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.
9.0
really awful
Typical Repair Cost:
$4,060
Average Mileage:
110,700 miles
Total Complaints:
232 complaints
Most Common Solutions:
replace transmission and radiator (132 reports)
rebuild transmission and replace radiator (40 reports)
not sure (26 reports)
replace radiator and transmission (16 reports)
new transmission (6 reports)
radiator and transmission cooler replaced (5 reports)
Nissan Assist Program - Information about extended warranties for Radiator Assembly, Fuel Sensor
Lawsuit Against Nissan For Transmission/coolant Issue - The attached link will take you to the actual Law firm that is handling the lawsuit against Nissan for continuesly ignoring the defect on their Nissan vehicles 2005 and 06. where the coolant has leaked into the transmission and causing complate failure.
Go to the site and add your information. I'm hoping the lawsuit will have more meaning if you let them know of your experience with your Nissan vehicle.
Radiator Assembly Customer Satisfaction Program - Nissan has decided in the interest of customer satisfaction, to further extend the warranty for the Radiator Assembly on all 2005-10 Frontier, Pathfinder, and Xterra vehicles equipped with automatic transmissions.
On a small percentage of vehicles, an internal crack on the oil cooler tube may occur leading to internal leakage of engine coolant. While the majority of vehicles will not experience this issue, for customer satisfaction purposes, Nissan has decided to further extend the coverage of the New Vehicle Limited Warranty on the radiator assembly, subject to certain customer co-pays that vary with age/mileage.
The New Vehicle Limited Warranty coverage on applied vehicles for the Radiator Assembly (original terms 3 years/36,000 miles) will be extended from the current extension of 8 years/80,000 miles to 10 years/100,000 miles (whichever occurs first), including damage, repairs, replacement, and towing resulting from this issue.
With the additional extension, the following warranty coverage and corresponding customer co-pays will now apply:
Up to 8 years/80,000 miles (whichever comes first): No customer co-pay
After 8 years/80,000 miles (whichever comes first) up to 9 years/90,000 miles (whichever comes first): Customer co-pay is $2,500
After 9 years/90,000 miles (whichever comes first) up to 10 years/100,000 miles (whichever comes first): Customer co-pay is $3,000
As with the prior extension, this extension of warranty on the radiator assembly will cover damage caused to other affected components, including the vehicle transmission, as a result of an internal leakage condition in the radiator assembly. However, existing powertrain coverage applicable to the transmission (5 years/60,000 miles) otherwise remains unchanged.
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2006 Nissan Pathfinder Owner Comments (Page 11 of 12)
My vehicle would not go in reverse. I took to the nissan dealership. They said the transmission had gone out. I had purchased an extended warranty from another company. They sent their adjuster out to check things out. The service manager at the nissan dealership told the adjuster that the radiator had leaked fluid into the transmission. They said the radiator was not included in the warranty and refused to pay. We tried to get Nissan to help us. My car set in the shop for three weeks. I needed my vehicle. We took a chance and drove across town and traded it in. I was upside down on my payment and I ended up paying 5,226 dollars in the trade.
I was driving home from a weekend shore vacation with 2 of my children in my 2006 Nissan Pathfinder. Approximately 45 minutes into the drive on Route 1 in DE, the vehicle abruptly 'jumped' and then slipped out of gear. I was on a highway at this time. Luckily, I was able to coast into the right lane and then pull to the side of the road. If not, we could have been hist by any of the vehicles that were behind us. For a brief time, I was able to get the vehicle to slowly drive in 1st gear and then pulled into a parking lot of a gas station/convenience store. I couldn't get it to go back into drive after that point. We then had to wait 2 1/2 hours to be picked up by my husband. The car was towed to a local shop and diagnosed as needing a new transmission. The repair quite was extremely high, so we opted to have the vehicle towed back to our town of residence to a local transmission shop. The shop indicated that they have seen this problem many times in 2005-2007 Nissan Pathfinders. The radiator cracks, and the coolant leaks into the transmission, which ends up destroying the transmission. This appears to be a known defect. $6000 later, I now have a repaired vehicle. Nissan needs to issue a recall and fix these known issues. They also need to reimburse customers who have experienced these issues and have had to pay for the repairs out of pocket
Just want to say that this is a really horrible situation. We just noticed the milky fluids in the radiator a short while ago, since then, the tranny fluid is now milky as well and the transmission is beginning to shift hard. The car is completely shutting off while in Drive, and it shakes violently like you are running over bump strips on the side of the highway. The dealership (Gates Nissan) acted as though there were no known problems with the cooling unit in the radiator. I got online directly after that and saw that other people have had this same problem for a long time. I find it hard to believe that they had no knowledge of the faulty parts. We have contacted Nissan, but I have doubts as to whether they will do anything for us. The cost of replacing the transmission and radiator was quoted to us yesterday as $8,000. This is just horrible.
Purchased vehicle with 79000 miles was never told about 80000 mile warranty 83000 noticed jerking while driving over 60 mph researched cause sure enough antifreeze in transmission $700 dollars later for transmission flush and new radiator. Transmission failure 100 miles later. Nissan has no interest with helping out or solving this problem they acted like I was the first one to have this problem and told me there was nothing they could do but fix the old transmission for another $5500. THEY SEEM to have a nice scam going sell you a defective product and charge you up the @$$ to fix it!
- Billie J.,
Parsons, WV, US
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My car was running fairly well,seemed to be going along well,like most Japanese cars,or Jeeps I have had in the past ! I kept regular oil changes on the car,and out of he 5 years I have had the car, I HAVE HAD LIMITED problems with the car beyond brake and a tuneup ! This time, I was going to pickup my daughter and her friends at 6 flaggs amusement park in Atlanta ! While in route,I had picked up speed to about 75 miles an hour,and the car light came on stating the words slip slip,and cutoff on a major highway ! I was able to get over to the side of the road without anybody hittin g my car ! I attempted to start the car again,and it did start right up ! I was able to pickup my daughter,and her frends,but I could only travel no faster than 60 miles an hour ! The next day it drove fne,however when I took my car to a repair shop,the mechanic stated that I do have a tansmission problem,that has to be addressed ! I have never had a problem with anyother Japanese car I hAave had,which spans a priod of 30 or more years ! In this economy,who has 3 to 5 thousand $ to come out with for a car repair ! Please let me know !
Monday July 23rd evening while shopping with the kids to go back to school, my Nissan Pathfinder started acting up, it felt like the transmission was slipping. I turned the car off and on and that felt to have resolved the problem momentarily. While crossing a busy intersection in Orlando, the car failed and it woudn't move. Needless to say, this was very scary due to upcoming traffic and I'm stuck in the middle of the intersection and my two kids in the car....
The vehicle finally moved,
the very next morning, I bring it to the shop and the technician at the Nissan dealer said that there is coolant in the transmission and it has caused a complete transmission failure. The vehicle requires a new transmission and radiator, and perhaps other parts that could have been damaged by the coolant. Estimated cost $8500.00.
I bought the car brand new in 2006, paid cash for it with an extended warranty up to 100,000 miles with the intention to keep this vehicle for at least 10 years. I have every record of the maintenance I am very upset to hear how many people have had this issue and that Nissan have done nothing about it.
I found the following website about a class action lawsuit against Nissan on this same defect, I hope those of you who are experiencing the same issue, visit the website and add your information, so this problem doesn't go unresolved by such a big corporation.
Found engine coolant has contaminated transmission fluid. Need to replace the radiator and transmission. Nissan Dealer never notified me of this problem occurring in these vehicles and now it is past warranty. Very disappointed in Nissan Dealer.
NISSAN SHOULD HAVE TO PAY FOR KNOWING ABOUT THIS PROBLEM WITH THE RADIATOR GOING BAD WHICH MAKES THE TRANSMISSION BAD. THE REASON IS COOLANT LEAKS FROM INSIDE THE RADIATOR TO YOUR COOLER LINES THAT KEEP YOUR TRANSMISSION FLUID COOL. COOLANT GOES INSIDE YOUR TRANSMISSION AND MIXES WITH TRANSMISSION FLUID CAUSING TRANSMISSION SLIPAGE. NOW YOU NEED TO REPLACE YOUR RADIATOR AND YOUR TRANSMISSION. $4,000.00 LATER. ALL NISSAN HAD TO DO IS SEND EVERYBODY A LETTER SAYING WE KNOW THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH THE RADIATOR WHICH WILL LEAD TO A TRANSMISSION FAILURE. PLEASE REPLACE YOUR RADIATOR BEFORE YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH YOUR TRANSMISSION. ITS THAT EASY BUT NO WE ARE STUCK PAYING FOR A NEW RADIATOR AND A REBUILD TRANSMISSION. THAT BULL SH T
APPARENTLY THIS IS A COMMON ISSUE AND THERE'S A CLASS ACTION LAW SUIT AGAINST NISSAN. WHAT'S SAD IS I'VE HAD 9 NISSAN'S IN MY LIFE AND WAS (UNDERSCORE) WAS A DEVOTE NISSAN FAN. THEIR HANDLING OF THIS MATTER IS BEYOND COMPREHENSION WHEN ALL THEY NEEDED TO DO WAS FIX THE PROBLEM AT SOME SORT OF DISCOUNT. I'LL PROBABLY NEVER BUY ANOTHER NISSAN. SAD AS THE OTHERS WERE GOOD BUT IT ONLY TAKES ONE BAD (UNDERSCORE) BAD APPLE TO RUIN THE BUNCH. PERHAPS SOMEONE AT NISSAN SHOULD READ THEIR REPUTATION IS BEING DESTROYED. BUY FORD NEXT TIME.!!!!!
I never expected my car to have any problem so fast, I took great care of my nissan. I annually drive my car about 13,716 miles, which is really good. Why a company like Nissan allow for this to happens. Are they looking forward to lose future customers.
I didn't pay my rent because I used that money to pay the car bill,($2,400.00) and now I have serious problems with my landlord.
All I want is my ($2,400.00) back, to see if can get back on my track.
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
Nissan was aware of this problem. I was not. It could have been prevented if they relay the problem to me on time. They made no effort to fix my pathfinder before the transmission went out.
I recently purchased a used 2006 Nissan Pathfinder, I usually would not have purchased a foreign vehicle but a lot of people I know were saying what a great product Nissan had. But to my dismay I have found it to be a very expensive piece of junk. I have had the vehicle for 3 months, I paid $16,877.00 for it, it had 91,545 miles on it when I purchased it and I travel 130 miles a day to and from work. I had mentioned to the dealer that I thought that that may be too many miles, he said oh no! Nissans are known to go 250,000 miles or better. I have taken very good care of my vehicles as they are my main mode of transportation. Last week end I was on my way home from CT to MA when all of a sudden I experienced an awful vibration while driving down the interstate, I pulled over and shut the vehicle off and then started it back up again, it seem to be running fine until I tried to move it, it then started to vibrate and shake again. I called my brother who is a mechanic and he came and picked me up and towed the vehicle back to his place on a car trailer. He jacked the vehicle up and saw that the transmission appears to be wet. He then opened the dip stick tube to check the fluid and found the transmission to be full of anti-freeze. I called the dealer and they said they could not do anything because a used car warranty is 1200 miles or 1 month. I was really getting aggravated so I started to search the symptoms on the web, only to find that I am not the only one with this issue, it appears to be a design flaw with the 2006 Nissan Pathfinders and Nissan has not done a recall on them, although they did extend the warranty for the radiator assembly and transmission from 36 months/36,000 miles to 96 months/80,000 miles, including damage, repairs, replacement, and related towing resulting from this issue if you purchase the vehicle new. So this reinforces that they are aware of the issue and that they should recall or make good for the problem.
I contacted Nissan Assist and they informed me that there was an issue and that they were aware, I explained that I purchased the vehicle from a dealer and that it was over the warranty mileage and they stated that Nissan may assist me anyways where I had just purchased the vehicle, and that I needed to get the problem diagnosed by a Nissan dealer and the call consumer affairs with the estimate, and they gave me a case number of 7180191. So I did as I was told hoping that Nissan would stand behind their product and assist me. I towed the vehicle to Bertera Nissan in Auburn, Ma. Where they gave me an estimate of $6360.58 to do the repairs, the service person said that this was a common problem and that they would be replacing the transmission and the radiator. I called consumer affairs and gave them the estimate and they said that a regional specialist would contact me within a day; she called me today and said that they would not do anything and that I would have to figure out how to get it repaired on my own.
I think that this is very bad PR on Nissan’s part, I know that I would not by your product ever again after only owning one of your vehicles for only 3 months.
Like many others I experienced the same transmission failure due to the faulty radiator problem that has been reported previously. The local Nissan Dealer estimated the cost to be approximately $7,000 NZ Dollars. When the vehicle was dismantled they found that transmission oil had contaminated all engine hoses, which included radiator and other auxiliary hoses. His advice was it would be necessary to replace all rubber units. Had I been advised of this radiator problem it would have been sensible to retrofit an independent transmission cooling system at an approximately cost of $500 NZ Dollars. To be advised of the problem by Nissan they would have saved me a great amount of money. I have owned Nissan Vehicles since mid 1960's and have in fact had approximately 12 units. I am going to approach Nissan NZ and trust that they will understand my complaint and be forthcoming with some compensation for this rather large expense on what is supposed to be a premier type vehicle. Total cost of repairs in NZ Dollars was $13,837.05 this did include a 15% TAX
Obviously, I am not the first to enter a complaint about tis issue. I have a 2006 Nissan Pathfinder in which the internal components of the radiator have failed, and as a result, this has permanently damaged my transmission. I in fact am still paying for this vehicle, and now have to come up with an additional $4500.00 - $5000.00 to cover the repairs... repairs that are without a doubt known to Nissan, and yet they choose to ignore the issue.
I am tired of going off...it won't get the car fixed....and it does not get Nissan's attention. This is a defective part (latent defect), Nissan knows it. The crazy thing is that when I called Nissan...as soon as I explained the problem (out of warranty), they didn't ask any questions other than to ask how many Nissans had we owned. They sent me on a VIN # chase. I found 5 Nissans in 28 years...(in those years we had a Nissan in the driveway except for 4 1/2 years). My complaint was sent to their corporate office. The verdict was delivered on the 22nd of Aug. Sorry, Nissan is not going to assist! I was told our 'loyalty' was not sufficient, and I was out of warranty. I asked the Nissan regional rep several questions; she would not answer any of them. At the end, she advised two very important bits of info: 1. she was only telling me what she had been directed to say...and 2. The radiator/transmission issue was not a problem that exceeds 'normal' complaints. I kinda feel bad for her...she must hate her job. The other funny thing...on one of my subsequent calls back to her after the initial complaint and the 'verdict' call...I asked if she had worked these specific issues and she advised...she had worked 'several'. A couple days later...she advised (as noted above) that problem does not exceed 'normal' complaints. My of my...how the tide turns.
These people are absolute crooks, if not downright in a conspirator relationship with their subcontractor for accepting the defective parts and then passing the parts off to the public. I will be taking a legal action against Nissan either by myself, or join (what I counted today on the net) to be at least 4 civil suits. Just looking for one in Texas... and ya don't mess with Texas.
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Update from Sep 1, 2011: Found a new class action suit in Texas......just getting started.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
My vehicle would not go in reverse. I took to the nissan dealership. They said the transmission had gone out. I had purchased an extended warranty from another company. They sent their adjuster out to check things out. The service manager at the nissan dealership told the adjuster that the radiator had leaked fluid into the transmission. They said the radiator was not included in the warranty and refused to pay. We tried to get Nissan to help us. My car set in the shop for three weeks. I needed my vehicle. We took a chance and drove across town and traded it in. I was upside down on my payment and I ended up paying 5,226 dollars in the trade.
- Elvira M., Greenville, MS, US