The contact owns a 2003 Nissan Pathfinder. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken for routine maintenance when the dealer advised that there was a fracture in the exhaust pipe. The vehicle was not repaired and the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure and current mileage was 175,000. The VIN was unavailable.

- Lexington, VA, USA

I took my 2003 Pathfinder in for an unrelated matter and the service department diagnosed the cracked exhaust pipes at the front of the vehicle. I had never heard of this problem and it seems to me that any exhaust system should last at least four years on a normally used vehicle. I have 84,000 miles on mine so I guess it stands outside of any mandated warranties, but I do have a Nissan gold plus warranty which should cover everything up to 100K miles. The service department said no and wanted $246 for the patch. Do I have any other recourse" I live in Virginia and the service manager said my vehicle wouldn't pass the next inspection without the patch. I noticed in an on line forum that this is actually a very wide spread problem with the 2002-03 Nissan Pathfinders. Doesn't this manufacturers defect warrant a health hazard that should be reconciled by the company? couldn't the cracks subject passengers to lethal exposure to carbon monoxide gases? since it affects so many consumers, doesn't the problem pose a public health risk"

- Charlottesville, VA, USA