CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2013 has a growing number of transmission complaints at low mileage. The issue is part of a class-action lawsuit that says the transmissions shake violently during acceleration between 15mph and 30mph.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
1 / 0
Average Mileage:
21,367 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.

2013 Nissan Pathfinder drivetrain problems

drivetrain problem

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2013 Nissan Pathfinder Owner Comments (Page 4 of 18)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #290

Jun 182019

Pathfinder

  • 93,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Vehicle when stationary and in park intermittently will not shift into any other gear such as drive or reverse even while depressing the brake pedal. This causes the motorist to become immobile. One safety concern is a scenario when a motorist placed the vehicle in park while waiting at an open draw bridge, train crossing or other situation that the motorist placed the vehicle in park thereby making the vehicle immobile in the flow of traffic. Additionally a motorist can become stranded in a remote location with no communication services available. An internet search for this condition has uncovered numerous owners experiencing this very same condition on same or similar Nissan vehicles. Upon further research it appears that a component or components, such as relay switches or solenoid(s) may be the cause of the transmission gear safety interlock becoming stuck thereby preventing the motorist from shifting the vehicle into the desired gear.

- Dacula, GA, USA

problem #289

May 102019

Pathfinder

  • 118,000 miles
Anywhere between 15 and 20 miles my car shudders. It's to the point pint it's not safe to drive the vehicle

- Brandon, FL, USA

problem #288

Apr 142019

Pathfinder

  • 159,000 miles
Since 2014 we have replaced 5 transmissions and 4 of these have been in the last month. The first one was a recall. I am wondering how many times will they continue to work this issue before they fix it or take the vic as a loss due to this issue never being handled. This is our family car and I cannot consider selling it or trading it in if it keeps breaking. Nissian has said they replaced this with a new transmission multiple times but how does the same new transmission keep breaking. I need answers.

- Bluffton, SC, USA

problem #287

Feb 062019

Pathfinder 6-cyl

  • 135,892 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Pathfinder. While driving, the vehicle failed to accelerate. The failure occurred intermittently and the brake lights remained illuminated. In addition, the gear shifter failed to shift out of park. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the transmission failed. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer and was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failures. The approximate failure mileage was 135,892. The consumer stated it's not a transmission issue but a faulty brake/stop lamp relay interrupting acceleration.

- Riverview, FL, USA

problem #286

Mar 162019

Pathfinder

  • miles
My Nissan has been getting stuck in park for the last week. After research online, I found out how to manually release the shift lock solenoid. I took it to my mechanic today & sure enough he said it's failed. I have to manually release it 3/4 of the day. Sometimes I am lucky and it will unlock on the first try after starting my car.

- Scotch Plains, NJ, USA

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problem #285

Mar 112019

Pathfinder

  • 3 miles
My 2013 Nissan Pathfinder gear shift gets stuck in the park position. It happens when the car is stationary and need to turn off the car and restart the car multiple times to get the gear shift out of park.

- Rancho Santa Margarita, CA, USA

problem #284

Dec 152018

Pathfinder

  • 60,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The shift interlock does not disengage when the brake pedal is depressed keeping the vehicle from being able to shift into gear. The vehicle is stationary and cannot engage any gears this has continued to happen daily since it began.

- Puyallup, WA, USA

problem #283

Nov 132018

Pathfinder

  • 98,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Pathfinder. The contact stated that the rear brake lights remained illuminated at all times. There were no warning indicators illuminated. In addition, when the vehicle was in park, the gear shifter independently shifted out of park. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer or an independent mechanic for diagnostic testing or repairs. The manufacturer was notified of the failures and informed the contact that the VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 16V380000 (exterior lighting). The approximate failure mileage was 98,000.

- Pittsburg, CA, USA

problem #282

Nov 152018

Pathfinder

  • 103,000 miles
Around 90K miles I began to feel a slight vibration when accelerating. Now that my extended certified pre owned warranty is out, it ran out at 100K and I currently have 105K miles on it, the vibration has become more noticable affecting acceleration. Upon reviewing many complaints online I feel like I am having same issue. The cvt transmission. It used to accelerate fairly smooth but now vibrates, if you release the gas some and reapply the gas, it seems to help it smooth it out. Smooths out over 60 miles and runs pretty smooth. So problem occurs during acceleration between 15 to 45 miles per hour

- Raleigh, NC, USA

problem #281

Dec 282018

Pathfinder

  • 96,000 miles
Vehicle transmission is not functioning as it should causing the vehicle to stop accelerating while driving.

- Beaverton, OR, USA

problem #280

Dec 102018

Pathfinder

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Engine light came on, took it to my repair shop to run a computer check. It came back with the cvt P17F1 transmission code. Nothing has happened yet, the light came on yesterday, taken in today to get it checked out. My repair place said they saw where Nissan had a recall on my type or Pathfinder years 2013-2015 but when I looked up my truck with the VIN, it says no recall on my vehicle. I'm trying to see why my vehicle doesn't have a recall on the transmission?

- Fisherville, KY, USA

problem #279

Sep 122018

Pathfinder

  • 87,000 miles
I bought a brand new 2013 Nissan Pathfinder in March of 2013. Within 6 months I noticed there was jerking with the transmission. I took it back to preston Nissan in Maryland and was told they had received a bulletin and the transmission needed to be reprogrammed. They reprogrammed the transmission and it helped a little but a few months later it was doing the same thing. I took it back to preston Nissan. There I was told that they could not duplicate the problem and that they would reprogram it again. It did not help. I could not afford to keep taking it back, because they charge me every time to keep telling me there was nothing wrong. My car began to not accelerate when I was making a turn or when I was accelerating in traffic. We took it back to preston and we were told that they had put a device in to monitor the transmission as well as reprogrammed it again. My car continued to judder and shake and fail to accelerate. There was a class action lawsuit filed and Nissan extended the warranties to 84,000 miles. My car is now at 87,000 and a Nissan dealership in Michigan is now stating that it needs a new transmission and a cooling fan. Nissan corporate office is now telling me that they will pay 90% of the fan and only 50% of the transmission. I bought the extended warranty when I purchased the car. The transmission is not the only thing wrong with this car. It has been one thing after the other. Door lock motor, visor, hood release, trunk latch, brake lights remain on when car is off, airbag indicator...the list goes on and on.

- Warren, MI, USA

problem #278

Jul 012017

Pathfinder

  • 40,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Pathfinder. While driving unknown speeds, the transmission shuddered and slipped. There were no warning indicators illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer (chapman Nissan, 6723 essington ave, philadelphia, pa 19153, 215-492-1200) where it was diagnosed that the transmission control module needed to be updated. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the repairs would be at his expense. The failure mileage was 40,000.

- Pine Hill, NJ, USA

problem #277

Aug 102018

Pathfinder

  • 112,000 miles
65 mph, vehicle failed to accelerate but rpms went up to 7000 vehicle shuddered for 25 seconds. Next day while makig a left turn at 10 mph thru an intersection from a stop light, same exact thing happened. Got to side of road, car refused to go forward. Works in reverse but not forward. Towed to shop where new transmission was found to be the only fix. Vehicle has only 112K miles.

- North East, MD, USA

problem #276

Aug 092018

Pathfinder

  • 112,000 miles
While driving on a highway, I accelerated- my rpms went up to 7 yet my car didn't accelerate at all but the car shuddered for about 25 seconds. One day later, while making a left turn after sitting at a stop light the same thing happened. Luckily I had just enough power to get through the intersection and to the side of the road. I put the car in park to catch my breath after that scary scene. After two minutes of the car still on I tried to drive but the car wouldn't move and it shuddered again. I restarted the car and had the same results. The car was towed to the Nissan dealership where they found that a new transmission would be necessary.

- North East, MD, USA

problem #275

Apr 292018

Pathfinder

  • 106,000 miles
We recently replaced the transmission under warranty and now the vehicle will not shift from park. The override from the brake pedal to the transmission does not function. Don't know if this is a solenoid or mechanical issue. Dealership says replace mechanism and see if this $1000 fix corrects situation

- Leesburg, VA, USA

problem #274

Mar 092018

Pathfinder

  • 103,000 miles
Jerking motion an slipping when accelerating from stop. Also jerking will driving.

- Warren, OR, USA

problem #273

Jan 012018

Pathfinder

  • 100,000 miles
Since brand new transmission shudders on acceleration occasionally. Nissan is aware and has been made aware of problem and issue but will offer nothing more than discount on next purchase. Has been back to dealership many times over issue and transmission has been reprogrammed but problem continues. Makes for dangerous situation when entering highway

- Leesburg, VA, USA

problem #272

Nov 132017

Pathfinder

  • 2 miles
On 08/16/2016 I purchased a motor vehicle from star Nissan located at 5757 w. touhy ave., niles, il 60714 (2013 Nissan Pathfinder SUV VIN). On October of 2016 I was driving in the express way going 60mph and my vehicle suddenly stopped accelerating and came to a complete stop while I had other vehicle passing me by at 60+ mph. I had to pull to the side to avoid getting hit in the rear. The vehicle finally took off but not without jerking and rattling noises. I immediately came off the express way. I took the vehicle to star Nissan and they admitted my car on 10/22/2016. I was contacted by Nissan and was told that they replicated the problem and the cvt would need to be changed and everything should be fine. The changes were made and on 10/28/2016 I received the vehicle back. My vehicle has been back to the dealer on 11/12/2016, 11/16/2016, 04/22/2017, 07/12/2017 7/28/2017 with the same symptoms and the problem has never been rectified. On 07/01/2017 my vehicle was driven by a Nissan service technician for 237 miles in order to replicate the problem again. They were successful but now stated that the problem was a relay light. They gave me the vehicle back on 07/06/2017. My vehicle was admitted again on 07/25/2017 with the same problems. The technician had to drive my vehicle 344 miles to replicate the symptoms once again. However my vehicle was admitted until 08/17/2017. The Nissan Consumer Affairs office sent out an engineer who made recommendations. The recommendation was to remove brake light relay and replace brake switch. I was given the vehicle back and the problems has persist. On 11/13/2017 my car jerked and came to a stop in the middle of a busy intersection this has been a nightmare and I have almost been a part of an accident on several occasion due to this problem. I am now car-less because this vehicle is not safe to drive.

- Chicago, IL, USA

problem #271

Nov 012017

Pathfinder

  • 88,825 miles
Seal on transmission leak and can not get out of park

- Jacksonville, TX, USA

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