2016 Nissan PATHFINDER - Ratings, Complaints and Recalls

The 2016 Nissan Pathfinder SUV AWD has achieved an impressive overall safety rating of 5, making it a top choice for safety-conscious consumers. The vehicle performed well across various crash test scenarios, including front and side crashes, with ratings ranging from 4 to 5. Additionally, it received top scores in side barrier and pole crash tests, indicating excellent protection for occupants in the event of a side impact. Despite not having forward collision warning or lane departure warning systems, the Pathfinder comes equipped with standard electronic stability control to help prevent accidents caused by skidding or loss of control.

On the downside, the vehicle has received a notable number of complaints, totaling 91, which should be taken into consideration by potential buyers. Furthermore, there have been 2 recalls issued for the 2016 Pathfinder, suggesting that there may be potential safety issues that need to be addressed by the manufacturer. Overall, while the Nissan Pathfinder boasts excellent safety ratings and key safety features such as stability control, buyers should stay informed about the reported complaints and recalls to make an informed decision.

Top stats at a glance

Complaint Count

91

Recall Count

2

Investigation Count

1

Safety Rating

5/5

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Safety Features

2016 Nissan Pathfinder SUV AWD Safety Features

Here are the safety features that come as standard on the 2016 Nissan Pathfinder SUV AWD

Electronic Stability Control (ESC)

ESC is an advanced safety feature in vehicles designed to help drivers maintain control during challenging driving conditions. By continuously monitoring various factors such as steering angle, vehicle speed, and individual wheel speeds, ESC can detect and reduce the risk of skidding or loss of control. It achieves this by automatically applying brakes to specific wheels to stabilize the vehicle.

Standard
Forward Collision Warning (FCW)

Forward Collision Warning (FCW) is a safety feature in vehicles that helps prevent frontal collisions by alerting the driver of an imminent collision with a vehicle or obstacle ahead. Using sensors such as radar or cameras, FCW monitors the distance and speed of vehicles in front, and if it detects a potential collision, it provides visual and/or auditory warnings to prompt the driver to take evasive action.

No
Lane Departure Warning (LDW)

Lane Departure Warning (LDW) is a safety feature in vehicles that alerts drivers when their vehicle unintentionally drifts out of its lane without signaling. Utilizing cameras or sensors to monitor lane markings on the road, LDW detects when the vehicle crosses these lines and triggers visual, auditory, or haptic alerts to notify the driver of potential lane departure.

No

2016 Nissan Pathfinder SUV AWD Safety Ratings

Here we have the crash and rollover ratings for the 2016 Nissan Pathfinder SUV AWD Where possible we've included the ratings for the oldest and latest models of this car so you can compare how the safety ratings have changed over time.

Frontal Crash Ratings

Combines Driver and Passenger star ratings into a single frontal rating. The frontal barrier test simulates a head-on collision between two similar vehicles, each moving at 35 mph.

Test 2005 Score 2016 Score 2024 Score
Overall Front Crash Rating Not Rated 4 4
Front Crash Driver Side Rating 4 4 4
Front Crash Passenger Side Rating 4 5 4

Side Crash Ratings

Combines Side Barrier and Side Pole Star Ratings into a single side rating.

Test 2005 Score 2016 Score 2024 Score
Overall Side Crash Rating Not Rated 5 5
Side Crash Drivers Side Rating 5 5 5
Side Crash Passenger Side Rating 5 5 5
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Front Not Rated 5 5
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Rear Not Rated 5 5
Overall Side Barrier Rating Not Rated 5 5

Rollover Ratings

The Rollover Resistance test measures the risk of rollover in a single-vehicle, loss-of-control scenario.

Test 2005 Score 2016 Score 2024 Score
Rollover Rating 3 4 4
Rollover Possibility % 0% 0% 0%
Dynamic Tip Result No Tip No Tip No Tip
Side Pole Crash Rating Not Rated 5 5

Complaints for the 2016 Nissan PATHFINDER

This chart show the number of complaints for each car component. A Higher number of complaints could indicate that this car might have a common fault. Something to look out for when purchasing one.

Component Complaints

Choose a component to see what complaints people have made about them.

Complaint:
"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."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2024-05-08

Complaint:
"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."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2022-01-12

Complaint:
"fan bearings in the twin fan shroud have failed and are creating a loud noise and have been known to lead to engine overheating and potential engine trouble. the nhtsa and nissan have put out a tsb (ntb17-100) in oct 2017. although my vehicle is past warranty searching the web it appears this has been a very big problem for nissan pathfinders. because the complete fan shroud (2 fans-radiator and cooling fans) along with a computer module are part of the final assembly the cost to repair is significant ($800). a fan replacement alone would be much less expensive but nissan only provides a full assembly vs component fix."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2022-05-02

Complaint:
"2016 nissan pathfinder, started making loud clanking noises and vibrating in the front of the vehicle when the air conditioning was on (staionary and in motion). the cooling fan needed to be replaced with only 33k on the odo. really suprised that is was so expensive and not covered under warranty - 6 months over 3 years."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2020-03-02

Complaint:
"entry 02/23/2020: 2016 nissan pathfinder with about just 36,200 miles have engine cooling fan problems - loud clacking noise and engine temperature goes up overheating the engine and shaking/vibrating steering wheel and brake pedal. it happens both when driving and running engine in park. the problem occurs more often when heater is turned on."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2020-01-02

Complaint:
"don't even have the car a year! loud noise under hood like fan bang. constant issue on other pathfinders as well. had to pay $1100 for coolant fan replacement that was overheating engine! should receive some type of reimbursement as this is an ongoing issue with these vehicles! hazard as car can catch on fire from overheating!"
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2021-07-01

Complaint:
"electric cooling fan bearings bad (85,000 miles). research indicates this is a common problem the dealers are aware of, however have not issued a recall, extended warranty, or other customer assistance"
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2020-10-01

Complaint:
"the drivers side cooling fan bearing is bad and now i have to replace the fan which is $1,000 worth of work and i only have 34,000 miles on my vehicle. every mechanic and auto parts person said this should not have to be replaced this early and with the mileage i have on my vehicle"
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2020-08-01

Complaint:
"heater/ac cooling fan crapped out at 45k. bearings/bushings causing loud, crunching noises when heat or ac is on. the same thing happened to me on my 2013 pathfinder."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2020-07-12

Complaint:
"cooling fan failure. widespread reports of cooling fan bearings failing from 30-60 thousand miles. it vibrates and can damage the radiator causing a catastrophic failure. if you look in forums this is extremely common. i have this issue as well and it comes on suddenly."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2020-07-08

Recalls for the 2016 Nissan PATHFINDER

Component Recalls

Choose a component to see what recalls people have made about them.

Recall:
"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:
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.

Component(s) Involved: AIR BAGS > SENSOR > OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION
Date of incident: 2016-04-26

NISSAN Overall Complaint Ranking

This table shows the ranking of car manufacturers when it comes to most complaints and recalls. The manufacturer with the most complaints is at the top. However this doesn't necassarily mean they should be avoided. Some manufacturers might just have more popular or affordable cars which a lot of people have bought. Which means there's more scope for a complaint to be made. Use the ranking table below as a part your wider research into buying a car.

NISSAN ranks 5 out of 44 in the complaints ranking table.

Manufacturer Complaint Count Recall Count Ranking
FORD 208,358 3,259 1
CHEVROLET 111,306 2,082 2
TOYOTA 81,019 1,852 3
HONDA 61,937 1,268 4
NISSAN 56,226 930 5
DODGE 45,756 827 6
HYUNDAI 44,150 649 7
GMC 34,441 1,410 8
KIA 29,832 501 9
CHRYSLER 27,698 254 10
TESLA 26,230 730 11
BMW 24,890 1,877 12
VOLKSWAGEN 23,125 829 13
MERCEDES-BENZ 19,066 2,925 14
SUBARU 18,513 703 15
MAZDA 10,599 364 16
PONTIAC 10,430 138 17
CADILLAC 9,434 444 18
AUDI 7,865 1,093 19
BUICK 7,851 279 20
SATURN 7,672 84 21
MERCURY 7,374 135 22
LEXUS 6,373 408 23
LINCOLN 5,897 423 24
ACURA 5,722 382 25
MINI 5,585 366 26
INFINITI 4,000 187 27
MITSUBISHI 3,912 397 28
VOLVO 3,875 727 29
PORSCHE 2,646 1,231 30
SUZUKI 2,272 123 31
FIAT 2,205 80 32
SAAB 1,536 76 33
JAGUAR 1,195 198 34
SMART 528 17 35
GENESIS 436 42 36
ISUZU 249 37 37
ALFA ROMEO 161 37 38
MASERATI 76 46 39
BENTLEY 46 159 40
POLESTAR 42 2 41
LUCID 14 6 42
CODA 4 2 43
MAYBACH 0 0 44

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