2020 Nissan Murano vs 2021 Volvo XC40

The 2020 Nissan Murano had the face of the last generation of Nissan products. While its styling was updated for the 2019 model year with a refreshed grille, redesigned LED headlights and taillights, added fog lights, new wheel designs, and additional paint color choices, the Murano’s exterior design remained attractive, just not particularly modern. This became glaringly apparent as the redesigned Nissan Pathfinder and Armada debuted, leaving the Murano as one of the only models without Nissan’s new looks.

Nissan sold the Murano in S, SV, SL, and Platinum grades for 2020. Midrange and higher trim levels got an upgrade to include more standard features. The Murano SV now had heated outside mirrors, adaptive cruise control, and rear sonar. The Murano SL built on that and added traffic-sign recognition technology. The top-tier Murano Platinum had a new leather-wrapped steering wheel. One new exterior paint option was added—Super Black. The Murano rode on standard 18-inch machined aluminum-alloy wheels, with the SL and Platinum trims getting 20-inch wheels in different finishes. The interior, especially in the Platinum grade, featured premium appointments but had dated housings, particularly in the center stack, console, and steering wheel.

The 2021 Volvo XC40 had more traditional SUV styling than most other small luxury crossovers, with a tall, flat roof and upright rear hatch. It fit in nicely with the rest of the current Volvo lineup, thanks to familial styling cues like “Thor’s Hammer” LED headlights and a simple oval grille. Gasoline XC40 models were also available with a white contrasting roof, for a slightly retro look. The XC40 Recharge was distinguished from gasoline models by a blanked-off grille, subtle “Recharge” badging, and model-specific alloy wheels. It also featured a gloss black roof and mirror caps, a slightly different rear bumper, and a model-exclusive color—Sage Green Metallic.

Under the sheet metal was Volvo’s Compact Modular Architecture (CMA) platform, which also underpinned the Polestar 2 electric car. The interior was delightfully minimalist, with high-quality materials that gave it a premium feel. Real metal trim adorned the dashboard, while the upholstery was a combination of Nappa leather and Nubuck textile. The interior design was coherent, with every element melding together into a pleasing whole. Unlike many competitors, Volvo did not dumb down the interior design to meet a specific price point, maintaining a high level of quality and sophistication.

Despite its age, the Nissan Murano’s standard 3.5-liter V6 engine was a strong point. It delivered 260 horsepower and 240 pound-feet of torque. Though it wasn’t the quickest off the line, once up to speed on the highway, the Murano had no trouble overtaking other vehicles. The powertrain was completed by a continuously variable transmission (CVT) that acted rather quietly compared to other CVTs, especially from the Nissan family of vehicles. The Murano achieved an EPA-estimated 20 mpg in the city, 28 mpg on the highway, and 23 mpg combined.

The Murano came with a front-wheel-drive (FWD) drivetrain as standard, with all-wheel drive (AWD) available. When equipped with AWD, the Murano stuck to the road well but had a tendency to pass on a substantial amount of body lean to the passengers. The four-wheel independent suspension helped mitigate bumps and harsh vibrations, providing a comfortable ride. However, the Murano didn’t deliver the type of connected drive experience found in premium German SUVs, sitting comfortably in the cruiser category instead. Nissan rated the Murano as having a 1,500-pound towing capacity.

Volvo gave the 2021 XC40 a three-tiered powertrain lineup—with the electric Recharge on top. The two gasoline options both included a 2.0-liter turbo four-cylinder engine and eight-speed automatic transmission. The base FWD T4 had 187 horsepower and 221 pound-feet of torque, while the AWD T5 had 248 hp and 258 lb-ft. The Recharge shared its powertrain with the Polestar 2, featuring one electric motor for each axle, enabling AWD and a combined 402 hp and 486 lb-ft. Electricity was provided by a 78-kilowatt-hour battery pack, with 75 kWh of usable capacity.

Volvo quoted zero to 60 mph in 4.7 seconds for the Recharge, 6.1 seconds for the T5, and 8.1 seconds for the T4. All versions were electronically limited to 112 mph. The Recharge model emphasized quiet and comfort rather than g-force and speed, with excellent ride quality even on winter-ravaged roads. It was also capable of one-pedal driving, using regenerative braking for most deceleration. The Recharge had a towing capacity of 2,000 pounds when properly equipped.

One of the Murano’s best features was its Zero Gravity seats, providing comfort for hundreds of miles and considered some of the best in the industry. They were standard in the front row and for rear outboard passengers. The Murano had more headroom than the Lexus RX but less front legroom. It offered over an inch more shoulder room in the second row compared to the RX. The Murano had 3 cubic feet more passenger volume than the 2021 Rogue, thanks to differences in hip and shoulder room.

The Murano was designed with Empty Nesters in mind, offering plush accommodations but less focus on cargo space. It had up to 32.1 cubic feet of cargo space with the second row upright and up to 67.0 cubic feet with the second row folded flat. Though it had less overall cargo space than the class average, the Murano still had plenty of room for daily-driver usability, thanks to its low cargo floor and easy-to-fold rear seats. A power liftgate was standard in the top two trim levels.

The 2021 Volvo XC40 Recharge had no difference in passenger or cargo space compared to gasoline models. However, it had less legroom in both the front and rear seats than the Tesla Model Y or Ford Mustang Mach-E, and less headroom than the Tesla. The Recharge’s frunk was also very small, with much of the space under the hood occupied by powertrain hardware. The gasoline XC40 was more competitive on interior space compared to rivals like the Audi Q3 and BMW X1.

Volvo made up for the lack of overall space with clever storage solutions. The center console included a removable trash bin, and a bag hook was built into the glovebox door. The Harman Kardon system's speakers were moved onto the dashboard, allowing for extra-large door bins. The storage cubby ahead of the shifter was properly shaped to hold a phone without letting it slide around. A wireless charging pad was optional, while a single USB-C port was standard. However, second-row occupants didn’t get any phone-charging options.

The Murano was behind its competitors in tech, but Nissan did a good job upgrading to stay in the conversation. Each 2020 Murano came standard with an 8-inch infotainment system touchscreen, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility, four USB ports, Bluetooth, satellite radio, a six-speaker audio system, and voice recognition. The updated touchscreen laid out options in an attractive and colorful manner. Buyers could upgrade to an 11-speaker Bose audio system, HD Radio, and navigation.

Murano Platinum buyers had NissanConnect Services capability included, offering automatic collision notification, emergency call, and stolen vehicle locator. It also had remote functionalities like start/stop, lock/unlock, flash lights, sound horn, and customizable alerts. An Amazon Alexa skill could be added to the Murano free of charge.

The 2021 Volvo XC40 Recharge got the Android Automotive OS infotainment system, featuring Google apps like Google Assistant and Google Maps. The system still included Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and Bluetooth hands-free phone connectivity. The standard hardware setup included a 9-inch touchscreen and a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster. Graphics and menu layouts were top-notch, but drivers who didn’t like Google’s interface might be displeased.

The Recharge was the first XC40 variant to get OTA update capability, including the infotainment system and any vehicle function controlled by software. Recharge models also lacked a start button, instead allowing the driver to simply get in the car and shift out of park. The related Polestar 2 would soon get a Digital Key feature, but Volvo hadn’t confirmed that for the XC40.

For the 2020 model year, Nissan added its Safety Shield 360 to the Murano’s roster as standard equipment on SV, SL, and Platinum trim levels. The suite included forward-collision warning with automatic emergency braking and pedestrian detection, blind-spot monitoring and warning, rear cross-traffic alert, lane-departure warning, high beam assist, and rear automatic braking. A rearview camera was also standard. The Murano earned all "good" ratings from the IIHS except in the headlight category and received a "superior" mark in the front crash prevention test. NHTSA safety ratings included all five-star marks except in the rollover category, where it was rated four stars out of five.

The gasoline 2021 Volvo XC40 received the highest “Top Safety Pick+” rating from the IIHS and a five-star overall crash-test rating from the NHTSA. These ratings weren’t applicable to the electric XC40 Recharge, but Volvo expected it to perform well in crash tests. The XC40 came with a long list of standard safety features, including lane-keep assist, blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert, automatic emergency braking, rear parking sensors, hill-start assist, and hill-descent control. Optional features included traffic-sign recognition, reverse automatic emergency braking, a driver-alertness monitor, run-off road mitigation, oncoming lane mitigation, and Volvo’s Pilot Assist driver-assistance system.

The Recharge model also got Volvo’s latest sensor suite, capable of pulling data from the cloud to improve the performance of the driver aids.