2012 Murano LE with Platinum package, White with Beige interior.
Factory options: floor mats, cargo mat, splash guards.
Added by dealer: Nissan accessory tow hitch with wiring harness (install included).
MSRP: $43,060 (vehicle was built prior to the Jan 1 price increase)
Tow hitch: negotiated price of $500 (normal cost is $1249)
Nissan accessories at dealer cost: all-weather mats, wheel locks, hood deflector. Total cost: $183
Sales price (including $2000 rebate): $38,260
Total savings off MSRP and dealer-installed accessories: $6,077
Nissan Security+Plus for 7/70: $1367 (I agreed to pay dealer cost plus $200, their "lowest" price: take it or leave it)
Financing was at 2.49% (not Nissan's as their lowest was 3.9 if you take the $2000 cash)
Also, I asked for, and got, $500 extra on my trade (a 2008 Toyota RAV4) as the final push to sign the deal. This extra was on top of the top bid for the car that I got from two wholesalers myself (I know a friend of a friend) and a Toyota dealer.
Bottom-line, I saved $6577 (or $7450 if I take the dealer's word for the "usual price" for the 7/70 Security+Plus contract).
In case anyone cares, I briefly considered buying another Toyota (Venza or a Highlander), but quickly came to my senses. We also own a 2008 Altima Coupe SE 3.5 with which we've had very good luck for over 4 years. I had nothing but trouble (and 6 recalls) with the RAV4. Besides all the features, great looks, and superior materials and build-quality of the Murano, it was the
value of those features (in context with the cost I negotiated) that sold me on the Murano. While shopping for over a month's time, I also drove an Infiniti FX and EX, a BMW X3, a VW Tiguan SEL, a Jeep Grand Cherokee, and a Ford Edge Limited. None of them came close to the value of the Nissan and each had (in my opinion) minor and major shortcomings. The Infinitis are too expensive (how can they sell those cars when Nissan's got the Murano?), the BMW is too expensive and too unreliable (I have had two, a 2002 and a 2004, so I know you don't want to own one when you're paying for the maintenance and repairs), and the Jeep and Ford were just too expensive while being far inferior in terms of materials and build quality, and ride and handling. I liked the VW, but it was too small overall and shockingly expensive. I've also owned VW and Audi's and they have the same issue as BMW: not reliable and over priced. I did not consider a Lexus RX because it is crazy-expensive, has a boring and drab interior, and it has the same crappy motor that was in my Toyota (this was a concern because the dealer and the factory rep both refused to fix a long-standing knocking sound in the engine even though they both admitted it was there...the excuse was that this engine in the RAV4 is "not intended to be refined", so I decided to dump it before the 5/60 warranty was up).
Every drive I have taken in the Murano is a pleasure. I've actually never liked a new car as much as I do this one, and I've owned or leased a total of 14 cars during my adult life. I am so glad I got the Platinum package. The new wheels look so much better than the standard LE ones and the navigation package is....well....amazingly good as is the radio....and it's exactly the same unit that's in the Infinitis that cost many thousands more for the same equipment as my Murano. Nissan's got a real sleeper in the Murano, and I couldn't be happier to buy such a nice car for such a low price. I actually feel guilty once in a while when I think of what I bought the car for. I know I got a good deal because the salesman liked me (and me him) and he'd just sold two cars that day for over MSRP (he said that some people either don't care to haggle or don't care what things cost). We just agreed that I'd not tell anyone that I paid anything less than MSRP. Deal? Yes. Deal!