I was driving down South Dixie Highway in the new 2012 Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet and a guy pulled alongside me at the traffic light in a BMW6 series blowing his horn.
“That car is unbelievable!” he said.
Well, after a week of driving this unusual automobile, I can only agrees, the CrossCabriolet is a great SUV; it’s sporty, has secure handling, a beautiful interior, great cargo space and it’s the world’s first all wheel drive crossover convertible.
Introduced in spring 2011, the CrossCabriolet blends all the things people love in a crossover with the open-air enjoyment of a convertible. It was designed to overcome the traditional limitations of a convertible – limited trunk space, a cramped back seat (or none at all) and a lack of flexibility. The fully automatic cloth convertible top folds into the size of a two-seat roadster top, leaving plenty of room for four adults and lots of cargo space with the top up or down.
The CrossCabriolet was carved out of the popular Murano SUV, but the transformation of the body from four-door to two-door convertible meant more than just slicing off the top. It rides on the same platform, but the front doors are 7.9 inches longer and there are no B-pillars; the body was reinforced from the A-pillar back. The cloth top has a rear glass skylight that helps create the feeling of a wide-open interior even with the top closed. Dual Pop-up Roll Bars are standard.
Under the hood, the CrossCabriolet is powered by a 3.5-liter 24-valve DOHC V-6 producing 265 hp and 248 pounds-feet of torque (17/22 mpg), the same engine that’s in the Murano SUV. It has High Intensity Discharge (HID) bi-functional xenon projector headlights, front fog lights and LED taillights. Other features include body-colored front and rear bumpers, chrome door handles, body-colored dual power/heated outside mirrors and rear window defroster with timer.
On the inside, the standard diagonally quilted leather-appointed seats are available in beautiful double-stitched leather. Curving, sculpted lines, half-matte chromed trim finish and unique wood-tone trim are tuned to match three available interior colors, Black, Cashmere and Camel.
The Murano CrossCabriolet comes with a long list of standard features including eightway power heated driver’s seat with power lumbar support, four-way manual heated front passenger seat with easy entry function, heated steering wheel, two-position driver’s seat memory system for seat, steering wheel and outside mirrors; leather-wrapped steering wheel and shift knob, and Nissan Intelligent Key with Push Button Ignition. Standard equipment includes Bluetooth Hands-free Phone System, HomeLink Universal Transceiver and RearView Monitor, and an optional Nissan Hard Drive Navigation System.
Base price on the 2012 Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet is $44,540. Grant Miller is the publisher of Community Newspapers. He may be contacted by calling 305-662-2277 or by addressing email to Grant@CommunityNewspapers.com
