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2016 Nissan Pathfinder

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2016 Nissan Pathfinder do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 97.

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When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

65 reports with mileage · 40 unknown

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Engine. Review the 27 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Air Bags. Review the 18 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Electrical System. Review the 11 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

10 crash reports0 fire reports2 injury reports

What owners actually said

105 reports
Mileage unknown · Jan 12, 2023
Air Bags

The passenger airbag doesn’t activate at all. The OCS sensor is faulty. When someone sits in the front passenger seat, the airbag remains off. This is a known defect with Nissan Pathfinders. We were told ours will not be fixed as our VIN is not included in the recall. However, this exact defect is known and has been recalled in …

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The passenger airbag doesn’t activate at all. The OCS sensor is faulty. When someone sits in the front passenger seat, the airbag remains off. This is a known defect with Nissan Pathfinders. We were told ours will not be fixed as our VIN is not included in the recall. However, this exact defect is known and has been recalled in hundreds of thousands Nissan Pathfinders, including the 2016 model year. Not fixing this can result in death or dismemberment in the case of a collision in which the airbags should deploy and do not. After much correspondence with Nissan, they refuse to pay to fix this know defect because our specific VIN was not included. We are asking to include our VIN in this know defect recall.

NHTSA ODI #11501521

Mileage unknown · Dec 10, 2022
Structure

Hood latch was marked as repaired (cleaned and lubricated) in recall report but secondary latch still sticks and I have to manually push the lever out of position to get my hood to latch down properly. All the dealership did was look at it, grease it, and call it good. It is still caked with gunk and sticks.

NHTSA ODI #11496869

Mileage unknown · Oct 1, 2022
Engine

My front differential and transmission failed at the same time while I was driving on a major highway. I had to repair both components at a dealership costing me over $8000.

NHTSA ODI #11487419

Mileage unknown · Jul 23, 2022
Air BagsSeats

When I purchased this vehicle I quickly noticed a feature or standard that this vehicle has concerning passenger safety vs airbag ON/OFF There is a lamp beside the display area that indicates if the pass bags are on (lamp is off) or if they are off (lamp is on) If the passenger is under a certain amount the airbag turns itself o…

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When I purchased this vehicle I quickly noticed a feature or standard that this vehicle has concerning passenger safety vs airbag ON/OFF There is a lamp beside the display area that indicates if the pass bags are on (lamp is off) or if they are off (lamp is on) If the passenger is under a certain amount the airbag turns itself off...At least that was my observation for at least 4 months after purchase. This standard/feature isn't working anymore I guess? Because the lamp is always ON stating that the passenger airbags are OFF. I notified the dealership, they said they could not inspect the issue unless I paid for their time and then service (fix of the issue)

NHTSA ODI #11475467

Mileage unknown · Jun 29, 2022
Air Bags

The passenger side air bag light will light up thaymt it is disables when a passenger is occupying the seat. It will not go off to indicate that the airbag is turned on foe the seat occupant until I turn the car off and restart. May have to repeat a couple times or have passenger step out of car, sit back on seat and reconnect…

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The passenger side air bag light will light up thaymt it is disables when a passenger is occupying the seat. It will not go off to indicate that the airbag is turned on foe the seat occupant until I turn the car off and restart. May have to repeat a couple times or have passenger step out of car, sit back on seat and reconnect lap belt.

NHTSA ODI #11471510

Mileage unknown · Jun 20, 2022
Air BagsSeats

When you move front seats forward or back the airbag sensor under the seats breaks. The air bag off light is always lit up for passenger seat even when adult sits there, and the drivers airbag light is blinking on dashboard all the time. A week after buying vehicle I took it back to dealer and they said it was a recall and it wa…

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When you move front seats forward or back the airbag sensor under the seats breaks. The air bag off light is always lit up for passenger seat even when adult sits there, and the drivers airbag light is blinking on dashboard all the time. A week after buying vehicle I took it back to dealer and they said it was a recall and it was fixed. A week later it was back on I went back and they said nothing they can do it was already fixed. Nissan dealership told me same thing. It is not fixed and now I am paying car payments for a car I can't get an inspection sticker on, so I can't drive it. If it was a recall and they claim to have fixed it and the same problem happens again it should be fixed with an improved part so it don't happen again. The dealership also told me with those lights on there is a possibility of the airbags going off for no reason or they may not go off when in an accident. This is a serious problem and needs to be taken seriously but instead I am being told I need to pay for the recalled problem because they fixed it once already. Clearly they didn't fix it properly or at all but my vin number says it was done.

NHTSA ODI #11470018

Mileage unknown · May 10, 2022
Engine

I purchased this as a new used 2016 Pathfinder in October 2021. Within about 2500 miles in December of 2021, the radiator cooling fan assembly was making noise and had to be replaced. It is now May of 2022, about 3000 miles later, and the same thing has to be replaced. There were no other messages or symptoms other than the n…

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I purchased this as a new used 2016 Pathfinder in October 2021. Within about 2500 miles in December of 2021, the radiator cooling fan assembly was making noise and had to be replaced. It is now May of 2022, about 3000 miles later, and the same thing has to be replaced. There were no other messages or symptoms other than the noise the fan makes when the bearings are shot. It has not been inspected by anyone other than myself and my mechanic at the time the first fan assembly needed replacement. I am about to take the vehicle to a Nissan dealer to confirm what I already know. When it is replaced I will keep the old part for inspection.

NHTSA ODI #11464029

32,200 miles · Mar 18, 2022
Service Brakes, Hydraulic

The contact owns a 2016 Nissan Pathfinder. The contact stated while driving 5 MPH, the brake pedal was depressed and went to the floorboard. The contact stated that the failure had since been consistent whenever the brake pedal was depressed. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer howev…

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The contact owns a 2016 Nissan Pathfinder. The contact stated while driving 5 MPH, the brake pedal was depressed and went to the floorboard. The contact stated that the failure had since been consistent whenever the brake pedal was depressed. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer however, the mechanic was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 32,200.

NHTSA ODI #11457288

Mileage unknown · Jan 21, 2022
Unknown Or Other

The hood does not stay latched. Periodically it comes unlatched from its locked position or it will not lock down when being closed after an oil change. The latch is faulty and if it comes undone and it is windy I am afraid it will fly up and smash the windshield and or detach and kill someone! It has happened more than once. T…

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The hood does not stay latched. Periodically it comes unlatched from its locked position or it will not lock down when being closed after an oil change. The latch is faulty and if it comes undone and it is windy I am afraid it will fly up and smash the windshield and or detach and kill someone! It has happened more than once. This is the latest incident.

NHTSA ODI #11448298

Mileage unknown · Jan 16, 2022
Visibility/wiper

Sunroof spontaneously exploded. While driving at approximately 35 miles per hour on a smooth, relatively level, paved road, the sunroof spantaneously exploded. The elevation above sea level was less than 200ft, and the outside temperature was in the mid 30s. The sunroof was not hit by an object. The explosion sounded like a g…

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Sunroof spontaneously exploded. While driving at approximately 35 miles per hour on a smooth, relatively level, paved road, the sunroof spantaneously exploded. The elevation above sea level was less than 200ft, and the outside temperature was in the mid 30s. The sunroof was not hit by an object. The explosion sounded like a gunshot, and we truly believed that our car had been shot at. The incident occurred in good weather in day light conditions. Had this incident occurred on a highway, at night, or in adverse weather conditions, this event could have easily resulted in a serious accident. It took approximately 10 minutes for us to realized that the explosive sound had come from the roof of the car. Our insurance company, Allstate, covered the cost of a new sunroof minus a deductible. I have learned from online research that exploding sunroofs are not uncommon, and that NHTSA has been investigating them for several years. We trust our government to establish timely standards to ensure public safety. NHTSA needs to take timely action to stop this phenomenon. Inaction has the potential to cause public harm, and would be a failure of the DOT to do its job ensuring public safety.

NHTSA ODI #11447689

Official recalls

2

22V420000 · Latches/locks/linkages:hood:latch

Jun 13, 2022

Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2013-2016 Pathfinder vehicles. On certain Pathfinder vehicles, the secondary hood latch may malfunction and remain in the unlatched, unsecured, position when the hood is closed.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: An unsecured hood could unexpectedly open while driving, obstructing the driver's view, and increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will replace the bell crank assembly, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed March 26, 2025. Owners may contact Nissan's customer service at 1-800-867-7669. Nissan's number for this recall are R22A2 R22A3 and R24B7.

16V244000 · Air Bags:sensor:occupant Classification

Apr 26, 2016

Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Nissan Maxima, 2013-2016 Nissan Altima, NV200, LEAF, Sentra, and Pathfinder, 2014-2016 Nissan NV200 Taxi, Infiniti QX60, QX60 Hybrid, and Q50 Hybrid, 2014-2017 Nissan Rogue and Infiniti Q50, 2015-2016 Nissan Murano, Murano Hybrid, and Chevrolet City Express, 2014-2015 Nissan Pathfinder Hybrid, and 2013 Infiniti JX35 vehicles. In these vehicles, the front seat passenger Occupant Classification System (OCS) may incorrectly classify an adult passenger as a child or classify the seat as empty despite it being occupied. As a result, the passenger frontal air bag may be turned off and not deploy in the event of a crash.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: If the passenger frontal air bag does not deploy as intended in the event of a crash, the passenger is at an increased risk of injury.

Remedy: Nissan will notify their owners. Chevrolet City Express owners will be notified by General Motors. Dealers will reprogram the Air Bag Control Unit (ACU) and OCS Electronic Control Unit (ECU) in Altima, Maxima, Murano, Rogue, and Sentra vehicles, and replace the OCS ECU in LEAF, NV200, NV200 Taxi, Pathfinder, Infiniti Q50, JX35, and QX60 and Chevrolet City Express vehicles, free of charge. Interim notices were sent to owners on May 31, 2016. Owners will receive a second notice when remedy parts become available. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669, Infiniti customer service at 1-888-833-3216 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

1

PE21022 · Hood Latch/bell Crank Assembly

Opened Dec 9, 2021 · Closed Jul 8, 2022

Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Latches/locks/linkages:hood:latch

The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this preliminary evaluation to investigate consumer complaints alleging hood latch failures occurring on certain model year (MY) 2013-2016 Nissan Pathfinder vehicles. Complaints received indicated a sudden and unexpected opening of the hood while the vehicle was in motion, blocking the driver's visibility.During this investigation Nissan collected parts from the field to analyze for root cause of the alleged failures. On June 13, 2022, Nissan submitted a Defect Information Report (DIR) to NHTSA regarding a hood bell crank assembly defect in certain MY2013-2016 Nissan Pathfinder vehicles produced at the Smyrna, TN plant. According to Nissan's DIR, an accumulation of dust and dirt contamination on and around the bell crank lever pivot joint, which actuates the secondary hood latch, can create a condition that can cause the lever to remain in the open position after it has been disengaged. In this condition, the secondary hood latch may not hold the hood closed as designed while the vehicle is in motion obstructing the driver's forward view and increasing the risk of a crash.A remedy plan for all affected vehicles is currently under development. See recall action 22V-420 for further details. Nissan's action resolves the issues raised by this investigation, and therefore, this investigation is closed.The VOQs cited above can be found with ID numbers: 11456378, 11448298, 11436637, 11431131, 11427702, 11423321, 11406574, 11398825, 11389741, 11387952, 11375938, 11349105,11306735, 11302647, 11190468, 11166607.