Recently, my 2006 Nissan Pathfinder started to "stutter" or have problems in automatic shifting. I tend to research everything so, I researched the potential problem online to see what it could be to have a ballpark estimate of the unplanned cost to repair. I have only had this vehicle for a little over a year. I quickly learned across many, many forums that other Nissan Pathfinder, Frontier, and Xterra vehicles have also been affected by this stutter. As I researched further, I also quickly learned that Nissan installed a batch of faulty radiators in these vehicles. The model years potentially affected are 2005-2010. Generally, the faulty radiators are found to crack around 85k miles on these vehicles leading to coolant leaking into the transmission fluid. The transmission then quickly fails and the vehicle is extremely damaged and both the radiator and transmission must be replaced.

Nissan is fully aware of the faulty radiators being installed. They have records of the VIN numbers of these vehicles affected. Nissan extended the warranty on the radiator assembly to 96 months/80,000 miles (whichever occurs first) and to date, has done nothing about the transmission damage. If you are under the mileage stated (and not over by even one mile) they will reimburse you (not pay for) the radiator repair. Since those of us that were affected already know that the radiators usually don't crack/leak until around/near 85k miles, this extended warranty does not help most. My husband and spent our 10th wedding anniversary being miserable over this issue with my car. We called Consumer Affairs at Nissan. The first live person we spoke to seemed nice and even stated that we shouldn't have to pay for the repairs of the known faulty radiator or the transmission however, since we are at 89k miles, the Regional Manager at Nissan said that we are on our own with this problem and they are not going to pay. This was AFTER we gave them the requested information like our current miles and our VIN number. They also insisted that we get an estimate for repair from a certified Nissan dealer. We asked about not having any notice on this and why no recall has been issued. The regional manager stated that this issue is not a safety recall, and there are no safety issues relating to the radiator assembly. The more we inquired, the more we were told "I cannot answer that."

We have read numerous forum posts from others stating that their Nissan vehicle was affected and upon driving their vehicle (even on the interstate) that the vehicle just stopped while driving it. A mother spoke of driving hers on the interstate with her children in the vehicle, it had the same issue and just quit while driving it. She was almost rear-ended by a tractor trailer truck. How is that not reason for a safety recall?! I can only assume at this point that someone has to die before this will be seen as a major, major problem.

If Nissan cares about their customers at all, they would recall the radiators and fix the transmissions without an 80k cap. It is not the customer's fault (like us) that the vehicle lasted beyond the 80k miles. Again, they know that the problem usually doesn't arise until around 85k miles. The faulty radiators were installed, they know it, they admitted it, but yet there's a cap on the miles. Some have filed class-action lawsuits and everyone needs to do their part and complain and file suits. We had an estimate on repair at $5,500. Since this is no fault of ours, this is not right. We don't have the financial ability to pay for these repairs that Nissan is responsible for. Nissan, do something for the families affected before someone dies in one of these vehicles! My Pathfinder sits in my driveway while I am making payments on it. Since I have only had it a year, it's almost too much to digest. My husband takes me to work and back because of this. We really need two vehicles! Because of the severity of the problem, we cannot trade it either. We will eventually have to take out a loan to get it repaired. With a large family, that will cause a lasting burden!

On a trip to Disney World with my grandchildren my car all of the sudden start making noises and it feels I was driving on neutral.Car was towed to Universal Nissan in Orlando where I was told my transmission and radiator broke down and I was not longer covered under the guarantee because my car had 80,3000 miles and the guarantee cover up to 80,000.The cost of repair $5,500,and they did not have the part available (they're on back order) and it was going to take two weeks for them to get the part. I think these dealerships are using that as an excuse to make you make decisions that you might regret later and that was exactly what happen to me.I was stranded in another state with my two grandchildren ages 9 and 6,I did not have the amount of money to pay for the repair and I was offer to trade in my car that it was paid off a year before.I could rent a car,but I had to go back in two weeks to pick up my car.It was a nightmare.Since then I have contact Nissan headquarters and the first time I spoke with a young man that did not care at all about what I was telling him,then I called back a week after and I was able to explain to another person what happened and did not know that this particular Nissan Pathfinder had this problem with a crack in the radiator that damage the car transmission.I feel that Nissan should at least help the customer by paying at least half of the repair bill knowing that the problem, of the crack in the radiator that leak coolant to the transmission is a manufacture defect.I am willing to get together and try to get at least some money back from my car because a 5 year old car is still a relative new car and I took good care of my car.

I AM REALLY STRESSED AFTER READING ALL OF THE OTHER COMPLAINTS I DO NOT FEEL AS BAD. INITIALLY TOOK TO NISSAN AS LOUD NOISE WAS HEARD WHEN SHIFTING FROM 30-40MPH. FIRESTONE FIRST THOUGHT WAS TIRES THEY SAID SHIFT DIFFERENTIAL TAKE TO DEALER (EVAL WAS FREE) TOOK TO DEALER DIAGNOSED: TIMING CHAINS,TENSIONER SHOES,CASE TRANSFER SEEP,U-JOINTS AND WIPER BLADE TO REPAIR FOR $2700.00. WELL HAD U JOINTS REPAIRED FOR 300.00 NOT AT NISSAN. TOOK TO TO DRIVE SHAFT REPAIR CHARGED $275.00. RECEIVED CAR BACK SILL MAKING NOISE TOOK CAR BACK TECH RODE IN CAR COULD NOT FIGURE OUT NOISE STILL. KEPT CAR AGAIN CHARGED 49.95 TO TELL ME NOISE IS INTERMITTENT AND BEING BACK IF IT GETS WORSE. DROVE A WEEK NOISE GOT WORSE RECOMMENDED BY A FRIEND TO TAKE TO TRANSMISSION SHOP WELL THEY TOOK APART AFTER A WEEK DETERMINED THAT COOLANT LEAKING INTO TRANSMISSION AND TORQUE CONVERTER WAS DAMAGED DUE TO CONTAMINATION OF FLUIDS IN TRANSMISSION. THEY CALLED NISSAN TO ORDER A PART AND WAS TOLD OH YEA A RECALL ON THE RADIATOR DUE TO LEAKING INTO TRANS KICKER WITH THAT TRUCK WAS PAST WARRANTY DATE. CONTACTED NISSAN RECALL CENTER SPOKE WITH SOMEONE THAT DID NOT KNOW HOW TO SPEAK OR COMPREHEND IN ENGLISH AS HE WAS ACROSS THE SEAS.

BOTTOM LINE TOTALLY OUT 5K COULD HAVE USED THIS TO PURCHASE A NEW CAR. CREDIT BAD THOUGH SO STILL STUCK WITH NOTE AND REPAIRS. I WAS TOLD ALSO THAT MY VIN NUMBER DID NOT MATCH THE RECALL!!!!!!! SAME THING HAPPENED TO MY TRUCK THAT HAPPENED TO OTHERS WHAT WAS THE DIFFERENCE. LOVE MY TRUCK AND WILL BE THE ONLY TRUCK THAT I WILL OWN FOR REST OF MY LIFE IF GOD WILLING DO NOT EVER WANT ANOTHER CAR NOTE. NO SIGNS WHAT SO EVER THAT THIS WAS HAPPENING NOTHING ON DASH BOARD EVER GAVE A HINT. WHAT CAN WE DO AS CONSUMERS WE ARE ALWAYS THE LAST MAN OUT.

WILL NEVER EVER BY ANOTHER NISSAN AT ONE POINT ARMADA WAS MY DREAM TRUCK F*^% THAT. ONCE CAR NOTE IS PAID WILL CONTINUE TO KEEP UP AS THIS IS AN INVESTMENT. I AM SINGLE PARENT IN COLLEGE WITH 2 YOUNG ADULTS IN COLLEGE ALSO. IF ANYONE HAS SUGGESTIONS PLEASE POST AS I AM SURE THAT WE ARE NOT THE ONLY ONES.

Nissan is having all kinds of the 2006 pathfinders having the same problem with the crack in the radiator causing water to leak into the transmission. I took it to Nissan and they knew off the bat what the problem was. They said it was a default radiator that nissan had in the pathfinders but don't want to fix it. It became dangerous for me to drive the vehicle it would not take off good and I almost got rear ended by a big truck. I had it fixed twice all ready and now I'm going to have a brand new transmission put in it. I'm a single mom and that is my way to and from work. This is bull sh*t that nissan can't man up and fix our problems!

We took it to the dealership in Sept. 2010 & was told the radiator leaked fluid in the transmission & they wanted to charge $5,100 to fix it. It was barely out of the warranty @ 69,000 miles & we did not let them fix it, because that is a ridiculous price & it is a problem with manufacturing obviously since there are so many other people having the same problem. Someone from the corporate office is supposed to call me Monday & let me know if they are going to help fix it. I told them a recall needed to be done & if they did not @ least help me fix it I will never buy another Nissan again & I will tell everyone I come in contact with that they will be making a mistake if they buy one.

OWNED A 2006 NISSAN PATHFINDER LE. LOVED THE CAR UNTIL IT STARTED TO SHUTTER. 54000 ON CAR AT TIME OF PROBLEM. TOLD BY THE MECHANIC THE RADIATOR WAS DAMAGED AND IT ALSO DAMGED THE TRANSMISSION. PAYED $1300 FOR THE RADIATOR TO BE FIXED AND FLUSH THE TRANSMISSION. ALSO TOLD BY THE MECHANIC THE MECHANIC THE TRANSMISSION WAS NO LONGER UNDER WARRANTY AND I WOULD HAVE TO PAY OUT OF POCKET TO FIX THE TRANSMISSION IF THE CAR STILL SHUTTERED.

THE CAR STILL SHUTTERED AFTER FIXING THE RADIATOR AND FLUSHING THE TRANSMISSION. DID SOME RESEARCH WHEN THIS OCCURED AND FOUND OUT IT WAS A COMMON PROBLEM. ENDED UP DUMPING THE PATHFINDER, PAYING $2000 MORE DOLLARS FOR A NEW CAR. NOW I AM IN AN XTERRA WITH A HIGH MONTHLY PAYMENT.

I RECIEVED AN EXTENDED WARRANTY WITH MY NEW 2009 XTERRA. HERES THE KICKER, THEY EXTENDED MY WARANTY FOR THE RADIATOR MY NEW 2009 XTERRA BECAUSE THE RADIATOR ARE BREAKING. I BET ITS THE SAME RADIATOR USED IN MY 2006 NISSAN PATHFINDER LE. LOST 3500 DOLLARS. NO ONE CARES.

I WANT MY MONEY BACK

Transmission went at 79,600 miles because radiator leaked fluid into transmission. Nissan agreed to cover the costs of about $5,000, but it will be in the shop a month because the parts are on back order. They cannot provide a temporary replacement to our family vehicle. Also, if the mileage had been over 80.000 miles when my car broke down, it would NOT have been covered and I would have had to pay $5,000 to have the car repaired for an issue that is a known problem by Nissan. They should recall this vehicle so that other owners may not get stuck with a hefty bill, had it waited only 400 more miles, I would have been stuck with an outrageous bill.

Like so many other Nissan Pathfinder owners, my transmission began to drag and studder around 40-60 mph. I had to let my foot off the gas, then re accelerate so the car would make up its mind to shift into another gear. After a couple of weeks, I took it to my mechanic. I did not have a warranty on the vehicle and I knew if I called Nissan, they would not do anything about it(another issue listed under fuel sensor). So I approved my mechanic to fix the issue. The radiator had cracked and leaked coolant into the transmission which completely stripped all the gears in the transmission. I had to have the transmission rebuilt and the radiator replaced. My mechanic had informed me he had called Nissan dealerships to get the parts, and when he spoke with 3 different dealerships, they all had Pathfinders in for the same exact reason I was having mine fixed! With that being said, my Pathfinder was delayed in being repaired because of the lack of available parts. This repair was completed Sept 17, 2010.

Last week, Dec. 6, 2010, I received a letter from Nissan. Although the letter was in reference to another issue I had with my Pathfinder, I researched the website, nissanassist.com. Instead of doing a recall on the issue, Nissan is doing an Assist Program in which they are extending the warranty on the radiator and any problems related to the malfunction of the radiator up to a certain mileage. As of December 9, 2010, I have filed a claim with Nissan to have the money I paid for an apparent Nissan issue reimbursed. According to Nissan, I should have a resolution within 30 days. But with my past experiences with Nissan customer service, I know this will be a long fight. I love my Pathfinder, but Nissan can go to hell. At least at Toyota, they acknowledged their mistakes and are attempting to do right by the customer (at least from what I can tell). Nissan is trying to hide behind an Assist Program instead of doing a recall. Oh, and if you did pay for your own repairs, make sure you get your claim in by 7/31/2011 or you will be sh*t out of luck. Also, when you print out the claim form for the radiator issue, please look at the second page where it states a wrong date. It states that claims must be dated no later than 7/31/2010. Make sure you bring that to their attention as well. I printed out the FAQ's second page where it specifies the correct date of 7/31/2011. Make sure your ass is covered. I hope this helps!

CONTINUATION FROM THE TIMING CHAIN ISSUE!!!! Now at 54000 miles just 3000 miles after a major eng. job was performed by the dealership UNDER POWERTRAIN WARRANTY I MIGHT ADD!!!! Now my transmission shutters (shake) at 2000-2500rpms any where between 40-60mph. I purchased an extended warranty when I bought the truck (never buy a used vehicle without some type of warranty). But check this sh*t out... they want me to pay over 500 dollars for a radiator & then they could warranty the transmission... I was furious by this for two reasons....

# 1- They said the warranty I have which is the GOLD package (top package for used vehicles so they say, but Iater I found out there is a platinum package that was not offered to me) does not cover the cooling system.... #2- It was just in the shop 3000 miles ago for a timing chain & chain guides replacement UNDER POWERTRAIN WARRANTY because it was under 60000 miles. The radiator has to be removed to do the timing chain on this vehicle for those of you who are not mechanically inclined.

So now I am so pissed about the situation & it will be hard to trade the vehicle because I've only had the damn thang for 8 months!!!.... WOW!!!!..... THANK YOU NISSAN.

Update from Dec 28, 2010: Well im back at the dealership again....this time for a loose steering wheel issue. BUTTTT!!!!! I'm not p/o'd this time. Come to find out there might be some light at the end of this tunnel anyway. I was informed today that the warranty has been extended from 3yr/36,000 to 8yr./80,000 on the transmisson/radiator issue or to June 19, 2014, which ever comes first. Also the warranty is extended to 72,000 mi or June 19, 2012 for the fuel sending unit for Nissan 2005-10 Frontier, Pathfinder and Xterra. So, I just wanna say to auto/owners, this is a good web site for a vehicle reference, if you got vehicle beef lay it on the grill right here!!!!! Keep up the good work!

I will let you know the out come of this trip to the dealership. Happy New Year ya'll!

Update from Jan 8, 2011: Well it happened. They don't wanna own up to the point they have defective trucks! The steering colunm is about to fall in my lap, .....NO MORE NISSANS, NEVER AGAIN!!!!

I have a 2006 Nissan Pathfinder. I purchased it brand new at the end of 2005 and have been the only owner. Sounds like I have the same exact problem most of the people listed here have. Just yesterday when taking in my car for its routine service I was told that both my radiator and transmission are out...they are done and I need to replace them. It is costing me approx. 5800 and I have been shocked and surprised because I had no previous obvious sign that this was going on. Not even strange sounds, signs of getting over-heated or even having the sensor light go on. I mean, if the sensor light goes on for something as simple as low air pressure in my tires, I would only assume that for something as serious as my transmission, it would light on, too.

Apparently fluid from the radiator got into the transmission, that has damaged it all and needs to be replaced. My vehicle warranty expired at 75,000 miles...only 8,000 miles ago, but nothing can be done now and I have to pay. It seems to me that this is a general problem to many Nissan Pathfinders, mostly years 2005/2006. I have always taken my vehicle for service at the same dealership where I purchased it, and now this.

Worse thing of it all, it seems to me that these service departments deal frequently with this issue and have done nothing about contacting Nissan's HQ Dept. because it sounds like a manufactures malfunction. I can not believe how frequent my same situation has occurred to other Nissan Consumers and I strongly feel like something needs to be done. I live in Los Angeles County, California, and if anyone is interested in furthering some sort of investigation or legal action, please contact me.

We have been having problems with our vehicle "shaking" at 40 mph and again at 60 mph. We have had it into the shop to be looked at but after replacing u-joints, some other items and putting new tires on our vehicle it didn't get better. My wife was driving our Pathfinder home one night with our daughters in the vehicle and noticed that the vehicle was sputtering. She thought that possibly she was running out of gas although it was showing a 1/4 tank but we had been noticing that the gas gauge would fluctuate when we would fill the vehicle up (something that we noticed other Nissan owners have mentioned as well). She stopped at the gas station and noticed that the vehicle was overheating. We had it towed to a Nissan dealership where they told us that the radiator leaked into the transmission and we were going to need a new radiator and new transmission.

We are over our miles and our warranty has run out. We have contacted Nissan but were told that they are not obligated to fix anything or pay for anything since we drove our vehicle outside of our warranty and have put too many miles on our vehicle. We have been reading that this is a problem with the 2005 and we are thinking that this is going to be the same case for the 2006 and 2007 once the miles get to about 60,000. We have heard that Nissan has put out a bulletin on this problem and are aware of it but as the regional manager told us, they are not obligated to fix or pay for anything outside of the warranty. They know this is an issue and still they are not doing anything to make good on a product that has a manufacturer's defect. I'm sure that they are not interested in hearing this and have probably heard it before, but we will not buy another Nissan product and will make sure that we let as many people as we can know that Nissan does not stand behind their product.