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.

1.6

hardly worth mentioning
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
101,551 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.

2006 Nissan Pathfinder engine problems

engine problem

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2006 Nissan Pathfinder Owner Comments

problem #16

Aug 012021

Pathfinder

  • miles

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

UNKNOWN. Every time I drive above 50 mph the car vibrates hard and it-??s audible. It feels like the engine. I had it checked out by two mechanics but they couldn-??t figure it out. I had my wheels balanced, bought new tires at the mechanic suggestion. That hasn-??t helped. I-??m not sure if this is safe to drive and it doesn-??t make me feel safe. This has been going on for months. Please let me know if they-??re similar complaints and what I should do about it. Thank you

- Brooklyn, NY, USA

problem #15

Sep 012018

Pathfinder

  • 175,000 miles
The contact owns a 2006 Nissan Pathfinder. While driving various speeds, the vehicle stalled, but was able to restart. Additionally, the vehicle randomly revved up and accelerated. The contact stated that the vehicle's dynamic control slip off, service engine soon, and washer fluid warning indicators illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who stated that the crankshaft sensor and battery needed to be repaired. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure recurred. The local dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was contacted and provided case number: 37003562. The failure mileage was approximately 175,000.

- Eastaboga, AL, USA

problem #14

May 162016

Pathfinder

  • 98,816 miles
Check engine light came on, diagnostic for auto trans sensor. Mechanic flushed transmission then couldn't replace sensor due to on going problem with radiator leaking coolant to transmission

- Florence, SC, USA

problem #13

Dec 122015

Pathfinder

  • 113,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2006 Nissan Pathfinder. The contact stated that while driving at 65 mph, the vehicle decelerated independently as the check engine warning light illuminated. The failure recurred three times. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that coolant from the radiator leaked into the transmission which caused the transmission to be severely corroded. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 113,000.

- Randolph, MA, USA

problem #12

Feb 062015

Pathfinder 8-cyl

  • 130,500 miles
On February 6, 2015having just stopped at a traffic light, my 2006 Pathfinder accelerated spontaneously. I applied more force to the brake pedal in an effort to stop the vehicle from colliding with the dump truck in front of me. As soon as the Pathfinder had almost stopped again, it accelerated spontaneously for a second time, but this time with more force. It took all I had to brake the car to a stop. Had I not allowed extra room between the dump truck in front of me and my truck, there would have been a collision. After the incident occurred, I took the truck to priority Nissan. They were unable to diagnose the problem using their computer, and it didn't happen again during their test drive of my vehicle. The service department had no advice to offer concerning this serious problem of unintended acceleration. However, the service advisor said he is going to look into the problem and further research this issue.

- Ruther Glen, VA, USA

problem #11

Oct 052014

Pathfinder

  • 123,000 miles
I have been without transportation for 2 months due to transmission problems. My truck transmission went out on me Oct. 5, 2014 on my way taking my kids to school. I was very disappointed because I was late to work and had to find other means to get my kids to school. Please help

- Los Angeles, CA, USA

problem #10

May 172013

Pathfinder

  • 77,000 miles

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

Transmission failure. I have service records from reputable mechanic shop that the transmission problem started at $77K miles. Nissan does not care. The court ordered settlement (class action suit) lets them off the hook after $80K miles. $2,500 copay to fix a problem caused by radiator leaking into transmission. Terrible customer service at dealership (why I never went to them for repairs). They try to charge for stuff under warranty (my fuel gauge issue a few years back). I thought Nissan na would help but I was wrong.

- Austin, TX, USA

problem #9

Jan 232014

Pathfinder 6-cyl

  • 118,000 miles
I was driving on interstate 75 in atlanta, ga at the beginning of rush-hour when my vehicle suddenly started jerking. This is a 6 lane highway and I was riding in the center lane. While attempting to work my way to the right shoulder, I was unable to accelerate because my transmission was unresponsive. I had to hit the accelerator really hard to get out of the way of 18 wheelers and other fast moving vehicles. Thankfully, I was able to get the vehicle out of the way of on-coming traffic without incident. I had my vehicle towed to town center Nissan, which is where I take it for regular servicing and was informed on Friday 1/24/14 that the transmission 'was shot.' Not willing to take their word for it, my husband and I visited an aamco transmission location and was told by the technician that there was a class action law suit against Nissan due to radiator fluid leaking into the transmission. He stated that he had serviced 8 - 9 Pathfinders with the problem. My husband contacted Nissan Corp and the dealership about our discovery. Nissan initially denied any responsibility, but stated that they would investigate. We were contacted by Nissan Corp yesterday informing us that our problem was not due to cross-contamination, but due to an issue with the transmission fluid, in other words, it is our fault. What is most interesting is that this is our regular service site, so any issues with the transmission should have been reported to us by them. That is what we have been paying them for. They have quoted us $4500 to replace the damaged transmission. They also made a point of stressing the fact that they would not have addressed it anyway due to the fact that we have over 100,000 miles on the vehicle. Yes in 2014 we have 118,000 miles, but we were well below that number when this mess surfaced in 2010. What's worse is we never received a notice from nmac.

- Kennesaw, GA, USA

problem #8

Jan 042014

Pathfinder 6-cyl

  • 85,000 miles
I went to pick up my oldest daughter from track practice and placed my 4 year old in her car seat to start driving. Allowing the car to warm up, I pulled out of my driveway and proceeded up the hill in my neighborhood when I noticed that my vehicle would not accelerate above 20 mph. Traffic was heavy at the time. Thinking that I did not warm the car up enough I proceeded on my way up hills at a snails pace to retrieve my oldest daughter from high school. Once I made it to the high school I figured that there was something significantly wrong with the vehicle and just wanted to get the vehicle home. I had to contend with heavy traffic trying to cross a large and busy road with a vehicle that only accelerated to 20 miles an hour and at some time actually stopped without warning in the middle of the road. Although the school is only 2 miles from home it took me 30 minutes to get back safely to my house because of the off and on again drivability. I took it to the mechanic the following Monday and they indicated that my transmission failed. The car is not old and taken care of----I searched for recalls and saw the numerous complaints about the transmission and had my vehicle towed to Nissan for diagnosis. The diagnosis was a failed transmission as a result of coolant and transmission fluid mixing and they indicated that my transmission would have to be replaced as well as my radiator---this is a known quality issue with the Nissan Pathfinders. The car failed without warning putting myself and my young daughter at risk for a rear end accident in the vehicle. Nissan should be ashamed of what they have put consumers through and a mandatory recall should happen. This is a safety risk to everyone who drives a Nissan.

- Berkeley Heights, NJ, USA

problem #7

Apr 202013

Pathfinder 6-cyl

  • 94,000 miles
I was on vacation in Virginia, heading back to ct when my cars ability to accelerate stopped on the highway. Luckily my husband was driving and could feel the difference in the car. He started changing lanes and glided the vehicle to the shoulder. My husband, our 16 year old son, his friend, and our 4 year old niece and I were in the car. We waited for triple a, were towed to a pepboys facility, (the only facility I could think would be open on a Saturday) for them to tell us that they could not assist us with the issue our vehicle was having. The tow truck towed us to a triple a facility which was closed. We had to get lodging for the evening and pay triple a facility approximately $100 to tell us our transmission was done and it would cost us anywhere between $5000 and $8000 to have repaired. I then had to pay for a rental car, and a addition $1200+ dollars to have our car towed back to ct. I know have $5000 to repair my car to find out Nissan is aware of this issue. My family could have been injured loosing our transmission on the highway that day. It really bothers me that Nissan knew the possibility of this failure. Considering I just brought my car in October of 2011.

- Newington, CT, USA

problem #6

Apr 302013

Pathfinder 6-cyl

  • 82,000 miles

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

Vehicle would begin to shake and lose power at exactly 43 miles per hour. To adjust, you would have to release the gas pedal, slow down and then press the gas pedal again to correct the problem. Clearly this causes highway issues when entering or exiting on ramps or streets that have a posting of 40 to 45mph. Not having the power to accelerate or decelerate, puts not only my family at risk, but those around us as well! when the issue was diagnosed, I was told that it was a Nissan extended warranty issue involving the radiator fluid leaking into the transmission. My vehicle has 82000 miles (2000 miles over, which would have qualified for free service) which meant that I was now liable for the $2500 dollar deductible for their faulty equipment!

- Brockton , MA, USA

problem #5

Sep 022012

Pathfinder 6-cyl

  • 104,100 miles
While driving on a very bust highway towing our 3000 lb boat our SUV began to shutter and slow down swiftly causing traffic to swerve dangerously around our boat and car and potentially cause a major pile up. Apparently, the defect in the radiator and transmission lines caused the fluids to mix, overheating and damaging our transmission. We were unaware of this potential problem since we bought this car in a private sale 2 weeks prior to this incident. Luckily a crisis was averted, however it had the potential for a catastrophic consequences because the vehicle slowed down without touching brakes therefore not signaling to following vehicles that we were indeed slowing rapidly.

- Matthews , NC, USA

problem #4

Aug 232010

Pathfinder

  • 120,000 miles
Vehicle problem started with ECM/ipdm power train which stool on me. Replace for a cost of $17-1800. I paid about $1500-$1800 to get the ECM fixed and ipdm replaced. I was informed that my vehicle needed 2front converters for a cost of $2500. I contacted Nissan manufacturers and expresses my concerned. Nissan manufacturers did not want to pay attention to my concerns, but after about 3-5months of non stop complaining, Nissan manufacturers issued a recalled on the ECM and refunded my money, but refuses to fix my converters. In March 2011, I got a recalled noticed from Nissan manufacturers about a leak of coolant into transmission, so I took my vehicle to the dealership and the dealership refused to do the required inspection and claimed that my vehicle had more miles than the manufacturers required mile; and yes, my vehicle at that time was not 5years. Two weeks later my transmission went into heavy smoke with a strong rotten egg odor while I was driving. I was told that valve body inside my vehicle transmission is burned and to replace it for a cost of about $3000+, and sensor need to be replace as well and the 2 converters. Nissan gave me a bill of over $5000.

- Atlanta, GA, USA

problem #3

Mar 052011

Pathfinder 6-cyl

  • 100,400 miles
I purchased my "certified pre-own" 2006 Pathfinder with only 37,000 miles on it and I properly maintained it. December 2010 I noticed that my truck would lose power and sputter while driving at a speed between 40 to 60 mph, and that it would also "tremble or shake" while shifting gears. I took my truck to the dealer to have it serviced and tuned up. I was informed that the radiator was leaking into the transmission and that I needed to have both replaced. I couldn't see straight! I asked the service tech why in the hell I would need a new transmission on a vehicle with just over 100,000 miles and that I'm still paying for no less. The tech suggested that the transmission could be "saved" and I would still have to buy a new radiator and other parts. A year later- 03/12 my truck is behaving the same way so instead of returning to the dealer I decided to take it to a transmission specialist. When I informed him of my problem he asked if I had any problems with the radiator, as a matter a fact I told him I had it replaced a year ago because it was leaking into the transmission. He informed me that he's had a number of Pathfinder owners coming to his shop about this very problem, and informed me that there was a class action lawsuit against Nissan. I found the lawsuit on the web against Nissan and since contacted the attorney and joined in the law suit. Up until the moment I had this problem I was a loyal Nissan owner, even back to the days when my father owned a Datsun and it became my first car. It's one thing to replace a transmission simply due to normal wear, it's another to have consumers do so because of faulty design from the dealer. I'm disappointed that Nissan would treat and handle their customers this way.

- Atlanta, GA, USA

problem #2

Sep 022011

Pathfinder

  • 121,000 miles
While driving with the family on a four lane freeway, transmission failure and immediate loss of speed in a rain storm. No warning or symptoms prior to the failure. Later found out that the radiator failed allowing coolant to mix with the transmission fluid causing catastrophic failure. Nissan assist was no help. Cost to repair quoted at $5700. No parts available for three weeks due to high demand. We did not have an accident due to the transmission failure, but it was very disturbing to make it off the freeway without getting hit from behind in the rain. My wife's vehicle and she was very thankful she was not driving when it happened.

- Greenville, SC, USA

problem #1

Sep 032009

Pathfinder

  • 83,000 miles
I have a Nissan Pathfinder (2006) and as I was driving along around 50mph, everything died. The gauges, blinkers, lights, etc went dead. The motor was still running, but the accelerator would not work. I had to coast off of the road. I took it to the dealer, and they found nothing wrong. It has happened since then, every time I have driven the car for more than 15 miles. There is also a burning odor and when everything dies, there is a high-pitched static sound that comes through the speakers. The scary part is, I loose all power from the vehicle and if I was on the interstate or turning in front of oncoming traffic, it could be fatal.

- Murfreesboro, TN, USA

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