Nissan Pathfinder Reliability by YearBest & worst years, problems & recalls — NHTSA data

Front Passenger Seat Belt Buckle We have concerns regarding the front passenger seat belt buckle. My wife and another family member have both experienced issues where the buckle will sometimes not latch securely, and at other times it is difficult to release. On one occasion, the buckle would not release until I repeatedly pressed the release button so my wife could exit the vehicle. This most recently occurred on July 9, 2026.This is a safety concern and after review booklet this should be cover under nissan warranty.

I bought my 2025 Pathfinder in November 2025. In early December, the automatic emergency braking symbol started flashing; I took it to the Nissan dealership in Downey, and they told me that unless there was a permanent error code, they couldn't do anything. After reading comments and forum posts, I saw that this was a common issue caused by sunlight and such, so I didn't worry too much about it, but it kept happening. Then, on June 19, 2026, while leaving a parking lot in Monterey Park, CA—just as I was pulling out of my parking space—I heard a very loud pop. It really scared me; I was with my wife and two children. The rear windshield was completely shattered—it had exploded out of nowhere. When I checked online, I realized that many vehicles of this brand—Pathfinders and Rogues—had reported this same incident: exploding spontaneously. Fortunately, my two children were in the second row, but a shard still fell onto my younger son's hand and cut him; he was terrified and crying. I got out of the car, and there was absolutely nothing there—the area was clear. I have photos of the scene and of my son's small cut. Today, June 20, 2026, I took my Pathfinder back to Nissan Downey, but got nowhere; they refuse to take responsibility and don't believe it's a factory defect. They wouldn't help me at all, even though it's a 2025 vehicle with only 6,500 miles on it. They offered to inspect the vehicle but refused to specify that the inspection would be covered under the factory warranty. So, I decided to take my vehicle back without getting a favorable response from Nissan!

Both sluggish to begin acceleration and car acceleration on its own after a passing throttle up. It was as if the throttle stuck open for more than 5 seconds.

Unknown Subject: Safety Concern Regarding Rock Creek Model Seatbelt Design I am writing to formally report a serious safety concern regarding the seatbelt design used in the Nissan Rock Creek model. Specifically, the seatbelt in this vehicle includes a plastic insert that is stitched directly into the belt. This configuration appears unusual when compared to standard seatbelt construction and, in my view, raises significant questions about its safety and performance in the event of a collision. My primary concern is whether this particular seatbelt design, including the stitched-in plastic insert, has undergone full crash-testing and safety validation. Seatbelts are critical life-saving devices, and any nonstandard configuration can introduce potential failure points. Before continuing to use this vehicle, I would like written confirmation that this design meets or exceeds all applicable federal safety standards, including FMVSS 209 and 210, and that it has been tested under conditions representative of a real-world crash scenario. I am deeply concerned that this feature may pose a hazard to vehicle occupants if it compromises the belt’s ability to lock, restrain, or distribute force correctly during an accident. For this reason, I respectfully request a prompt, detailed response. Thank you for your attention to this matter. I look forward to your explanation and confirmation regarding the safety of this system.

The contact owns a 2025 Nissan Pathfinder. The contact stated that the seatbelts of the vehicle had excessive slack on the shoulder portion and could not be adjusted properly, resulting in inadequate upper body restraint. The vehicle was taken to a dealer for inspection, but no defects were found, and no repairs were performed. The contact expressed concern that the loose seatbelts presented a safety hazard and might not provide adequate occupant restraint during a crash. The manufacturer was not notified of the issue. The failure mileage was 10,300.

We have been documenting a oil leak on the timing chain cam shaft cover. When the motor heats up the engine seeps/leaks oil on the top of the side of engine. This has been documented for the past few months starting at 37,099 miles when we noticed it, date of first notice was on 4/29/2026. We have pic with time stamps and have taken it to dealership to inspect and have written many times of the issue. We have also filed a consumer affairs and BBB autoline complaints. This is an issue safety issue bc oil can start a car fire, it can also cause a motor to malfunction. This is a safety concern. The dealer says their is no leak at all but they wipe off oil and it returns that an issue. We bought this pathfinder in Oct of 2025 and put on now around 42k miles and it is still an active issue.

The contact owns a 2025 Nissan Pathfinder. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked inside a parking lot, the contact discovered that an L shaped cracked had formed on the windshield. The contact stated that the crack appeared to have started on the top, passenger side of the window, running down that part of the glass before veering of towards the driver side of the windshield. The contact stated that the failure appeared to have occurred without incident. The dealer was informed of the failure and informed the contact that there were no recalls on the vehicle. The contact was then referred to the NHTSA Hotline to file a safety complaint. In addition, the contact was informed that the windshield must be replaced with an OEM windshield due to the cameras on the windshield. The contact was also referred to her warranty provider; however, she had yet to get in touch with them. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 7,000.

The front grille and front bumper of my 2025 Nissan Pathfinder have melted twice on their own without any accident, impact, or unusual use. The vehicle is used exclusively for personal family transportation and is parked outdoors in Florida. Nissan opened a warranty case on April 1, 2026. However, their entire investigation was conducted based on photos only — no physical inspection of the vehicle was ever performed by Nissan or their representative. Despite this, Nissan denied the warranty claim stating it was not their responsibility, without identifying the root cause of the damage. During the claims process, a Nissan call center representative provided false information stating that our vehicle had been in service for 6 months, which is completely untrue. Multiple calls went unanswered or were disconnected. Written emails were ignored. It took over 6 weeks to receive a final decision. This is a known recurring issue affecting multiple Nissan Pathfinder and Nissan Armada owners dating back to 2021-2022 models. Other owners have reported identical melting of front grille plastic components under normal driving and parking conditions. In at least one documented case, Nissan sent an engineer for physical inspection and immediately confirmed warranty coverage — contradicting their standard practice of denying claims based on photos only. The melting of exterior plastic components on a brand new vehicle raises serious concerns about the quality and heat resistance of materials used by Nissan, and potential safety hazards if the root cause is internal heat rather than external factors. I am requesting that NHTSA investigate this matter as it may indicate a manufacturing defect affecting multiple 2021-2025 Nissan Pathfinder and Armada vehicles.

The front collision radar and Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) on my 2025 Pathfinder Platinum fail intermittently and repeatedly, creating a severe safety hazard. The vehicle is currently available for inspection upon request. Component/System Failed: The front radar sensor randomly malfunctions and shuts down entirely. This completely disables the Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB), ProPILOT Assist, and Adaptive Cruise Control. Safety Risk: The sudden and unprompted disabling of the Automatic Emergency Braking and Adaptive Cruise Control while traveling at highway speeds poses a severe risk of collision. The driver is forced to take sudden manual control without the expected safety net, creating a highly dangerous distraction and increasing the risk of rear-end crashes. Warning Lamps/Messages: Yes. Usually, after 30 to 60 minutes of highway driving, dashboard warning lights suddenly illuminate, displaying messages such as "Front Radar Unavailable" or "System Fault," accompanied by flashing collision symbols. This occurs in perfect weather conditions, on clear roads, and with perfectly clean sensors (no snow, dirt, or debris obstructing the radar). I have over 30 videos capturing these failures occurring under normal driving conditions. Inspection & Dealer Reproduction: The vehicle has been inspected by two different authorized Nissan dealerships, spending a total of 35 days out of service. At the first dealership (10 days in shop), the official paperwork blamed "dirt/debris," but a service advisor informally admitted via text message that it was an internal system error they could not fix. At the second dealership (25 days in shop), technicians test-drove the vehicle but claimed they "could not duplicate" the intermittent issue and found "no codes," despite me providing them with extensive video evidence of the system crashing. Manufacturer Involvement: I contacted Nissan North America Corporate regarding this severe safety defect and the dealerships

When sitting in a parking space and when you put the car in reverse, the front sensors pick up whats in front of the car making the beeping sound. If a car is driving by in the rear it does not pickup that car driving by as it is picking up the items in the front of the car. When in reverse, the front sensors should not go off, only the rear sensors should go off. This issue can cause someone to not pay attention to the beeping because they think they are beeping for the front sensors and cause someone to back into someone driving by.

The contact owns a 2025 Nissan Pathfinder. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked inside the garage, the hatch glass shattered unexpectedly. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, no cause for the failure was found. The vehicle was not repaired. Upon further investigation, the contact became aware that several consumers had reported that the rear glass, front windshield, and sunroof glass had broken without impact due to the manufacturing of the thin-tempered glass. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact that a Nissan regional representative would reach out with assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 12,000.

The accelerator pedal has gotten stuck at full throttle 3 times under the all weather rock creek floor mat. The mat appears to be properly placed in its molded position, but it allows the pedal to go behind the mat and get stuck. 3 separate times this has happened.

serious incident that happened. While we were driving heading uphill to the beach, the check engine light and multiple warnings suddenly appeared. It said 'transmission error' and 'engine power reduced,' and the car just shut down with the kids inside. We were at risk of the car rolling backwards. I really think this is a major safety issue tied to the vehicle's design or manufacturing. Second incident was also driving on the road and suddenly all the lights appeared again and the engine shut off on its own leaving me and the kids stuck on road. I wasn’t able to switch it to N to at least try to push it out the way! I was stuck in traffic and had to call road assistance to get the car towed home! At this point I’m scared to drive anywhere especially with my kids inside.

I purchased a vechicle from nissan of laurel . My drver side mirror vibrates excessivly while driving which is a safety issue . and i took the dealers and they replace with no cost , the same day the replace i took it back to the dealer because its worst then before and they refuse to replace it . I need to open a case , document this safety concer and authorize the repair under warranty . Dealership- Nissan of Laurel, Maryland Issue : Driver -side mirror vibrates/Shakes while driving safety concern : reduced visibilty of surronding traffic , cant see what kind of card behind request : replacement of defective mirror under warranty additional evidence : video of the vibrating mirror can be provided upon request .