CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2005-2007 Pathfinder appears to have a widespread defect where coolant leaks into the transmission, causing transmission failure around 90,000 miles. Repair costs are typically upwards of $3,500.

According to the New York Times & a class action lawsuit, the defect actually extends through 2010 model year. More info here.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
76,955 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2005 Nissan Pathfinder electrical problems

electrical problem

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2005 Nissan Pathfinder Owner Comments (Page 2 of 4)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #44

Feb 282013

Pathfinder 6-cyl

  • 115,063 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

During the month of December 2012 I had my Nissan truck serviced. The diagnostic test recommended to replace rear differential fluid, replace cabin air filter, replace windshield wiper blades, air filter, perform engine coolant exchange, transmission fluid exchange, power steering system fluid exchange, perform brake system fluid exchange, and fuel injection. I also had to replace the catalytic converter, which was done by Nissan. I had all of these services performed by the Nissan automotive department. On February 28 2013, my service engine soon light comes on along with sensor light indicating a door is open. However, no doors were open. I take the truck back to Nissan, and they tell me the transmission is about to go out!!!! how is this possible? I have always taken my truck to Nissan to perform the service. I am outraged!!!! all of the service needed has always been performed by Nissan. Please help!!!!

- Mansfield, LA, USA

problem #43

Oct 172012

Pathfinder 6-cyl

  • miles
2005 Nissan Pathfinder. Consumer writes in regards to vehicle fire that was caused by a defect. The consumer stated the vehicle caught on fire while his wife was driving. His wife felt a jerking motion when she pushed down on the accelerator. His wife pulled over, when suddenly another motorist informed her the vehicle was on fire. Once she exited the vehicle, there was a loud boom noise, which was believed to be the battery exploding. Within in seconds, the uncontrollable flames literally engulfed the entire vehicle. An investigator believed the cause of the fire was a failure in the transmission.

- Woodstock, GA, USA

problem #42

Aug 242011

Pathfinder 6-cyl

  • 84,000 miles
Car either stalls out, turns off, or rapidly decelerates at random times. Transmission not shifting or staying in gear properly causing near collisions on several accounts, stalling in the middle of intersections, etc... mechanic said coolant in transmission and transmission fluid in coolant system. Seems to be triggering multiple mechanical failures codes from transmission, to misfires, to O2 sensors. Afraid to drive. It's been sitting parked for multiple months very dangerous!

- Buda, TX, USA

problem #41

Jul 212010

Pathfinder 6-cyl

  • 72,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

At 60,000 miles my engine, catalytic converter failed. Nissan replaced these components. Shortly after... winter 2010-2011 car would not heat while idle. Had coolant replaced. Summer 2011 acceleration power issues/shaking. Took car to dealership (North point Nissan in little rock). Replaced recalled part (relay switch) but refused to examine power/slippage/heating issues because the diagnostics reported I had a bad battery. Did not place one of their batteries into my Pathfinder to find problem but sent me on my way to get a new battery. Also telling me that bad batteries cause cars to do crazy things at O'reilly's auto store they tested my new battery and it tested fine. Unbeknownst to me all of the signs my car was exhibiting were the tell tell signs of the radiator/transmission defect. I am still unsure why they did not pick up the symptoms and properly diagnose my automobile. Problems persisted... the next winter same issue... more coolant. In June 2012 my Pathfinder would not start...diagnosed with transmission radiator issue that thousands have experienced. Nissan sent a warranty extension to most owners of Pathfinders. My Pathfinder was not included in this extension..."??" for whatever reason they believed this defect did not apply to certain batches. Had Nissan sent me a warranty extension I would have immediately taken my car to be repaired. As it stands now my Pathfinder sits waiting.. please hold Nissan accountable.

- Maumelle, AR, USA

problem #40

Apr 022012

Pathfinder

  • 99,300 miles
I began to have trouble when attempting to accelerate, the car appeared to stay in low gear. Took it to Nissan they recommended to replace the radiator and transmission for $5,000! I bought this car on good faith knowing Nissan is a quality product and this is now happening. Nissan apparently knows about the issues with a leak starting in the radiator, and leaking fluids into the transmission, which causes the transmission to go out. Nissan extended the warranty on the radiator till 80,000 miles knowing about this problem, but after doing research everyone having the problem is over 80,000 miles! Nissan will not do a recall! this is unbelievable. I paid very good money for this car, and now have to spend another $5,000 to repair, with a known problem that Nissan will not cover. I will never purchase another Nissan vehicle, since they do not apparently care about their customers.

- Murfreesboro, TN, USA

problem #39

Mar 012012

Pathfinder

  • 125,000 miles
While driving vehicle stalls and shuts down without warning. Vdc off and slip lights come on in dash board has happened multiple time in last four weeks. Nissan dealership had vehicle for nine days and could not recreate problem when picked up from dealership vehicle died on way home.contacted dealership said nothing they can do without them witness the problem. Now vehicle sits useless in carport.

- Blountstown, FL, USA

problem #38

Dec 162011

Pathfinder 6-cyl

  • 72,035 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Noticed that fuel and oil pressure gauges would not register fuel or oil levels correctly, the miles till empty will not work. We have no idea when we are going to run out of fuel, started getting worse, than notice the check engine light came on, had vehicle diagnose, turned out that both the fuel and oil pressure sending units needed to be replaced, there are numerous Pathfinders with the same problem but there are no recalls on these issues. This repair is very costly and is dangerous to be driving without the fuel and oil sending units. Why are there no recalls? please help!

- Tallahassee, FL, USA

problem #37

Dec 082011

Pathfinder

  • miles
Went to close door and would not shut. It was stuck in the lock position, could not unlock manually or with the key fob. Got door shut, got to destination and could not open the door from the inside or outside. Would not unlock manually or with key fob and had to get out on the passenger side.

- Polo, IL, USA

problem #36

Nov 082011

Pathfinder 6-cyl

  • 81,000 miles
My 2005 Nissan Pathfinder shuttered excessively when decelerating from the interstate and from that point forward had difficulty shifting into higher gears. I immediately took it to a mechanic and was told the transmission had gone bad. In the process of replacing the transmission, they discovered the radiator leaking into the transmission and the computers in the transmission and the car were not communicating.

- Columbus, GA, USA

problem #35

Jan 052011

Pathfinder 6-cyl

  • 72,000 miles
Nissan needs to step up! this is an unbelievable amount of what is wrong with the world. Since having the many other problems fixed on my Pathfinder(2005) I am now facing an issue of it running sluggishly, high RPM's and less get up. That was one of my favorite things when we purchased the truck, I thought it was safe. I felt comfortable merging into traffic with my 4 children I knew we had power on our side. The tire pressure is constantly ( 1X a week) setting off the TPMS, then there is the squeaky brakes and other rattling, vibrating noises. The other thing is the check engine light that randomly comes on for some reason then will mysteriously be gone a few miles later. We bought Nissan thinking it was still a stable reliable company that made a strong product and stood behind it...well were we ever wrong! never again!!!

- New Egypt, NJ, USA

problem #34

Nov 302010

Pathfinder 6-cyl

  • 127,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

We had to replace the ipdm in November 2010, the truck stopped running in middle of the road, we had 118,000 miles on vehicle. In July 2011, we were on vacation in Indiana and on our way to see family in Ohio. We were on the interstate and the vehicle would not excellerate over 40 - 45 mph., we stopped at an autozone to test the vehicle to see what the problem was and it cleared it. Since that time, the engine light would periodically come on. On September 15, 2011, the truck would not start. The truck is still at the mechanic to be repaired, we were advised the problem is the radiator leaking into the transmission causing transmission to fail. Cost is $6,000 to repair and truck has 127,000 miles on it. This is a consistant complaint of owners of this vehicle, however, Nissan does not want to do anything to correct the problem. This is my first and last Nissan.

- Chesterfield, VA, USA

problem #33

Dec 012010

Pathfinder 6-cyl

  • 40,000 miles
At about 40,000 miles fuel gauge stopped working. And started having intermittent electrical problems. Headlights going on and off when in park. Fan starting when key is turned but not cranked. Anti-theft system locking me out from starting the truck. 70000 miles vehicle would intermittently not start. It would crank but not start. Took it to Nissan and was told nothing could be done on their part. I was told it was the ECU, bmu, tmu, and ipdm were all bad. I replaced the ipdm and bmu and ECU. Truck still ran rough. At 91000 miles Nissan now says my transmission is bad due to the radiator coolant leaking into the transmission but I am out of the 80000 mile warranty. Nissan said they will pay half to fix if I pay half of the $4600 transmission repair. Nissan can not explain why this happened but acknowledged that this is a big complaint of the 2005 Pathfinder.

- Chandler, AZ, USA

problem #32

Mar 032010

Pathfinder

  • 100,000 miles
The contact owns a 2005 Nissan Pathfinder. The contact stated that the air conditioner would not blow cold air when the vehicle was idled. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where the contact was informed that there was a leak within the air conditioner. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact also stated that the vehicle would experience trouble shifting into first or second gear. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where the contact was informed that the radiator fluid was leaking into the transmission. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, but offered no assistance. The failure mileage was 100,000. The VIN was unavailable.

- Myrtle Beach, SC, USA

problem #31

Jul 032011

Pathfinder

  • 67,000 miles
I was told by the dealer that my 2005 Nissan Pathfinder's electrical component was "dead." The car needs a new ipmd and ECM modules. The dealer quoted me a price of $2200 for parts and labor. After extensive research, I learned that there is currently a recall for this problem. My car is still with the dealer. I will advise them of the recall on Monday and request that my car is repaired.

- Temple Hills, MD, USA

problem #30

Jan 012011

Pathfinder 4WD 6-cyl

  • miles
2005 Nissan Pathfinder. Consumer states several problems with the vehicle. She states that it is hard to start, paint is peeling, overdrive light comes on when braking to make a turn and a loud noise was coming from the motor.

- Baldwin Park, CA, USA

problem #29

Nov 232010

Pathfinder

  • miles
I received a recall letter from Nissan on November 23, 2010 stating the fuel sending unit may cause the fuel gauge to inaccurately display the amount of fuel in the tank, which it did, but when I took my car to the Nissan dealer to honor, they told my that I had to call corporate, called corporate and they gave me a file number and told me that my car was not in warranty for this recall. This problem has been going on for about 2 years now and now they will not honor there own recall.

- Victorville, CA, USA

problem #28

Jan 082011

Pathfinder

  • 71,000 miles
While driving at 40 mph on the lie my car stalled and would not accelerate while I had my sons in the car. Car completely died while moving on the middle of the highway without warning. I had to tow my car to the mechanic and was informed that is my fuse panel, this was in December 2010. I had the fuse panel replaced with an original part and it happened again in Jan. 2011 while driving with my family on the road.

- Brooklyn, NY, USA

problem #27

Mar 282010

Pathfinder

  • 72,000 miles
I bought the car in Feb. Of 2009 and by March of 2009 the fuel sensor started acting funny. It was not covered(which it should have been by the dealer) and I could not afford to pay out of pocket. Now the fuel level will read "- - -" when the tank is less than 1/4 a tank of gas and it also makes the "service engine light" come on. It is not safe for families to be driving with a defective fuel sensor. I did receive the something in the mail about a recall on the gas gauge, but my vehicle had just passed the 72000 mile mark(72135 roughly) so I was told that it was not covered and I would have to pay out of pocket for the problem. I have been looking online and the fix is very expensive $500 and up. On a one income home I cannot afford to pay for a part that should have been fixed by the dealer before I bought the vehicle! also, when locking the car the horn does not sound anymore. This is not a huge deal but I am wondering if it has something to do with the "service engine light" that came on because of the fuel sensor.

- Norfolk, VA, USA

problem #26

Nov 012010

Pathfinder 6-cyl

  • 92,890 miles
2005 Nissan Pathfinder. Twice stalled on the road leaving me with no brakes. Two close calls with my family on board. It sits in my driveway useless because of the fear I may be driving down the road and stalls all over again, this time at the wrong place or time causing serious injury or death!!!!

- Plainfield, IN, USA

problem #25

Jun 182009

Pathfinder

  • 57,000 miles
The contact owns a 2005 Nissan Pathfinder. The contact was traveling 40 mph when the vehicle became hesitant to the contacts attempts to accelerate. Seconds later, all of the dashboard lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local mechanic where the body electrical wires were replaced. The failure mileage was 57,000 and the current mileage was 74,000.

- Philadelphia, PA, USA

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