If you want to turn heads as you drive down Monmouthshire's country lanes, you won't go far wrong in the Nissan Murano.

Nissan's Murano is clearly different, yet Murano is clearly a Nissan.

Like the 350Z and the Micra, its styling makes a real statement, but it remains a practical and sophisticated car continuing the product-led revival.

It will widen Nissan's appeal still further, according to Shiro Nakamura, Nissan's senior vice president and head of design.

The dramatic Murano has the functionality of a 4x4 but the lines of a sports car.

Powered by the same 3.5 litre V6 engine as the 350Z, owners will enjoy effortless performance complemented by Nissan's revolutionary X-Tronic continuously variable transmission.

The six-speed CVT makes Murano unique in the segment. Indeed, its application in combination with such a powerful engine - CVT is more typically found in vehicles with low power and torque outputs - demonstrates Nissan's technological prowess in this area.

Just one version of Murano is available and it is so well equipped that options are virtually limited to the choice of colour. Leather upholstery, 18 inch alloys, a seven-speaker, 225W Bose audio system with in-dash six-disc CD autochanger, climate control, Birdview DVD sat nav with Traffic Message Channel, colour rear-view parking camera, electrically operated front seats with 10-way adjustment, electric tilt and slide sun roof, UV-reducing rear-side privacy glass, bi-xenon headlamps and cruise control are all standard equipment.

The list doesn't actually stop there, but you get the idea.

And the icing on the cake is that EurotaxGlass' is predicting a residual value of 46 per cent after three years and 60,000 miles, a depreciation less than any of its close rivals.

The Murano starts at £25,995.