I was at a stop light I proceeded to take off and car was lagging when accelerating. Recently just discovered that the vehicle lags in reverse also . Foot is placed on a gas pedal car hesitate to take off
Nissan Murano hesitation problems
111 of the 5,970 owner complaints about the Nissan Murano describe hesitation when accelerating, most of them for the 2003 model year.
- owner complaints
- 111
- worst model year
- 2003
- typical repair cost reported
- $5,000
- typical mileage
- 93,300
By model year
Often reported together
Jerking 26CVT failure 24Stalling 13Check engine light 12Transmission failure 11Loss of power 5Sudden acceleration 4Shudder 4
Trouble codes mentioned
U1000 2P0340 2P1778 1P1564 1
What owners say
The engine and transmission do not run smoothly. It hesitates, and it doesn’t downshift correctly. The engine revs up and will not shift gears properly. It’s jerky. Everything about this engine and transmission feels strange for a luxury car. Sometimes, I don’t feel safe trying to pass somebody. You wouldn’t know how bad of a ride this car is from a 20-minute or even a 10-minute test drive. It’s something you have to own and experience to understand. Whatever they did with this car feels unsafe to drive, especially with the engine stuttering and hesitating the way it does. And I only have 7,700 miles on my car.
While accelerating to merge into traffic and make a left turn, the vehicle briefly hesitated, which has occurred previously. After completing the turn and straightening the vehicle, I fully released the accelerator pedal, but the vehicle continued accelerating and maintaining speed without accelerator input from me. The vehicle appeared to maintain approximately 54 mph in a 45-mph zone while I was not pressing the accelerator pedal. I applied the brakes, but the vehicle did not immediately decelerate. To regain control, I shifted the transmission into Neutral. Once the transmission was in Neutral, the engine RPM increased briefly and then quickly returned to normal, and I was able to slow down and stop safely. This occurred at approximately 6:00 PM on Saturday, June 20, 2026. There was no floor mat or anything else blocking or touching the accelerator pedal. After I stopped, the vehicle seemed to drive normally again. The vehicle has also had a recurring condition after startup in which the engine sometimes revs higher than normal for a short time before returning to a normal idle. I am including this as an additional observation. The continued acceleration after I had fully released the accelerator pedal created a safety concern. I am submitting this report so the incident can be documented and investigated.
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.
I have reported and taken my vehicle into the dealership regarding sluggish engine. Vehicle has hesitated multiple times while driving which slows the vehicle down and can cause an accident. Also reported gas leaking out as I pumped gas into the vehicle. Bolt was coming out of driver's side door, Matt Bowers Nissan stated they are aware of the issue with other Nissan vehicles, and the bolt was coming out so they put it back in. Door still having issues, losing time from work to take vehicle in and research is needed to initiate a recall on this vehicle. I feel from a previous Nissan that this vehicle has a bad transmission. Also informed dealership with no response that I keep receiving warning lights regarding sensor malfunction.
When you take off the transmission hesitates and then seems to jump a little. My car has 80,000 miles on it. When I purchased the car it had 22,000 miles on it with this being an ongoing issue. I am now very concerned that this could get even worse causing an accident. I had no idea why this was happening as I have never owned a Nissan before. I just read online that this is common in Nissans for my year car and I can file a complaint with the federal safety agency.
The contact owns a 2015 Nissan Murano. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle jerked and hesitated, after which the vehicle lost motive power. The driver was able to pull over to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle was able to restart but was unable to shift into drive or reverse. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who determined that the CVT transmission fluid needed to be flushed. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure reoccurred. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 204,000.
When starting my vehicle, it would shake and hesitate to turn on. While driving, It would hesitate when accelerating. When driving at 70 miles, the vehicle would hesitate then drop 3 to 4 miles below speed on its own. The dashboard would indicate drive mode then change to reverse mode then back to drive mode, then reverse mode continuously while driving. The car was also making a loud clanking noise. When I was at a standstill at a red light with foot on the brake, the car was jerking forward on its own. I was driving the car with my 2 year old when this happened and decided to take it to a mechanic who confirmed that it is a transmission problem as well as a broken axle on the left. I left the car at his shop and started shopping around for a transmission replacement which is very costly. My concern is, if this has been a faulty issue with 2009 Nissan Murano transmissions, then it is likely that this can happen again if I purchase a used transmission which at this time, I cannot afford so it is sitting at the mechanics repair shop until I either save money for a transmission or use the money to get a better used vehicle. At this time I have to take my mom to work and use her car so i can go to work. I’ve been doing this for the past 2 weeks and unsure as to how much longer I can keep doing this as our work hours are conflicting.
My car hesitates then launches after a stop. It is the CVT transmission I assume. It is not safe when I am accelerating into traffic or trying to merge. Only 132,000 miles on the car.
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 .
Related recalls
Power train: automatic transmission: gear position indication (PRNDL)
- What is wrong
- On certain sport utility vehicles, the nut that attaches the transmission gear selector shaft to the control valve lever in the transmission may not be adequately tightened. This could result in the transmission not actually being in the gear indicated by the gear selector lever. In addition, the transmission position display in the instrument panel may not be on or may be incorrect.
- Risk
- If the gear displayed is different from the gear engaged, this could result in unexpected vehicle movement and a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will check the affected nut in the transmission shift lever linkage, and tighten it if necessary. Owner notification began april 15, 2003. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact nissan at 1‑800‑647‑7261.
Recall number 03V123000 · Recall details
Questions about the Nissan Murano hesitation
Which Nissan Murano years have hesitation when accelerating problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2003 (41 complaints), 2004 (13 complaints) and 2009 (9 complaints).
How much does it cost to fix hesitation when accelerating on the Nissan Murano?
Owners who mentioned a price put the repair at about $5,000 (median of 14 complaints that include a dollar amount). Costs vary with mileage, warranty and where the work is done.
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used Nissan Murano?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history