Owners have filed 43 complaints with NHTSA about this car, most about the electrical, engine, and brakes. The 8 checks below target those problems, in the order you would do them at the car.
2020Tick items off on your phone at the car, or print it. Ticks stay on this device.
0/8 checked
2020 Nissan Pathfinder: inspection sheet
Before you go, or before you touch the car0/1
Engine off, key in hand0/3
Ask the seller not to warm the car up first0/2
At least 20 minutes, with some highway0/2
These checks are specific to this model year. For tires, body panels, fluids, and the other basics every used car needs, use the general inspection guide.
These years share the 2020's design and most of its parts, so their problems are the ones to look for on this car too.
Worth adding to your 2020 checks
Worth adding to your 2020 checks
EPA figures for each version of the 2020 Nissan Pathfinder. Use them to confirm you are looking at the version that was advertised, and as a yardstick on the test drive.
| Version | Drive | EPA rating |
|---|---|---|
| 3.5L 6-cyl | 4WD, FWD | 22–23 mpg |
Owners report these failures starting around the mileages below. A car inside one of these ranges deserves a closer look at that part, or records showing it was already fixed.
ABS and AEB warning lights
55,139–87,000 miles
CVT slipping and hesitation
60,000–80,000 miles
NHTSA complaints for the 2020 Nissan Pathfinder, grouped by the part owners named. Open a row to read what goes wrong.
Door locks stop responding to the key fob, usually at the driver or passenger door, so that door has to be locked by hand or with the key. The backup camera goes blank or cuts out at random, sometimes along with the rear parking sensors, and often comes back after a restart. Other reports describe the blower dying with no heat, air conditioning, or defrost, and water getting into a front headlight until the light fails. A broken liftgate button and loose trim also come up.
Misfires, knocking, and loss of power are the main pattern. Dealers in several cases find metal in the oil and blame timing chain wear, sometimes recommending a full engine replacement. Other reports describe oil levels dropping fast with no warning light before the engine failed while driving, and the engine shutting off and refusing to restart. Stalling in traffic is the main safety risk. Smaller complaints cover pinging and surging at steady throttle around 2k rpm, a failed oxygen sensor, and an antifreeze smell inside the cabin.
ABS, traction control, and forward collision warning lights come on together, sometimes with beeping. Repairs have included the brake switch, ABS control module, and automatic emergency braking sensor, and one owner says the problem came back after a repair costing over $4000. Reports also include the car braking hard by itself at low speed, a brake fluid leak at under 3K miles, and the engine still pushing the car under braking after a transmission software update, so stopping takes extra pedal force.
The CVT judders, slips, lurches, and sometimes cuts out, at speeds from a stop up to highway pace. Several reports describe the car failing to accelerate and then surging forward on its own near a stop, which forces hard braking. Dealers often find no fault codes and cannot reproduce the problem, so cars leave unrepaired. Reported mileages fall between 60k and 80,000. A transfer case and axle seal leak at 74000 miles is also reported, with a quoted repair near $4000.
Grinding and squealing from the front wheels persist even after repeated work. One owner has gone through three sets of brake pads and rotors, and another replaced both CV axles, all brakes, and serviced the wheel hubs without stopping the noise. No warning lights accompany the problem. Most reports here describe brake and wheel-end noise rather than a true suspension failure, and one filing is about a dealer sale rather than a defect.
Excerpts from complaints Pathfinder owners filed with NHTSA, as written. Listen for the same symptoms on your test drive.
We rented this vehicle from Budget for about two weeks. On two separate occasions the backup camera went blank and the rear parking sensors quit working. I stopped the vehicle and shifted from reverse to drive and back but the rear view camera and sensors did not come back on. After I shutdown and restarted the vehicle, they started working again. We turned the vehicle in on 1/3/2021 and mentioned the issue to the lot attendant.
Filed with NHTSA, January 2022
No defroster and no heat. Can't defrost or de-fog windows. Fan doesn't turn on failing to defrost windows. No heat, no air conditioning, no air movement. Powering off and on the pathfinder didn't solve it, turning on and off heat, defrost doesn't work. All fuses are OK.
Filed with NHTSA, November 2022
Engine pinging/knocking and engine hesitation / surging most obvious in second gear steady throttle around 2k rpm. Doesn't matter what gas is used. Engine hesitation and pinging/knocking is getting worse. NISSAN states its normal operation.
Filed with NHTSA, July 2022
I drove from Pine Bluff, AR to Memphis, TENN in pouring rain. There were many tractor trailers on the highway throwing water back on my vehicle. When I got into Memphis, my vehicle shut down and would not re-start for several hours. I believe this to be a safety issue because if I had driven a little farther and it suddenly shut down in traffic, this would have caused a terrible accident.
Filed with NHTSA, April 2023
On multiple occasions now, but not consistently, you go to start the vehicle and the lights turn on, radio comes on, seat moves into position, ac blows cold, everything fine, except the car doesn’t start. The brake is harder to push when this does occur, and most times a 2nd or 3rd try, it finally turns the car on. Went to have car checked, the battery, starter, and alternator checked 100% fine. One time it took nearly 30 minutes for it to start.
Filed with NHTSA, July 2023
1. The vehicle going less then 25 mph accelerates with out foot on the gas paddle. This problem has occurred multiple times on and off. 2. The Transfer case and axle seal started leaking at 74000 miles. Purchased the vehicle as a CPO dealer asking for $4000 to make repairs I only had the vehicle for 8 months. Are there recall to fix this issues?
Filed with NHTSA, April 2024
Complaints for this year next to the average for the other model years, area by area.
The 2020 ranks fifth for owner complaints among 7 Pathfinder years, well under the average of the others. Newer years have had less time to collect complaints, so compare like with like.
Redesigns and mid-cycle updates change what can go wrong.
The 2020 is the eighth model year of the Pathfinder's fourth generation (2013–2020).
It includes the 2017 update.
What changed for 2017
Cars shoppers compare with the Nissan Pathfinder, with their own 2020 checklists.
2020 owner complaints, side by side
