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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

Seats complaints

3 reports
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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 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

6,600 miles · Sep 28, 2016
SeatsCrashInjury

I WAS SITTING AT A RED LIGHT AND WAS REAR ENDED AND MY TWO FRONT SEATS COLLAPSED. IF I WOULD HAVE HAD ANYONE IN THE BACKSEATS THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN BADLY INJURED OR DIED. *TR...UPDATED 12/22/16 *BF..UPDATED 04/11/17 *BF UPDATED 09/07/2017*JS

NHTSA ODI #10910225

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.