LOOKS

Let me just say that it’s hard to find an SUV these days that isn’t very similar to many of its competitors in the looks department. Thankfully, the redesigned 2015 Murano has found its own style.

With a lower profile, unique window shaping and a design that’s beyond sleek, it’s a beautiful car to look at. In this class, I’d be hard-pressed to find another vehicle that matches the Murano in terms of design.

The interior shines too in terms of overall look. For example, some components -- while still plastic -- have been designed to look like a wood trim setup associated with luxury rides.

While not the real thing, the goal of the designers is clear -- they don’t want people to get in the Murano and feel like they are driving any old SUV; it’s supposed to look and feel upscale. Thanks to this effort, I can say that among non-luxury SUVs, the interior setup of the Murano was one of the best I’ve seen this year.

And don’t forget practicality, as there is plenty of storage room in the Murano if you’re hitting the road, and the back seats fold down if you ever need to carry large cargo. Comfortable seating for five is offered and there is ample leg room and head room around the vehicle.

ENGINE, HORSEPOWER
This is an area where things go a bit south for the Murano.

It features a 3.5-liter V6 engine, which quite frankly didn’t impress me that much during my time driving the vehicle -- especially when I was on the highway and trying to get moving.

The engine does provide 260 horsepower and 240 lb.-ft. of torque, which seem  like solid numbers for this type of vehicle, but in practice it didn’t have the get-up-and-go that I would have liked to see.

The ride was fine -- not much to complain about in terms of road noise, and the Murano has responsive handling -- but the overall driving experience in the Murano could be a bit frustrating at times when I wanted to get up to speed. This is the one aspect of the vehicle which rubbed me the wrong way, as I really liked it otherwise.

My test vehicle was all-wheel drive, but the Murano comes standard with front-wheel drive and you have the choice to upgrade (an upgrade that I would recommend if you will be driving in climates where AWD might come in handy).

TECHNOLOGY, SAFETY

Tech and safety features are a strong point of the 2015 Murano. Among the safety features on my test vehicle were the impressive Around View Monitor with Moving Object Detection (a camera system handed down from the Infiniti luxury line that can see multiple angles), Rear Cross Traffic Alert to warn of cars zipping by as you back up, the always helpful Blind Spot Warning system, a Tire Pressure Monitoring System, Traction Control, Anti-lock braking, and a full complement of airbags.

Other safety features were optional, including Intelligent Cruise Control (slows car down if another vehicle gets into your lane while you’re cruising) and Predictive Forward Collision Warning and Forward Emergency Braking. Add all of these features together and the car does most of the work as far as preventing accidents -- you just have to keep your eyes open for danger, and the car will do most of the rest.

On the tech side, the NissanConnect system in the Murano worked well in comparison to other manufacturers’ systems that I’ve tested. Controls in the car’s center console and on the steering wheel are set up properly and easy to use, and the voice controls worked well too.

The heart of the system is an 8-inch display that clearly shows the information you seek, and voice commands for navigation and audio work efficiently too, and I rarely had to repeat myself..

Other tech features include Bluetooth, streaming audio and phone calls via your Bluetooth connection, push-button start, text message assistant, and front and rear USB connection ports and Sirius satellite radio.

MPG
Official fuel mileage numbers on the Murano are 21 city/28 highway/24 combined. These numbers were accurately reflected during my time in the Murano, and the good news here is these numbers are excellent, best in the class in fact. You’ll get more per gallon out of the Murano vs. any other mid-size SUV out there, and that’s quite a feat -- and another reason people might want to pick up the Murano.

PRICE
The base price of the Murano is $29,560. My test vehicle was an 2015 Murano SL with all-wheel-drive and it started at $38,550. Adding in the technology package (Moonroof, Intelligent Cruise Control, Predictive Forward Collision Warning and Forward Emergency Braking) brought the grand total to $41,905.
There are four trim levels offered on the 2015 Murano -- S, SV, SL and Platinum.

BOTTOM LINE
There are a lot of SUVs out on the roads, but none of them look quite like the 2015 Nissan Murano -- and that’s a feather in Nissan’s cap. It’s attractive on the outside, has a well-designed and classy interior and strong gas mileage. Its Achilles Heel is the engine, which didn’t perform as well as many of its competitors (Ford Edge, among others), so the key to its success (or lack thereof) will be how many potential buyers are willing to see past that and focus on its many positives in terms of looks, mpg and tech/safety features.

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Matt Myftiu can be foundon Twitter @MattMyftiu.