Compare the2023 Nissan MuranoVS 2023 Subaru Outback

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Model Availability
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

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The Nissan Murano has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Outback doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

The Murano SL/Platinum has a standard Around View® Monitor to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Outback only offers a rear monitor and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the front or sides.

The Murano has a standard blind spot warning system which uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. A system to reveal vehicles in the Outback’s blind spot costs extra.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Murano has a standard rear cross-path warning system, which uses sensors in the rear bumper to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. Rear cross-path warning costs extra on the Outback and isn't available on the not available.

Compared to metal, the Murano’s plastic fuel tank can withstand harder, more intrusive impacts without leaking; this decreases the possibility of fire. The Subaru Outback has a metal gas tank.

Both the Murano and the Outback have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras and available all wheel drive.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Nissan Murano is safer than the Subaru Outback:

	Murano	Outback
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Neck Stress	223 lbs.	281 lbs.
Neck Compression	34 lbs.	57 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	25%	43%
Neck Stress	124 lbs.	147 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Nissan Murano is safer than the Subaru Outback:

	Murano	Outback
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Spine Acceleration	31 G’s	51 G’s
Hip Force	299 lbs.	635 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Spine Acceleration	41 G’s	43 G’s
Hip Force	591 lbs.	674 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the Murano is 2.6% to 3.4% less likely to roll over than the Outback.

Warranty

There are over 69 percent more Nissan dealers than there are Subaru dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Murano’s warranty.

Reliability

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Murano first among midsize suvs in their 2022 Initial Quality Study. The Outback isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Nissan vehicles are better in initial quality than Subaru vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Nissan above average in initial quality. With 24 more problems per 100 vehicles, Subaru is rated below average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Nissan vehicles are more reliable than Subaru With 21 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks Nissan higher than Subaru.

Engine

The Murano’s 3.5 DOHC V6 produces 78 more horsepower (260 vs. 182) and 64 lbs.-ft. more torque (240 vs. 176) than the Outback 2.5i’s standard 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Nissan Murano is faster than the Outback 2.5i 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder:

	Murano	Outback
Zero to 60 MPH	7.4 sec	8.7 sec
Quarter Mile	15.6 sec	16.6 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	91.8 MPH	86.1 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Murano gets better mileage than the Outback:

			MPG
Murano
	FWD	3.5 DOHC V6	20 city/28 hwy
	AWD	3.5 DOHC V6	20 city/28 hwy
Outback
	AWD	Wilderness 2.4 turbo flat-4	21 city/26 hwy

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Murano’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Outback:

	Murano	Outback
Front Rotors	12.6 inches	12.4 inches
Rear Rotors	12.1 inches	11.8 inches

The Murano stops much shorter than the Outback:

	Murano	Outback
70 to 0 MPH	175 feet	191 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	115 feet	132 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Murano has larger tires than the Outback (235/65R18 vs. 225/65R17).

The Murano Midnight/SL/Platinum’s tires provide better handling because they have a lower 55 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Outback Onyx/Limited/Touring’s 60 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Murano S/SV has standard 18-inch wheels. Smaller 17-inch wheels are standard on the Outback. The Murano Midnight/SL/Platinum’s 20-inch wheels are larger than the 18-inch wheels on the Outback Onyx/Limited/Touring.

The Murano has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The Outback doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

Suspension and Handling

The Murano has vehicle speed sensitive variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Outback doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Murano’s wheelbase is 3.1 inches longer than on the Outback (111.2 inches vs. 108.1 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Murano is 2.7 inches wider in the front and 1.7 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the Outback.

The Murano Platinum AWD handles at .81 G’s, while the Outback Wilderness pulls only .74 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Murano Platinum AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Outback Limited (27.8 seconds @ .64 average G’s vs. 28.4 seconds @ .62 average G’s).

Passenger Space

The Murano has 1.4 inches more front shoulder room, .7 inches more rear headroom, .4 inches more rear hip room and 1.5 inches more rear shoulder room than the Outback.

The front step up height for the Murano is 3.2 inches lower than the Outback (15.8” vs. 19”). The Murano’s rear step up height is 3.4 inches lower than the Outback’s (15.1” vs. 18.5”).

Cargo Capacity

Pulling a handle automatically lowers the Murano’s rear seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Outback doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

Servicing Ease

The Murano uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Outback uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

Ergonomics

The Murano offers a remote vehicle starting system, so the vehicle can be started from inside the driver's house. This allows the driver to comfortably warm up the engine before going out to the vehicle. The climate system will also automatically heat or cool the interior. The Outback doesn’t offer a remote starting system.

The Murano SL/Platinum’s standard easy entry system raises the steering wheel and glides the driver’s seat back when the door is unlocked or the ignition is switched off, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The Outback doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

If the front windows are left open on the Murano the driver can close them at the outside door handle. On a hot day the driver can lower the windows at the outside door handle or from a distance using the keyless remote. The driver of the Outback can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

The Murano SV/Midnight/SL/Platinum’s standard wipers speed up when the vehicle does, so that the driver doesn’t have to continually adjust the speed of the wipers. The Outback’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

The Murano has a standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. Dual zone air conditioning is only available on the Outback Premium/Limited/Wilderness/Touring/Onyx.

Both the Murano and the Outback offer rear vents. For greater rear passenger comfort, the Murano has standard rear air conditioning vents to keep rear occupants cool in summer or warm in winter. The Outback doesn’t offer rear air conditioning vents, only heat vents.

Model Availability

The Murano is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Outback doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

Economic Advantages

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Murano is less expensive to operate than the Outback because it costs $491 less to do the manufacturer’s suggested maintenance for 50,000 miles. Typical repairs cost less on the Murano than the Outback, including $35 less for front struts.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Nissan Murano and the Subaru Outback, based on reliability, safety and performance.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Murano first among midsize suvs in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The Outback isn’t in the top three.