While driving down the highway 5/10/26, the vehicle completely shut down at 75 MPH. The dash went black, everything shut down, and the steering wheel locked. No warning lights came on. I immediately hit the brakes and tried to veer to the right. Luckily, I was in the right lane and was able to get to the edge of the shoulder. My son and I sat there in shock. A few seconds later, I hit the ignition button, and the vehicle started right back up. My son and I were terrified by this. We could have been killed by someone hitting us.
Nissan Murano steering lock-up problems
12 of the 5,970 owner complaints about the Nissan Murano describe steering wheel locks up, most of them for the 2006 model year.
- owner complaints
- 12
- worst model year
- 2006
- typical mileage
- 100,000
Is there a fix? There are 3 recalls for this area of the car. See below
By model year
- 20151
- 20141
- 20101
- 20092
- 20072
- 20062
- 20051
- 20041
- 20031
Often reported together
Won't start 2Power steering loss 2Warning lights 1Stalling 1Loss of power 1Jerking 1Engine failure 1Check engine light 1
Trouble codes mentioned
P0335 1
What owners say
The steering lock actuator disabled... I see that there are thousands of complaints about this same issue.
Two major problems I've had with my murano are the brakes loosing pressure causing me not to be able to brake in time, caused an accident on a roundabout. The second is the steering wheel lock column going out, causing my not to be able to start the vehicle
Incident 1: turned my car on and let it warm up to operating temperature, started driving, speed limit went from 25 , 35 , 45 . Once I was coasting around 45 MPH my vehicle lost power completely while in motion, locking my steering wheel. Came to a stop in the middle of the road and car would not turn over. Engine light code p0335 was read from my fixd app. Replaced sensor and all was fine for about 10 days. Incident 2: driving down a road going 30 MPH up a hill my car again, lost power and steering wheel locked while in motion, brakes were very stiff and I was almost unable to stop my vehicle from rolling down the hill backwards. Checked my code reader and again, code p0335 was the issue again. Replaced another crankshaft position sensor. Incident 3: was stationary at a busy city intersection when my 2006 nissan murano again, lost power and would not start. My VIN number is not on the list of recalls but I feel as though it needs to be. There are other makes/models of nissan that were recalled for this extreme safety issue.
I was driving at about 30 MPH on a city street and all the dash lights came on including the brake light, car would not accelerate and steering wheel locked like it had no power steering. Pulled over, parked, turned off car, waited a minute. Turned car back on and all dash lights were off again. Drove for a mile to see if it would happen again and it did not. What the hell, @nissan? I had my children in the car. That's not safe for a car to just turn off like that.
Tl* the contact owned a 2014 nissan murano. While driving approximately 55 MPH, the steering wheel seized and caused the vehicle to slide down a hill. The vehicle then crashed into two trees. The air bags did not deploy. A police report was filed. The contact sustained a back injury that required medical attention. The vehicle was destroyed and towed to a local body shop. The dealer was not contacted of the failure. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 70,000.
Was at lowes with my grand daughter when the steering wheel was locked and the steering lock indicator light was on. Vehicle would not start due to the malfunction of the steering lock box. Weather was bad and a gentleman tried assisting me but to no avail. After looking at the indicator lights he informed me he had heard of this issue and the problem was in fact due to a faulty steering lock box. I had no choice but have the vehicle towed to my temporary home and here it sits. My home flooded with 7' of water mid august and is still uninhabitable. I'm a grandmother with limited funds and really cannot afford to spend the large sum of money required to pay for a known defective part. During my research I found out that nissan knowing this issue has now imited the warranty time on this known problem. I thank god this occurred in a populated area where assistance was readily available and not rural as I quite often find myself traveling to these areas. Is this a safety issue? Absolutely!! Nissan should be ashamed knowning this part is defective and refuses to do a mandatory recall. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated in this matter. Thanking you in advance.
I didn't have any issues with it until dropping my son off for school one morning in september. As I pulled off from the corner and then tried to make an immediate left turn, my car just stopped, steering wheel locked and I had to pull as hard as I could to finish the turn and not get hit by oncoming traffic. Needless to say, I was terrified but glad that my son wasn't in the car at the time. For the past five months, my nissan murano just stops or stalls at random. It doesn't matter how slow or fast, whether I'm turning or not, it just turns off. I have to quickly turn the key to "off" and then try to quickly restart the car. I've had to struggle to pull the wheel to pull the car to the curb just to get out of the way of traffic. I've had my kids in the car and it's happened with my husband as well, and he's driven on the expressway (which we will no longer try with that car). No help from nissan or nissan dealerships - just given the run around about very unsafe car.
I had my vehicle towed to a local nissan dealership to get a key made for it, since I had lost the key. The vehicle was in operation up to date. After getting a key made by the dealership, the key will not turn in the ignition for it is locked. The dealership told me that I now need to purchase a steering lock to get it fixed. The murano I purchased was from a used dealership and I was unaware of any recalls and did not receive any letter to date for the recall on the steering lock since I have had it. There was a recall done on the nissan murano's in the 2006 date range for this same reason. I would like it to be fixed free of charge since I did not break it to begin with.
Tl* the contact owned a 2007 nissan murano. While driving approximately 20 MPH the steering wheel locked. The driver was unable to turn the steering wheel and crashed into an electrical pole. The air bags deployed. A police report was filed. A passenger in the front seat sustained a back and neck sprain as well as severe pain to her entire body. The vehicle was towed an auto body shop. The vehicle was destroyed. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 100,000.
Related recalls
Steering: linkages
- What is wrong
- Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2020 Nissan Murano vehicles. The left and/or right-hand transverse link may not have been manufactured correctly, which could result in it separating from the ball joint.
- Risk
- Ball joint separation can cause a loss of vehicle control, and increase the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the transverse link's lot codes, and if necessary, replace them and perform a vehicle alignment, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on May 6, 2021. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1‑800‑867‑7669. Nissan's number for this recall is PC797.
Recall number 21V170000 · Recall details
Steering: hydraulic power assist: hose, piping, and connections
- What is wrong
- Nissan North America (Nissan) is recalling certain 2013-2014 Murano and Murano Cross Cabriolet vehicles. The power steering hose clamp may not adequately secure the hose, allowing the hose to detach and leak power steering fluid.
- Risk
- If the power steering fluid leaks onto a heat source such as hot engine or exhaust components, there could be an increased risk of a fire.
- Remedy
- Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will install a power steering high pressure hose kit, free of charge. The recall began May 10, 2017. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1‑800‑647‑7261.
Recall number 17V184000 · Recall details
Steering: column locking: anti-theft device
- What is wrong
- Certain sport utility vehicles fail to conform to the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 114, "theft protection." during an inspection of some vehicles at the assembly plant, it was found that the steering wheel was locked with the ignition knob in the "off" position but the vehicle transmission not being in the "park" position.
- Risk
- If the key is turned to the "off" position without the transmission being in the "park" position, it is possible that the steering wheel can lock when turned to the right.
- Remedy
- Dealers will inspect and replace the steering wheel lock assembly free of charge. The recall began on december 18, 2006. Owners may contact nissan at 1‑800‑647‑7261.
Recall number 06V401000 · Recall details
Questions about the Nissan Murano steering lock-up
Which Nissan Murano years have steering wheel locks up problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2006 (2 complaints), 2007 (2 complaints) and 2009 (2 complaints).
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