2011-2014 Nissan Murano Cross Cabriolet: An Answer To A Question Nobody Asked
The Cross Cabriolet, if anything, is certainly a unique vehicle. It is essentially a Nissan Murano crossover SUV, a car that was already rather unsightly, with the roof chopped off and replaced with a convertible top. Why Nissan felt like this was necessary is a question that nobody knows the answer to, although rumor has it the chairman of Nissan’s wife requested it and the chairman did say it was meant for affluent aged customers (because so many seniors want a convertible SUV with looks on par with Frankenstein’s Monster). But however it happened this four wheeled bad idea exists and is ugly as sin.
Exterior Styling:
Now if your well acquainted with how I write about car styling, I like to compare the cars I write about with similar cars, but the problem is that (thankfully) there’s really nothing quite like the Nissan Murano Cross Cabriolet. There is one car that is relatively similar which is the Range Rover Evoque Cabriolet which is also an SU-Vertible, but the difference is that the Evoque is slightly larger than the Cross Cabriolet (but small for a Range Rover) while the Cross Cabriolet is a small crossover, so as a result we have to start by talking about the Cross Cabriolet by itself, and man do we have a lot to unpack.
Lets start by talking about the how the Cross Cabriolet looks with the top up. The first thing you notice when you see the Cross Cabriolet with it’s top up is how terrible it’s proportions truly are! The Murano, while pretty ugly in hard top form although also not terrible, has relatively decent if not mildly awkward proportions. The Cross Cabriolet on the other hand has absolutely atrocious proportions! The #1 problem with the Cross Cabriolet (besides the obvious one which is it’s existence) is the ratio between the soft top and the rest of the car. The soft top is hilariously short and tiny while the normal Murano body looks ginormous in comparison. This is a problem that is also shared with the previously mentioned Range Rover Evoque Cabriolet and a couple other cars such as the infamous PT Cruiser Convertible.
There’s a reason that soft tops stylistically work on sedans and not SUV’s and that reason is that sedans and sports cars tend to have pretty small lower bodies while SUV’s tend to be a lot higher off the ground. This means that when a soft top gets put onto a sedan or a sports car it looks natural because there is a good ratio between soft top and lower body. However when you put the soft top on an SUV, everything below it looks ginormous and the soft top itself looks ridiculous.
“But surely it must look better with the top down right? After all, it’s a convertible so the top will be down most of the time anyway right?” If your asking this I have an answer to your question, NO! The Cross Cabriolet looks ridiculous with the top down as well!
When you look at the Cross Cabriolet when it has it’s top down it becomes extremely obvious that the Murano wasn’t designed to have a soft top. The Cross Cabriolet with the top down looks unnatural, it looks more like it was modified as opposed to being an actual production car. On the the back there are two giant humps, presumably to help accommodate the shape of the Murano’s windows and the soft top, (pictured here). These humps make the back look bulky and strange. The Cross Cabriolet also has a much more squared off back end than the regular Murano which makes the already bulky rear end even worse (and much less practical)!
The Cross Cabriolet was also also extremely overpriced back when it was sold new with a sticker price of $56,000 in 2021 dollars (it was $47,000 in 2011 money). Who on Earth would spend that much money on a crossover with less space, lame-o performance, and from what I have heard an extremely clunky ride. However Due to poor sales (what a shock) Nissan did offer them at a large discount in the last couple years of it’s existence, not that the discount would make the Cross Cabriolet even remotely close to the world of “worth it”.
Interior Design:
Inside the front seat of the Cross Cabriolet I am happy to report that it just looks like a standard second gen Nissan Murano. It had typical Nissan features like a very standard looking Nissan steering wheel and an infotainment system that some might recognize out of some other Nissan products, however there are some interesting things in the front end of the Cross Cabriolet that I can report on. For instance I find that the infotainment looks quite a bit off center due to the glovebox being so huge. The infotainment also really juts out which I am not crazy about. However, I like the beige color with wood accents that Nissan used in some of it’s mid 2010′s models like the Altima and this. The front seats also look quite comfy. Outside of that there’s really not much to talk about with the Cross Cabriolet’s front seat.
The rear seat on the other hand, well if you’ve ever felt like your job is pointless just remember that there was somebody in Japan (or Russia, both plants made Murano’s but I can’t find info on which one made Cross Cabrio’s) who installed rear seats in the Cross Cabriolet for three years! Now I have never been in a Cross Cabriolet and probably will never be in one (which I am fine with), but with that being said the Cross Cabriolet has some of the most pathetic back seats in SUV history. Yes I know it’s a convertible but still they are pretty lousy even by convertible standards. The front seat adjustment controls are also strangely located on the top end of the seats and are most easily adjustable from the back seat, but I suppose if your stuck in the back seat of a Cross Cabriolet you need as much help as you can get.
Pros and Cons:
Pros: Uhhhh
I suppose that you could ride around with the top down and enjoy that
It is a great example of how some cars shouldn’t be turned into a convertible.
Decent amount of features in the front seat area and a decent sized glovebox
Apparently the front seats are comfy. Not that any of these make up for the small army of problems the Cross Cabrio has
Cons:
Absolutely hideous on the outside
Rather bland interior
Overpriced
Massive Blind Spots
Apparently the ride has massive cowl shake
Ridiculous rear seat adjustment placement
Considered one of the worst cars of all time
Final Verdict:
Just buy a used Murano. The Murano provides more practicality than a Cross Cabriolet, it looks better than a Cross Cabriolet, and it has the same amount of tech as the Cross Cabriolet. Sure you can’t “put the top down and feel the wind in your hair” but apparently driving the convertible Murano will make you wish that you actually bought a sane convertible like a BMW 328i which in 2011 costed around the same amount as a Cross Cabriolet and was simply better in every way.
Final Score
Exterior Styling Final Rating; 14/50
Interior Styling Final Rating; 17/50
Overall Styling Rating: 31/100
Next Review: A poor knockoff S-Class