Let me first say hello to everyone and Introduce myself.

I am a current 09 Honda Odyssey owner (well my wife's car...)

Our kids are growing up and are past the convenience of automatic doors and over the van thing... Needless to say we have been searching high and low for a vehicle that will give us great roomyness but still be tough with good fit and finish, and technology.

We looked at Tahoe.. big. But too big in size/$$, Not very refined and a gas GUZZLER.

Traverse is too Van-ish and mostly everything else had minimal space like the Jeep Grand Cherokee we looked at.

Today we drove the Pathfinder and loved the ruggedness of it, and my wife liked being up high and feeling safe in it. Power was awesome and the BOSE is amazing. Rear A/C rocked and the key fob is heaven. (I have an Infiniti M35s so I’m used to it but my wife was very happy to see the key fob)

Our questions are :

How do you like your Pathfinder?

Any issues, things I need to know?

I know MPG isn’t all that great but what is your “real world” gas mileage like?(v6)

Recommendations? We are looking at a 2011 Silver Edition 4x2 V6.


Thanks in advance,
-Brian

Brian,

Glad you made it over here. Search the forum as I know there has been a few threads about the 2010/2011 pathfinder on here.

Some of the things I've heard about on the pathfinders, were the weak radiators which would crack and leak coolant into the transmission. Nissan increased the warranty to 80 months i believe on this. However if you are looking at a 2011 then I think they have fixed this problem. Most people that i've heard with this problem were from the 05-07 year range.

08-2010 there are a few differences. Have not heard of too many problems with these years. Also mine has a V8 and there are not that many on this forum with the 5.6.

Good luck. I think a Pathfinder will work very well for you and your family.

I've had a great time so far with my Pathfinder. I have an '06 Pathfinder SE with leather and every option but On Star. I bought it with a lot of miles and have put on more, harder miles since. I spend a decent amount of my mileage off road. The only recent maintenance (not really a problem) I've had with my PF was having to replace my front and rear U joints at about 95K miles. I know forums usually bring out every flaw in a vehicle but, there are very few horror stories on this site and even fewer people who won't help you if you have a question.

Here are some things I've done with mine...

http://www.thenissanpath.com/viewtopic. ... 2851#12851

http://www.thenissanpath.com/viewtopic.php?t=3923

I'm pretty happy with my '08. I bought it with 15k miles on the clock and 18 months later I've recently turned 50k. It would not be big enough as a family hauler for us all the time (two kids, two big dogs, lots of stuff) but I'm sure it would be fine with just a couple kids. Access to 3rd row is a PITA and we have never used it. More than four humans and we take her van.

Not only does the Pathfinder "look" tough...it actually has a truck frame and to some extent a truck suspension. It's certainly not as refined as many of the cross-overs out there but it also does very well off-road. I drive mining roads on a regular basis and also tow so I actually need a truck-ish vehicle. I've made some improvements with better shocks and installed airbags which help...but it will still jump around a bit on you. If you don't do any off-road driving or towing...I guess I would question the choice. But if you're willing to buy based on looks, just know that you may not be happy with the suspension. We get folks in here every once in awhile complaining about the truckish attributes.

We had an '05 Odyssey up until early spring when my wife switched to a Sienna. With the PF, I get 18.5 overall on my commute and 21-22mpg on long highway trips. Her Ody rarely beat 18mpg average but you could eek out 23-24mpg on the highway with a lot of luck. The new Sienna (and I understand new Ody) is much better and she's been averaging 21mpg and hitting 25-26mpg on highway. Only difference is I run premium in the Pathfinder (recommended for max performance) so it costs more to fill regardless of mpg.

Have you looked at the Acadia? My wife narrowed it down to the Sienna, Acura MDX, and the Acadia Denali. The MDX was a huge compromise on space but it drove terrific. In the end the lack of cargo space killed the deal on it and the Acadia. She liked the looks of the Denali but just wasn't ready to give up the space. I don't find the Traverse attractive at all but do like the Acadia.

Sometimes I wish I would have bought the Armada or Tahoe...but the PF can get everything done that I need and the performance is pretty good. I wish it handled better and didn't jump around on bad bumps, but most of the sporty SUV's would be destroyed driving into a mine.

I absolutely love my 07 SE 4x4... so much so that when it comes time to trade it in we've already decided we're just going to trade it in for a new Pathfinder. As mentioned, it is a very capable off road vehicle and I had no problems at all driving the 13 miles to work down country roads when we got 15 inches of snow back in Febuary. Gas mileage isn't the best (I average about 14 city, 20.6 highway), but not many SUV's this size fare much better and, of those that do, they're nowhere near as off-road capable. Like I said, I love mine, and I may just be a Pathfinder owner for life

I have an '10 and my kids love it, so does myself and my wife. Love it for the roominess and flexible seating. Like you have mentione , the rear ac is heaven for the kids or who ever else sitting in the rear seats. Power is more than enough, and size wise, easey to live with on a daily basis. I use the PF to drop off and pick up the kids from school. Then drive to work at night. I live in Queens and work in NYC so parking was something I took into consideration before I purchsased the PF. But overall I love my PF. Hope this helps.

I have an '10 and my kids love it, so does myself and my wife. Love it for the roominess and flexible seating. Like you have mentione , the rear ac is heaven for the kids or who ever else sitting in the rear seats. Power is more than enough, and size wise, easey to live with on a daily basis. I use the PF to drop off and pick up the kids from school. Then drive to work at night. I live in Queens and work in NYC so parking was something I took into consideration before I purchsased the PF. But overall I love my PF. Hope this helps.

I find myself somewhat negative and at times angry when it comes to my 06PF. It is something of a personal mindset problem, as this is my first Nissan of over 50 yr of driving. I keep telling myself that each mfg has issues peculiar to them and if you stop by a Chevy dealer, guess what cars are in the service bay. Same is true of each brand. I’m reminded of my TV repair days and each brand had a specific problem that would invariably occur only within that brand often because of the supplier used. I think that is true with car mfg as well. Yet, what brand is without problems? None of us like to pay big bucks, but it seems that we need to have in our budget a “rainy day” fund to take care of the unexpected, no matter what brand we buy.

I chose the PF (used) because of price & needed a truck-like chassis. Power is great!

I replaced the radiator ($350) for insurance that nothing bad in the near future would befall me & take the trans with it. Those on the Nissan forums really had me worried. Yet a friend’s Honda had a similar episode. It is just that on this forum we specialize with the PF. Yes, Mother Nissan had such an uproar over this, she relented & extended warranties & reimbursed us for previous repairs, as was only right of her.

As for the trans, I wish it was more firm in the TC lock-up. Because it doesn’t, I pay more at the pump. I think a regular flush is a must on today’s units. I have a cousin that had trans problems with an Odyssey & vows never to by another Honda. My brother’s Honda had trans issues, as well.

Timing chain & guides. Don’t most engines require chain replacement anyway? I added MotorKote to the oil, so I hope that its life is extended.

I've got one I'll sell ya, it has leaky ac lines, small as hell back seat, and a by-passed transmission cooler. I'm a Nissan lover but since finding this website it has kinda freaked me out. 2 things PF has going for it..looks and power.

We have an 09 Pathfinder and most of the issues with this model seem to have been resolved by 09. Our actual mileage is 19mpg mixed daily driving and up to 24mpg highway. Others report lower mileage but I believe they are heavy on the gas. Only mod is a K&N washable filter and mileage increased by a minimal amount as a result.

The Pathfinder is a truck and rides like one, some like this and some don't. I don't tow anything now but I like to know that I can.

deezx5 wrote:Others report lower mileage but I believe they are heavy on the gas.

Or we live at higher altitudes, drive up and down mountains, have speed limits 75+, etc. The mpg is about my only grumbling point, but it's pointless because all the other SUVs out there are similar (I'm not talking about the cars/crossovers they are also calling SUVs). A number of minor complaints, but I have yet to own a car that was 100% perfect. I'm hoping to continue the tradition by buying the next model revision of either the Pathfinder or the X, which should both be addressing the mpg issues, although they may no longer be worthy of the SUV badge. Great vehicle overall.

Previous 100% Toyota guy, traded '01 4Runner in for new '07 Pathfinder, '07 4Runners were cramped and spendy. Nissans are a little tinnier and less refinded (which I kinda like), I have had zero problems in the 62k I've had mine (cept fuel sending unit, covered under warranty), I will do the bypass soon, but power/mpg, 3rd row, looks, etc. are great. I am not unhappy with our purchase. The newer 4Runners look pretty badass though.

NVSteve wrote:

deezx5 wrote:Others report lower mileage but I believe they are heavy on the gas.

Or we live at higher altitudes, drive up and down mountains, have speed limits 75+, etc. The mpg is about my only grumbling point, but it's pointless because all the other SUVs out there are similar (I'm not talking about the cars/crossovers they are also calling SUVs). A number of minor complaints, but I have yet to own a car that was 100% perfect. I'm hoping to continue the tradition by buying the next model revision of either the Pathfinder or the X, which should both be addressing the mpg issues, although they may no longer be worthy of the SUV badge. Great vehicle overall.

Yeah as far as I can tell this the most fuel efficient SUV for its size and on par or better than many of the larger crossovers.

deezx5 wrote: Yeah as far as I can tell this the most fuel efficient SUV for its size and on par or better than many of the larger crossovers.

Pretty good on the power end too. All things considered.

Alphax wrote:
How do you like your Pathfinder?

I know MPG isn’t all that great but what is your “real world” gas mileage like?(v6)

We bought an '11 in January; we're truck people and not into extras, so it's base model SE 4x4. We added step bars and nothing else. So far we love the PF for everyone but MPG, which we expected going in. It handles well in the winter snow (that's December-April here), fits four plus large dog well, tows our boat easily, etc. Good driving position for both of us. No mechanical/trim problems other than rear wing windows rattle at temps below -20F (which is likely not an issue for most owners).

Real world MPG: we only drive ours about 750 miles/month, about 2/3 short trips and the balance on the freeway. The best we've seen is 23 mpg at ~60MPH on back roads. When driving 75 on the freeway it drops to 20/21. Around town we see 15-17, at the lower end when it's really cold of course. Average for most tanks of mixed driving has been 19mpg. Can't really complain as any truck that will hold five people and a dog will not come close to that. Note: everywhere we drive is flat and we use 87 octane fuel unless towing.

Gripes: my main complaint is about the quality of the interior plastics. They scratch very easily and look worse after six months than my dad's eight-year-old Ram which has driven repeatedly from MN-AK, MN-OR, and used heavily hunting. The Pathfinder material is so soft it scratches with my fingernails. In a year I won't care, but is a disappointment for a new vehicle.

Overall: we insisted on a ladder frame SUV...the only alternative without going HUGE is the 4-Runner, which handles like a car and charges extra for the rear seats, which we needed. I'm glad we got the 2011 PF before Nissan ruins the model by shifting back to a unibody design.

-kiwanda