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.
1.7
hardly worth mentioning
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
94,867 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.
The 2006 Nissan Pathfinder has an issue with the radiator (coolant) leaking into the transmission. Truck began to shudder as if driving on rumble strips. Leaking fluid causes what first starts out as a rumble during shifting around 40 mph, then eventually leads to a seize of the transmission which can occur at any time. Should the transmission fail while in traffic it could cause a accident. The vehicle was taken to transmission shop and they advised that the transmission needed to be replaced. The failure and the current mileages were 103,800 miles.
Transmission has completely failed due to leakage from the radiator crack. Rumbling started at about 130K miles, transmission starting slipping several weeks ago. We took it into the shop and paid $300 for a complete flush and replacement of fluid. It did no good - transmission is now not working at all.
I took my 2006 Nissan Pathfinder to a transmission shop because when I accelerated or slowed down it was giving a "bucking" feeling and my regular mechanic referred me to them. I was told that it was the faulty radiator and the transmission and radiator would need to be replaced for anywhere from $4800-$5500. Wow what a shock! this is ridiculous!!!
Going 70 mph the vehicle started shaking real bad the RPM gauge was going nuts. Brought the vehicle to a stop then tried to start it again the vehicle jumped uncontrollably. Parked it and had it picked up by a towtruck. Was diagnosed with a faulty transmission and radiator. Faulty valve on radiator contaminated transmission. I am so glad that me and my daughter were ok this was very scary.
- Wills Point, TX, USA
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I bought this vehicle in June 2011 from benson Nissan in spartanburg, SC. I had no idea about the radiator/transmission problems these vehicles were having &of course it wasn't mentioned in the sale. It was already slightly past the 80,000 mile warranty (the previous owner was obviously aware of problems) for the radiator. Less than 2 weeks after purchase I told the sales person &a mechanic that the car was jerking at around 60 mph when changing gears. The mechanic blamed "bad gas? & ?ethanol? & assured me it wasn't the transmission. Less than a month later, I took it back to the dealer?S &told them the car was still jerking at 60mph &asked them about the transmission. They again told me there was not a problem with the transmission. The car continued to shake worse when shifting &I continued to call Nissan &complain. The sales person even offered to trade the car in for me, but reneged when his manager declined because I "got too good of a deal on that car &(they) couldn't trade it back." The shaking began to get worse &spread to lower gears &I accepted the fact that I was sold a lemon. Through all this, no one at the Nissan dealership mentioned the transmission or radiator problem. I found out about it only after I began to research how to repair it myself &by then all I could do was pray. Barely one year after purchase while on the way to my parent?S house with my child in the back seat, &while on a busy highway, the car stuck in 2nd gear. I barely got it to my parent"S house &endured a lot of angry drivers around me. It cost $3700 to rebuild the transmission &replace the radiator that leaked into the transmission &finally after getting it back the jerking while shifting has stopped. I should've been informed about the transmission problem at purchase or at least after complaining &Nissan needs to make good on their faulty parts before someone is really hurt.
Driving the car as I normally do and felt the transmission slipping and acting funny car lost power on hwy took to an aamco transmissions mechanic and was told that the radiator coolant leaked in to transmission. So to get it fixed had to rebuild transmission, new torque converter and new radiator. I see too many people having the same problems and Nissan dose nothing to fix the problem you call them and they brush you off. Mean wail everyone is spending any-ware from $5000 to $7000. Could this get looked in to?
My transmission failed while driving on an interstate. Mechanic said the cooling line cracked, which allowed radiator fluid to enter the transmission and destroy it.
Verified at local dealership that radiator coolant is mixing with transmission fluid which causes rough shifting and car to shake at certain speeds. This is a serious safety issue as car can suddenly lose power/break down while driving. Radiator and transmission need to be replaced. We received Nissan's extended warranty (8 yr/80,000 miles) on radiator last year. Car is only 800 miles out of warranty, however Nissan will not cover the cost of replacing the radiator and transmission. Nissan needs stand by its product and issue a recall for this problem.
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.
Radiator is leaking coolant into the transmission, mechanic explain that it would cost $5500 to fix and this should not happen, is a manufacture default. Please help. Thank you.
While driving, the car vibrates and if you stop at traffic light and try to proceed driving it acts as if it has no power and it doesn't want to pull. Took the car to Nissan and they said the radiator had leaked coolant into the transmission, and both has to be replaced about $7000. There was no prior warning of this problem.
It started feeling like I was driving over the bumps on the side of the road. I took my 2006 Nissan Pathfinder to the dealer and I had the radiator leaking into the transmission problem. I was told this is a common issue with Nissan and they are not recalling the problem. They extended the warranty to 80,000 miles; unfortunately, I have 95,000 miles on my truck. It would have cost me approximately $1,000 to fix the radiator, more than 5000 to fix the transmission.
Fuel sending unit..... tank reads 1/4 to 1/3 to empty on panel and runs out of gas....while driving gauge fluctuates to full half and none after filing up and continues to do so no matter how much fuel...... digital reading says 0 to 30 to 120 to 300 miles after filling up... check engine light is on giving a error code for fuel sender.... there was a recall on the 2006 Nissan Pathfinder for this issue but Nissan states that my vehicle does not fall in the recall...... vehicle was manu 05/06... and has the same issue as the recall for 80,000 other Nissan vehicles made the same year...Nissan wants me to pay $98 for a diagnostic when I've had one done by a auto shop and the code matches the fuel sending unit.... Nissan states they are unsure if they will cover the fuel sender or assist in repairdue to the fact my 06 Pathfinder wasn't included in the recall.
The radiator colling pump cracked causing the cooling fluid to leak into the transmission and mix with the transmisssion fluid in return a new radiator drive unit and transmission needed to be replaced as well as the torque converter.
The contact owns a 2006 Nissan Pathfinder. The contact stated that the radiator was leaking fluid onto the transmission. The dealer was notified and diagnosed that the vehicle would need a new transmission. The manufacturer was not notified. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileages were 93,000. Updated 03/06/12 updated 03/08/12
Heard a thud in the rear. Took it to get looked at by a mechanic. Before the mechanic even looked at it he knew what was wrong. I told him I think something is wrong with my transmission. The mechanic already knew what was wrong hooked it up to the computer. Didn't show anything he explained to me. The computer was not working on the car it had burned out due to the design of Pathfinder. The transmission oil the radiator and all of the cars fluids are mixed. The radiator looked like vasoline.he told me I need a transmission cooling system and computer. Hr would charge 5,000 dollars he suggested taking it to Nissan.he said he has fixed several pathifinders with the same issues he said Nissan is well aware of the problems.I took it to my dealer in bradenton fl. Where I purchased my car they quoted me 8,000 dollars to fix it. Since my truck isn't under warranty. I asked my dealer about all the problems.he told me to call Nissan to make a complaint there isn't any thing he can do. Then I researched and found thousands of Pathfinders with my same problem im appalled by this. And need to know what I can do"??"
About 10,000 miles ago I noticed a vibration at 40 and 60mph. I took it to a local dealer who replaced two U joints and sent me on my way. Well, vibration is back, not only that now that it is winter, my vehicle wont warm up from an idle. It never blows hot air. These are a couple of symptoms that going forward show the radiator leaking into the transmission causing damage to the gaskets, seals, gears, torque converter. Please help the radiator obviously need replacing but not only that the transmission is messed up and stalls out now from time to time. It is really expensive to replace and should be covered under a recall program so it forces Nissan to recall just the radiators beofre they start leaking.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Patterson, NY, USA