Compare the2023 Subaru OutbackVS 2023 Nissan Murano

Safety
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Subaru Outback have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Nissan Murano doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Outback. But it costs extra on the Murano.

When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Outback’s standard Hill Descent Control allows you to creep down safely. The Murano doesn’t offer Hill Descent Control.

Both the Outback and the Murano have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, 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, available blind spot warning systems, rear parking sensors, rear cross-path warning and driver alert monitors.

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

	Outback	Murano
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	158	342
Neck Injury Risk	26%	28%
Leg Forces (l/r)	230/249 lbs.	242/256 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 Subaru Outback is safer than the Nissan Murano:

	Outback	Murano
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	28	101
Chest Movement	.5 inches	.9 inches
Abdominal Force	101 lbs.	102 lbs.
Hip Force	247 lbs.	392 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	116	148
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	14 inches	17 inches
HIC	146	439

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

Side impacts caused 23% of all road fatalities in 2018, down from 29% in 2003, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced its side barrier test. In order to continue improving vehicle safety, the IIHS has started using a more severe side impact test: 37 MPH (up from 31 MPH), with a 4180-pound barrier (up from 3300 pounds). The results of this newly developed test demonstrates that the Subaru Outback is much safer than the Murano:

	Outback	Murano
Overall Evaluation	GOOD	MARGINAL
Structure	ACCEPTABLE	POOR
	Driver Injury Measures
Head/Neck	GOOD	GOOD
Head Injury Criterion	69	286
Neck Tension	156 lbs.	402 lbs.
Torso	ACCEPTABLE	ACCEPTABLE
Shoulder Deflection	.94 in	1.65 in
Shoulder Force	201 lbs.	290 lbs.
Torso Max Deflection	1.54 in	1.69 in
Torso Deflection Rate	9 MPH	9 MPH
Pelvis	ACCEPTABLE	MARGINAL
Pelvis Force	1026 lbs.	1138 lbs.
Head Protection	GOOD	GOOD
	Passenger Injury Measures
Neck Tension	67 lbs.	89 lbs.
Pelvis	GOOD	GOOD
Head Protection	GOOD	GOOD

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, daytime pedestrian crash prevention, and nighttime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Outback its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2023, a rating granted to only 29 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Murano was last a “Top Safety Pick Plus” in 2022 but no longer qualifies.

Reliability

To reliably power the ignition and other systems and to recharge the battery, the Outback has a standard 150-amp alternator (190-amp - Outback XT). The Murano’s 130-amp alternator isn’t as powerful.

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Outback has a standard 620-amp battery. The Murano’s 550-amp battery isn’t as powerful.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Subaru vehicles are more reliable than Nissan vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Subaru 8 places higher in reliability than Nissan.

Engine

The Outback XT/Wilderness’ standard 2.4 turbo 4-cylinder produces 37 lbs.-ft. more torque (277 vs. 240) than the Murano’s 3.5 DOHC V6.

As tested in Car and Driver the Outback XT/Wilderness 2.4 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Nissan Murano:

	Outback	Murano
Zero to 60 MPH	5.8 sec	7.5 sec
Zero to 100 MPH	15.8 sec	19.4 sec
5 to 60 MPH Rolling Start	6.5 sec	7.6 sec
Quarter Mile	14.6 sec	15.8 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	96 MPH	92 MPH

The flat cylinder configuration of the boxer engine in the Outback lowers its center of gravity, enhancing handling stability (That’s why Porsche uses boxer engines.). The Murano doesn’t offer a boxer engine configuration.

Fuel Economy and Range

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

			MPG
Outback
	AWD	2.5 DOHC flat-4	26 city/32 hwy
		XT 2.4 turbo flat-4	22 city/29 hwy
Murano
	FWD	3.5 DOHC V6	20 city/28 hwy
	AWD	3.5 DOHC V6	20 city/28 hwy

In heavy traffic or at stoplights the Outback’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. The engine is automatically restarted when the driver gets ready to move again. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip. The Murano doesn’t offer an automatic engine start/stop system.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Subaru Outback higher (6 to 7 out of 10) than the Nissan Murano (5). This means the Outback produces up to 8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Murano every 15,000 miles.

The EPA certifies the Subaru Outback as a “Super Ultra Low Emissions Vehicle” (SULEV). The Nissan Murano is only certified to “Ultra Low Emissions Vehicle” (ULEV) standards.

Tires and Wheels

The Outback Wilderness/Onyx XT has a standard full size spare tire so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the Murano; it requires you to depend on a temporary spare, which limits mileage and speed before replacement.

Suspension and Handling

The Outback Wilderness executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Murano Platinum AWD (27.2 seconds @ .63 average G’s vs. 27.8 seconds @ .64 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Outback’s turning circle is 2.6 feet tighter than the Murano’s (36.1 feet vs. 38.7 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Outback has a 1.8 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the Murano (8.7 vs. 6.9 inches), allowing the Outback to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Outback Wilderness’ minimum ground clearance is 2.6 inches higher than on the Murano (9.5 vs. 6.9 inches).

Chassis

The Subaru Outback may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 200 pounds less than the Nissan Murano.

Passenger Space

The Outback has .2 inches more front headroom, 2.3 inches more front legroom, .1 inches more front hip room and .8 inches more rear legroom than the Murano.

Cargo Capacity

The Outback has a larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the Murano with its rear seat up (32.6 vs. 32.1 cubic feet). The Outback has a larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Murano with its rear seat folded (75.6 vs. 67 cubic feet).

A low lift-over trunk design makes loading and unloading the Outback easier. The Outback’s trunk lift-over height is 28.4 inches, while the Murano’s liftover is 30.7 inches.

The Outback’s cargo area is larger than the Murano’s in almost every dimension:

	Outback	Murano
Length to seat (2nd/1st)	42”/75”	37”/74.4”
Max Width	51”	54”
Min Width	43.3”	43”
Height	32.1”	33.7”

Towing

The Outback’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Murano’s (2700 vs. 1500 pounds). Maximum trailer towing in the Nissan Murano is only 1500 pounds. The Outback offers up to a 3500 lbs. towing capacity.

Servicing Ease

The engine in the Outback is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Murano. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because there are no rear spark plugs and the accessory belts are in front.

Ergonomics

The Outback’s power parking brake sets with one touch and releases with one touch or automatically. The Murano’s parking brake has to be released manually.

The Outback Limited/Wilderness/Touring/Onyx Edition’s front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Murano’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open or close them fully.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Outback’s available exterior PIN entry system (not available on Outback Base). The Murano doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its NissanConnect Services can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

To help drivers see further while navigating curves, the Outback has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle. The Murano doesn’t offer cornering lights.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the Outback to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Murano doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

The Outback’s optional rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Murano offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

Economic Advantages

Insurance will cost less for the Outback owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Outback will cost $705 less than the Murano over a five-year period.

The Outback will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the Outback will retain 52.14% to 55.07% of its original price after five years, while the Murano only retains 46.1% to 47.26%.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Outback is less expensive to operate than the Murano because typical repairs cost much less on the Outback than the Murano, including $126 less for a water pump, $363 less for a muffler, $21 less for front brake pads, $55 less for a starter, $208 less for fuel injection, $172 less for a fuel pump, $283 less for a timing belt/chain and $712 less for a power steering pump.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Subaru Outback will be $7974 to $8471 less than for the Nissan Murano.

Recommendations

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

The Subaru Outback outsold the Nissan Murano by almost five to one during 2022.