact stated that after parking the vehicle, the contact and the front seat passenger attempted to exit the vehicle, but all the doors failed to unlock. Additionally, the steering wheel was locked upside down. The contact stated that the engine started to overheat, and the front seat passenger had a panic attack. The contact called 911. The Fire Department arrived but was unable to forcefully open the doors. The Fire Department broke the rear passenger's side window and was able to unlock the doors. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed and determined that the main fuse box was blown and melted. The mechanic determined that the Intelligent Power Distribution Module (IPDM) needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred the following morning. The contact was able to open and enter the vehicle; however, the vehicle failed to start. The contact was able to exit the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was able to restart. The dealer determined that a fuse in the steering column might have been blown. The dealer informed the contact that the part was no longer available. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 136,161.
2026-03-15FUEL SYSTEM
NHTSA ODI 11724430
CrashFireInjuryDeath
Vehicles of previous model years, this model year, and future model years have all experienced this issue. Issue was reported on thru a youTube channel in order to let the public know and understand the issue and how to fix/repair the issue. It was then discovered thru view time and the linking of the part to repair that this was a rempent issue of concern for possible recall. Issue of hesitation upon acceleration was noticed for 18 months. Vehicle was taken into dealership for diagnosis - main Nissan dealer and second repair facility diagnosed the need for a new transmission. Transmission was replaced thru the second repair facility for $7500.00. Issue of hesitation upon acceleration was not repaired thru the replacement of the transmission. Owner of the vehicle researched the issue and determined it was caused by holes and degredation of the "Air-Intake-Hose" assembly. This part is a $35.00 part availalbe on Amazon and easily replaced in about 10 minutes time by the owner. The need for recall is that Nissan does not throw an error code in order to diagnose this problem. The only error code thrown is for a NEW TRANSMISSION.
2025-11-30Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM)
NHTSA ODI 11702102
CrashFireInjuryDeath
While driving, vehicle just quits and all dashboard lights flash quickly and then the car stalls out and won't restart. This has happened 4 times now. Had battery replaced, alternator replaced for a 2nd time, sensor replaced. Now, I had the car towed to dealer who wanted to keep it for over the weekend to see if they could repeat the issue. My local mechanic had the same issue and he had to have it towed back to his shop also. This is a very dangerous situation, I've had to call 911 several times to provide safety while on the side of the road. My car has only 72k and is in excellent condition. I have always maintenance the vehicle since purchasing it in 2014.....I need some help with figuring out this issue. I am a disabled senior citizen on social security and that's it! Please look into this as I have run out of solutions.
2025-09-06Unclassified NHTSA leftover
NHTSA ODI 11685503
CrashFireInjuryDeath
When accelerating from a stop vehicle does not move, with gas pedal to the floor will slowly advance or stall. Has a battery drain somewhere also.
2025-04-21Suspension (SUSPENSION)
NHTSA ODI 11655786
CrashFireInjuryDeath
The rear subframe has rusted through due to road salt and made the vehicle unsafe to drive
2024-06-18Body / frame (STRUCTURE)Unclassified NHTSA leftover
NHTSA ODI 11595014
CrashFireInjuryDeath
Paint continues to chip and peel. It looks awful and Nissan won't do anything about it. It should be under the same recall as the Nissan Rogue and Infinity. It has overly devalued my car.

Frequently asked questions

What are the most common problems on the 2012 Nissan Murano?

Owners named Transmission / driveline most often — 27 of 134 reports (20%). That is the NHTSA file, not a diagnosis of every vehicle.

Are there recalls for the 2012 Nissan Murano?

NHTSA lists 1 safety recall campaigns. They were filed about Tires. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov; a campaign on this page can still be open on a specific vehicle.

What should I inspect before buying a 2012 Nissan Murano?

Look up the VIN for open recalls. Have a shop drive it and check the transmission: hard or delayed shifts, burnt-smelling fluid, and 4WD engagement if equipped. Then skim owner filings for the same symptom and take that list to a mechanic.

Does a high complaint count mean I should skip this year?

No. Counts are reports people chose to file and they are not adjusted for sales volume. YearTell does not publish scores or a list of years to skip. Inspect the vehicle.

EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record

Estimated Ownership Cost

EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates

Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot 2026-08-21
Supported range: 1,000–60,000 miles per year
Supported range: $1.50–$10.00 per gallon
55% city45% highway
Estimate unavailable

EPA fuel-economy data is unavailable for this vehicle.

No estimate is shown when required EPA values are unavailable.

Open Ownership Cost Calculator →

Adjacent Model Years

Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-09-07 Open source record

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Methodology & Data Integrity

Source: NHTSA ODI / recalls, snapshot 2026-09-07. YearTell is not a government agency.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources