2004 Nissan Pathfinder problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Service Brakes, Hydraulic:foundation Components:disc:rotor (6) · Power Train (6) · Air Bags (6)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Nissan Pathfinder model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
🛣️ Complaints by mileage
47 NHTSA complaints that reported an odometer reading.
Safety recalls (3)
Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module 2020-01-09 · campaign 20V008000 · 307,962 vehicles
Defect: Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2001-2003 Maxima, 2002-2006 Sentra, 2002-2004 Pathfinder, 2007-2011 Versa Sedan and Versa Hatchback, 2001-2004 Infiniti I30 and I35, 2002-2003 Inifiniti QX4, 2003-2008 Infiniti FX35 and FX45 and 2006-2010 M35 and M45 vehicles. The vehicles are equipped with non-desiccated, frontal passenger air bag inflators containing phase stabilized ammonium nitrate (PSAN) propellant that were used as interim remedy parts for previous Takata recalls. T
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflators with alternate desiccated inflators, free of charge. The recall began February 12, 2020. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 888-737-9511 or Infiniti customer service at 888-810-3715.
Air Bags 2015-05-15 · campaign 15V287000 · 1,090,569 vehicles
Defect: Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2001-2003 Nissan Maxima, 2002-2004 Pathfinder, 2002-2006 Sentra, 2002-2003 Infiniti QX4 and I35, 2003 FX35 and FX45, and 2001 I30 vehicles. Upon deployment of the passenger side frontal air bag, excessive internal pressure may cause the inflator to rupture.
Risk: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants potentially resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on June 15, 2015. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261. Note: On December 18, 2015 Nissan informed NHTSA of an amendment of this recall to remove 2004-2005 Infiniti FX35 and FX45 vehicles.
Suspension:front 2011-04-20 · campaign 11V244000 · 195,991 vehicles
Defect: NISSAN IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 1996-2004 PATHFINDER AND MODEL YEAR 1997-2003 INFINITI QX4 VEHICLES ORIGINALLY SOLD, OR CURRENTLY REGISTERED IN, CONNECTICUT, DELAWARE, IOWA, ILLINOIS, INDIANA, MASSACHUSETTS, MAINE, MARYLAND, MICHIGAN, MINNESOTA, MISSOURI, NEW HAMPSHIRE, NEW JERSEY, NEW YORK, OHIO, PENNSYLVANIA, RHODE ISLAND, VERMONT, WASHINGTON D.C., WEST VIRGINIA AND WISCONSIN. IN AREAS OF THE COUNTRY IN WHICH HEAVY CONCENTRATIONS OF ROAD SALT ARE USED, A MIXTURE OF SNOW/WATER AND SALT
Risk: THE STRUT HOUSING MAY CRACK AND PULL AWAY FROM THE INNER HOOD LEDGE ASSEMBLY. THIS MAY LEAD TO GRINDING NOISES, INCREASED STEERING EFFORT, AND POSSIBLY THE STEERING COLUMN TO BREAK, RESULTING IN THE LOSS OF STEERING CONTROL, WHICH COULD RESULT IN A CRASH.
Fix: NISSAN WILL INSPECT THE STRUT HOUSING AND REPAIR THE VEHICLES AS NECESSARY, FREE OF CHARGE. AN INTERIM NOTIFICATION LETTER WAS SENT OUT IN MAY 2011. THE SECOND NOTICE WAS MAILED ON JULY 25, 2011. OWNERS MAY CONTACT NISSAN AT 1-800-647-7261.
Service bulletins (56)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Structure:body 2026-04-13 · ITB09-063C · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
certification label and vin plate replacement service information because of collision damage or other vehicle repair, a replacement “certification label” or “vin plate/label” may be needed. hint: certification label = fmvss (federal motor vehicle safety standards) label. these items may be availabl
Structure:body 2026-04-13 · NTB09-131C · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
certification label and vin plate replacement service information because of collision damage or other vehicle repair, a replacement “certification label” or “vin plate/label” may be needed. hint: certification label = fmvss (federal motor vehicle safety standards) label. these items may be availabl
Structure:body 2026-04-13 · NTB09-131C · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
certification label and vin plate replacement service information because of collision damage or other vehicle repair, a replacement “certification label” or “vin plate/label” may be needed. hint: certification label = fmvss (federal motor vehicle safety standards) label. these items may be availabl
Electrical System 2024-05-21 · NTB13-107G · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
vehicle key not detected / authenticated, engine will not start this bulletin has been amended. see amendment history on the last page. please discard previous versions of this bulletin.
Visibility/Wiper 2024-04-30 · NTB17-019H · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
window glass warranty information this bulletin has been amended. see amendment history on the last page. please discard previous versions of this bulletin.
Visibility/Wiper 2024-04-30 · NTB13-028I · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
removing foreign material from the window glass this bulletin has been amended. see amendment history on the last page. please discard previous versions of this bulletin.
Showing the 6 most recent of 56 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2024-09-10 · Tires“on october 23 2023 i purchased from firestone where i have been a customer for some 30 years paying nearly $1000 for 4 tires. 1) on january 6, 2024 the first tire on the front driver"s side had picked up a nail geico road hadzard came and removed the tire. firestone said they could not repair the tire and replaced it with another suredrive new ti…”
2024-06-10 · Air Bags“i made appointments at 2 different nissan dealers and contacted nissan corporate about my airbag recall. dealers were neither able or willing to obtain parts walzer nissan, coon rapids mn and miller nissan, st cloud mn. ive received several notices about the recall but im told nissan is not obligated to fix the problem, just notify me…”
2023-08-29 · Tires:tread/Belt · 195,000 mi“the contact owns a 2004 nissan pathfinder equipped with bridgestone tires, tire line: dueler h/l alenza, tire size: 255/65/r16, dot number: (n/a). the contact stated while driving 65 mph, the vehicle was swaying from side to side. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the front driver's side tread belt had sh…”
2022-06-28 · Unknown Or Other“i do not have an actual incident to report, but just trying to find out how you can get all these letters and calls from 3rd party companies to stop! i have contacted my dealership and have entered my vin on the nhtsa.gov/recalls site and there are no active recalls on my vehicle. i get letters almost weekly and the last one is designed to look lik…”
2021-12-10 · Air Bags · 41,000 mi · 💥 crash“the contact owned 2004 nissan pathfinder. the contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, another vehicle crashed into the rear driver’s side of the vehicle. the driver’s side front and rear curtain air bags deployed and ruptured, projecting fragments, but was not struck by any fragments from the deployment. the contact sustained hea…”
2020-10-30 · Power Train · 218,718 mi“my shifter keeps getting locked 8n the park position. i have replaced the shifter solenoid but it did it again in a week..…”
2020-08-01 · Air Bags“i received a notification of recall, on 2014. i got to the dealer and the problem was not repaired. they tell me they will colling back when the part arrived to the center but they dont.…”
2019-01-24 · Vehicle Speed Control · 142,000 mi“driving at 25 to 50 mph the vehicle lurches forward rhythmically. causing near collisions with vehicles in front of it.…”
2018-08-28 · Fuel/Propulsion System · 130,000 mi“tl* the contact owns a 2004 nissan pathfinder. while adding fuel in the tank, the fuel would leak out before the tank was full. the contact stated that the failure occurred for the past two years every time the vehicle was fueled. the vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic for diagnostic testing. the manufacturer was notifie…”
2018-08-08 · Service Brakes · 35,000 mi“takata recall: i brought the vehicle new, and around the 4th year, i started to notice that the brake light would come on. the first few repairs the brakes pads changed, line, cylinder, and full brake replacement:, but the issue persisted over the years without any mechanic that could provide me with an explanation of this problem. my main reason …”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.