Used 2005 Nissan Pathfinder Consumer Reviews
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How to love your Pathfinder
pfluvr, 08/28/2013
2005 Nissan Pathfinder SE 4WD 4dr SUV (4.0L 6cyl 5A)
40 of 46 people found this review helpful
Step 1 - Have your transmission cooling lines disconnected from the radiator! There is an external auxiliary transmission cooler that does the job already. The only problem you may encounter is hard shifting in extreme cold. You can, if you want put another auxiliary cooler on the truck, but unless you're maxing the towing capacity every day you will not need it. The stock cooler is very large. Step 2 - You've basically now cured the only problem you will ever encounter, except for some little maintenancy things. Enjoy!
Transmission / Radiator issue must be addressed
john534, 08/04/2011
2005 Nissan Pathfinder SE Rwd 4dr SUV (4.0L 6cyl 5A)
8 of 8 people found this review helpful
Very unreliable and very poor powertrain and electronic system design. Started experiencing shudder at 89K miles when the automatic transmission moved between 1st and 2nd gear. Symptom did not occur over two day period until driving on third day where the issue worsened rapidly until transmission became inoperable above 10 mph. I investigated the issue and learned that this is a well known issue with the Pathfinder where the radiator fluid fails into the transmission, causing both the radiator and transmission to fail... great design! My transmission and radiator are shot at 89,000 miles. Looking at $6000 repair bill that I will not pay.
Don't be Fooled by the Appearance. Don't Buy Nissan!!!!!!!
byebyenissan, 04/26/2012
2005 Nissan Pathfinder LE 4WD 4dr SUV (4.0L 6cyl 5A)
8 of 8 people found this review helpful
We had the same leaking radiator problem like many people with our 2005 Nissan Pathfinder. The vehicle was 2000 km over the extended warranty limit. We would bring the vehicle to Nissan dealership if we were made aware of the defect sooner. We asked Nissan for assistance. After many phone calls, emails, time spent collect past maintenance record requested by Nissan Canada and months of waiting, we finally got a reply. Below is my response to their reply. "Thank you [Nissan Customer Service rep] for passing the news that Nissan would not do anything for our loss and their defective automobile, and for wasting our time. I can assure you we will spread our words about the quality of Nissan vehicle, so less people will experience what we have experienced. I am happy to report that after this incident we have traded in our Nissan for a Toyota which we have been very happy with, and my dad has sold his Nissan for a Lexus. Even though the resale Nissan worths less than other vehicle of similar type and age, it's wonderful to got rid of our headache and future headaches. I will look forward to the day Nissan disappear from this world. Best of luck to all of you working for Nissan." We traded in the Nissan after replaced the radiator. Transmission was still working at the time, but we didn't want to take a chance of keeping a time bomb. The problem is well known among dealships of other car makers, so we got only $8000 for the trade in, but this is better than having to pay $5000 later on repairs. We had so many problems with this vehicle since we purchased it new from a dealership - noises, signal problem, gauge problem, etc. - and spent a lot of money fixing them including getting scammed by dealership (asked to pay for an item under warranty). What we experienced with Nissan is bad vehicle, bad service and ignorance. This is our one time experience with Nissan. Lesson learnt.
Coolant fluid leaking into transmission!
Faith Q, 04/20/2016
2005 Nissan Pathfinder LE 4WD 4dr SUV (4.0L 6cyl 5A)
22 of 25 people found this review helpful
It would have been really nice to have gotten a heads up on a defective part in the radiator that will eventually kill your transmission and your radiator. We bought our Pathfinder brand new in 2005. We have never had it serviced anywhere other than the dealership. My theory was that it would be better to have our Nissan maintained at the dealership so we wouldn't have any issues with things coming up that other mechanics may not know about, well that backfired! We never received a letter that some have stated that they received telling them about the potential destruction of their vehicles transmission and radiator do to the defective part. My Pathfinder is now sitting in our driveway while we try to figure out what to do..... This is frustrating to say the least. We have always maintained this vehicle per the dealership and the only thing we were told was it wasn't a problem or it would have been recalled!!!
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Coolant leaking into transmission fluid
clausl, 09/06/2012
2005 Nissan Pathfinder LE Rwd 4dr SUV (4.0L 6cyl 5A)
16 of 18 people found this review helpful
This is a known issue with Nissan 2005 and 2006 vehicles. (Currently the subject of a class action lawsuit.) Coolant leaking into Transmission destroys transmission, computer controlling transmission and radiator. Average cost for fix is ~$7,500 warranty extension offered by Nissan doesn't cover many drivers as the issue seems to often extend beyond the extended warranty of 8yrs / 130,000km. Some vehicles are not covered despite being within these two parameters. Nissan refuses to say why some vehicles of that year/type are excluded.
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