2018 Nissan Pathfinder Review

Name: 2018 Nissan Pathfinder Review
Brand: Nissan
Rating: 4.0 (75 reviews)

Price Range: $10,987 - $25,998

Nissan Pathfinder Platinum 4dr SUV Exterior Shown

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$18,598 avg. price

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Nissan Pathfinder model years

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Edmunds' Expert Review

by Dan Frio^{Correspondent
Dan spent many years covering the go-fast, look-good, get-loud corners of the automotive universe. First, he served as editor of enthusiast magazines AutoSound and Honda Tuning, then as executive editor at SEMA News, the publishing arm of the trade group that produces the annual SEMA Show (yes, that show). As a contributor to Edmunds, he now likes to keep the volume low and the speed limit legal, providing expert car-shopping advice to drivers looking for the perfect match.}

Pros

V6 engine delivers strong acceleration with decent fuel economy
Third-row seat is easy to access
Offers robust towing capacity
Automatic emergency braking is standard on every trim level

Cons

Cargo capacity and small-item storage is below average
Third-row space is less roomy than in some rivals
Top trim's ride quality may be too firm for some drivers

What's new

Automatic emergency braking now comes standard on all trim levels
A rear-seat reminder system
Additional USB charging ports
Midnight Edition appearance package
Adaptive cruise control system

Versatile, roomy and even somewhat rugged, the 2018 Nissan Pathfinder checks several boxes for shoppers looking for a three-row crossover SUV. It's got a classy, upscale interior and a V6 engine with plenty of power for towing. The Pathfinder strikes an excellent balance of quality and utility.

Continue reading Edmunds Expert Rating below

For sale near Granada Hills, CA

52 listings

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2018 Nissan Pathfinder
Platinum 4dr SUV
$14,499
fair price
$508 below market
- 122,416 miles
- No accidents, 1 owner, personal use only
- 6cyl automatic
- Driveway (2,138 mi away)
- Home delivery*
- AWD/4WD
- Bluetooth
- Navigation
- Leather Seats
- Sunroof/Moonroof
Close
Located in Wexford, PA
CarFax 1-Owner,Rare Find,3rd Row Seat,Back-Up Camera,Blind Spot Monitor,Bluetooth,Brake Assist,Hands-Free Liftgate,Heated Seats,Heated Steering Wheel,...
AutoCheck Vehicle History Summary
Accident Free Vehicle: Yes
Personal Use Only: Yes
History Provider: AutoCheck
Title Details: Clean Title
Salvage Vehicle: No
Frame Damage: No
Theft History: No
Lemon Status: No
Free History Report: No
Features and Specs:
21 Combined MPG (19 City/26 Highway)
Listing Information:
VIN: 5N1DR2MM8JC609462
Stock: H609462V
Certified Pre-Owned: No
2018 Nissan Pathfinder
S 4dr SUV
$13,900
good price
$1,714 below market
- 70,012 miles
- No accidents, 3 owners, personal use
- 6cyl automatic
- Monza Car (9 mi away)
- Back-up camera
- Bluetooth
- Third-row seating
- Tire Pressure Warnin...
- USB Inputs
Close
Located in Sherman Oaks, CA
AutoCheck Vehicle History Summary
Accident Free Vehicle: Yes
Personal Use Only: Yes
History Provider: AutoCheck
Title Details: Clean Title
Salvage Vehicle: No
Frame Damage: No
Theft History: No
Lemon Status: No
Free History Report: No
Features and Specs:
23 Combined MPG (20 City/27 Highway)
Listing Information:
VIN: 5N1DR2MNXJC610900
Stock: 610900
Certified Pre-Owned: No

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After some substantial upgrades in 2017 — among them, new engine technology for more power, fortified suspension and steering, and increased towing capacity — the Pathfinder carries into 2018 with only a few changes. One of them is noteworthy, however: The automatic emergency braking safety feature, previously available only on upper trims, joins the base model's standard equipment.

There's also a new Rear Door Alert, intended to remind the driver of people, pets or objects that might still be present when the driver exits the car. It works by registering whether the door was opened before a trip but not reopened at the end of that trip or ignition cycle. It's a nifty feature that proves its worth with just one use, and it comes standard on all Pathfinders.

The Pathfinder also offers one of the sharpest infotainment interfaces around. The 8-inch touchscreen looks great and is supplemented by an intuitive dial-and-button controller (although its vertical location on the center stack makes less sense than down on the center console near the shifter as with many rival systems). On the downside, the Pathfinder offers relatively compact cargo capacity and utility compared to others.

None of this detracts from the Pathfinder overall, though. It elevates the humble family SUV to something slightly less than luxury, but more upscale than utilitarian. It's a happy middle ground, backed up by some real capability, that makes it worth a look for anyone considering a three-row crossover.

Edmunds' Expert Rating

Driving

The Pathfinder's suspension and steering were sharpened up for the 2017 model year, making the SUV more controlled in turns and more stable over a bit of rolling, undulating road. Ride quality suffers a bit as a result, however, especially in the Platinum trim.

Comfort

The Pathfinder is quiet, smooth and well-appointed. Comfort is one of its best assets, with impressively adjustable seats and generous second-row room. Ride comfort suffers a bit with recent suspension upgrades, but it's most obvious in the top-trim Platinum with its large 20-inch wheels.

Seat comfort

The front seats offer a wide range of adjustment, and both are heated and ventilated in Platinum trim. The generously sized second-row seats slide, recline, and split and fold in a 60/40 configuration. Third-row space is merely adequate for adults, however.

Ride comfort

The Pathfinder has a controlled ride that is only sometimes punctuated with harsh impacts from roadway seams or potholes. This is more pronounced with the 20-inch wheels standard on Platinum models or optional on SL trims. We recommend avoiding them.

Noise & vibration

The Pathfinder is an exceptionally quiet SUV, whether accelerating hard or cruising at steady highway speeds. Wind and road noise levels are also low.

Interior

Appealing design, user-friendly controls and tech, and materials that match, or beat, those in the competition help set the Pathfinder interior apart from the rest. Textures and touches, while not exactly luxury, look and feel suitably classy.

Ease of use

The infotainment system is intuitive and easily navigated, thanks to large, well-labeled buttons, a chunky control knob and an excellent 8-inch widescreen display. The climate control and other systems are similarly well-designed.

Getting in/getting out

Exceptionally large doors and convenient seat height make getting in and out a breeze. A clever sliding and folding second row affords good access to the third row, even with a child's car seat in place.

Roominess

You can't tell from the outside, but there's a surprising amount of room inside the Pathfinder. The rather sleek SUV shape offers nearly the space of a boxy minivan. There's plenty of head- and legroom and shoulder room for first- and second-row passengers.

Visibility

With so many headrests and pillars to peer around, it's a good thing parking sensors and a rearview camera come standard. The top-down, 360-degree parking camera system on the upper trim levels is useful and worth getting.

Quality

Among other things, the Pathfinder's SL and higher trim levels come with leather upholstery, which raises the perceived quality. In a test Pathfinder, we found tight panel gaps, solid buttons and knobs, and blemish-free paint. It rates as well as some competitors and better than several others.

Utility

Despite its roominess, the Pathfinder trails some rivals for overall utility. The front center console lacks useful storage nooks and spaces found in other crossovers, and overall cargo capacity is only average. But the Pathfinder does boast one of the higher tow ratings (6,000 pounds) in its class.

Technology

The Pathfinder's 8-inch touchscreen ranks high among rivals, backed with crisp graphics and fast response times. A good amount of useful tech (parking sensors, optional navigation) starts at the SV trim level. Automatic emergency braking is a welcome standard feature at the base level.

Compare 2018 Nissan Pathfinder trim levels

Helpful trims summary and side-by-side comparison chart

2018 Nissan Pathfinder models

The seven-passenger 2018 Nissan Pathfinder is offered in four main trim levels: S, SV, SL and Platinum.

The base S comes with a range of essential features and nice surprises, starting with a 3.5-liter V6 engine (284 horsepower, 259 pound-feet of torque) paired with a continuously variable automatic transmission. Front-wheel drive comes standard, but a four-wheel-drive system is optional and includes hill descent control and a special four-wheel-drive locking function for extra traction.

Highlights of the S trim's standard features include 18-inch alloy wheels, roof rails, tri-zone automatic climate control, a rearview camera, keyless ignition and entry, a 60/40-split folding second-row seat (which also slides and reclines), Bluetooth, an 8-inch touchscreen interface, and a six-speaker sound system with HD and satellite radio, a CD player, dual USB media inputs and two additional charge-only USB ports for rear passengers. Automatic emergency braking also comes standard.

The SV adds helpful features including automatic headlights, foglights, rear parking sensors, a power-adjustable driver seat, a leather-wrapped steering wheel and an auto-dimming rearview mirror. An optional All Weather package offers heated front seats, along with heated side mirrors and steering wheel. A navigation system, driver safety aids (including blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert and adaptive cruise control), Nissan telematics services and a trailer hitch receiver are available with the optional Tech package.

Moving up to the SL, our recommended trim, adds the features from the SV's All Weather and Tech packages, as well as leather upholstery, a power liftgate, a top-down 360-degree parking camera system, a power-adjustable passenger seat, heated second-row seats and upgraded interior trim.

The optional SL Premium package adds 20-inch wheels, a panoramic sunroof, a 13-speaker Bose audio system and a trailer hitch receiver. You can also order the SL with the Midnight Edition package, which adds blacked-out 20-inch wheels, side mirrors, roof rails and other cosmetic elements.

Finally, the Platinum bundles all the previously mentioned options with 20-inch wheels, LED headlights, ventilated front seats, a power-adjustable steering wheel and wood interior trim. A rear seat entertainment system with dual 8-inch headrest displays is optional for the Platinum only.

Cost to Drive^{Cost to drive estimates for the 2018 Nissan Pathfinder S 4dr SUV (3.5L 6cyl CVT) and comparison vehicles are based on 15,000 miles per year (with a mix of 55% city and 45% highway driving) and energy estimates of $4.84 per gallon for regular unleaded in California.}

Monthly estimates based on costs in California

$261/mo

$321/mo

Avg. Large SUV

Calculate my fuel costs

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Reliability Ratings by RepairPal

3.5/5Above Average

#18 out of 32 among Midsize SUVs

RepairPal Reliability Ratings are based on the actual cost, frequency, and severity of unscheduled repairs and maintenance on make/model data for select 2008-2022 vehicles. The reliability of a specific vehicle may vary depending on its maintenance and driving history, model year, trim, and features.

Cost

^{The average total annual cost for unscheduled repairs and maintenance across all model years of the Nissan Pathfinder from 2008-2022.}

$517/yr

vs. $485/yr
for Average Midsize SUV

Frequency

^{The average number of times this model is brought into the shop for unscheduled repairs and maintenance in a single year. RepairPal calculates this metric by tracking millions of unique vehicles over multiple years to determine an average number of visits per year (omitting small routine visits, e.g., oil changes).}

1.18x/yr

vs. 1.18x/yr
for Average Midsize SUV

Severity

^{The probability that a repair will be a major issue, meaning the repair costs 3x the average annual repair cost for all models. This threshold will be higher for vehicles that have higher labor rates and parts costs (such as a premium brand).}

14%

vs. 13.5%
for Average Midsize SUV

powered by RepairPal ^{Based on RepairPal reliability data as of 8/23/2023. Ratings are provided by RepairPal and Edmunds is not responsible for their accuracy.}

Nissan Pathfinder Reviews

Owner Reviews

4.0

75 reviews

5(57%)

4(15%)

3(8%)

2(12%)

1(8%)

Write a vehicle review See all 75 reviews

Most Helpful Owner Reviews

Diamond in the rough

C B, 10/26/2018

2018 Nissan Pathfinder SV 4dr SUV 4WD (3.5L 6cyl CVT)

After spending over a year researching midsize/crossover suvs my husband and I believed we had narrowed it down to one vehicle and went out for some test drives. We decided while out to try some of the other makes and models in the area just to get a feel for the differences read about in the various rating and review sites such as this one. When we pulled into the Nissan lot I realized … I knew very little about the Pathfinder, having not made it in the top reviewed crossovers over the past couple years I must have glossed over it in all our research. Or found the reviews underwhelming. We were pleasantly surprised by the test drive, we were blown away by the ease of use of the second row, third row access is achievable without feeling like a sardine! The towing capacity of 6000 Ibs is certified towing capacity and it's an easy and affordable package to add to any model, unlike some competitors. After re-reviewing the reviews we realized that the only two reasons for the Pathfinder not being in the top listings were styling and the CVT transmission. It does take a couple drives to get used to a CVT but this vehicle has power, real power and the CVT is smooth and clearly one of the best out there. The styling is not flashy or overly rugged but it's a nice looking car inside and out. Trust me, go to a dealership and stand next to it and get inside. The plastics are smooth and feel rather luxurious in comparison to the competitors plastics. The vehicle is much larger and the front end has been given a more squared off look. Do I affectionately call it my family wagon? Yes because it's a suv that can handle weather, rough roads and still haul my two boys and my two nephews with all their car seats and booster seats included. I can actually walk into the third row to latch buckles and seat belts, step comfortably out again, roll the second row forward with car seats and boosters and get the other children in and adjusting the leg room for each row quickly. I have done this same routine in the 2017 honda pilot that my sister in law owns and it does not go smoothly. It's much roomier in each row than reviews state and so simple to adjust for leg room. We bought during their year end sale and went with the SV with the weather package and tech package for towing and got the headrails as we are more than aware that midsize suvs with 3rd row up have little space for stuff (that's when full size suvs or minivans may better suit you). We are so happy with our purchase and plan to drive this for years to come. Our boys will grow up with this car and we haven't regretted our decision once. I really believe more people should give the Pathfinder a look. It may surprise you.

Great features; great price; very nice ride!

Graydon, 02/25/2017

2017 Nissan Pathfinder SL 4dr SUV 4WD (3.5L 6cyl CVT)

We were looking for a three row SUV that has good gas mileage, towing capacity, and value. The final two that I considered were the Pathfinder SL with the Tech package and the Toyota Highlander XLE trim. These have similar MSRPs to they should be comparable. The Toyota puts their advanced safety features (lane departure, collision mitigation, etc) on all trim levels. Another good thing …

Nissan Pathfinder Plat vs. Honda Pilot Touring

Mark Howell, 06/21/2017

2017 Nissan Pathfinder Platinum 4dr SUV (3.5L 6cyl CVT)

3-months ago I bought my wife a 2017 Honda Pilot Touring AWD and today offloaded it to the local Nissan dealership for a far superior 2017 Nissan Pathfinder Platinum AWD midnight edition with family entertainment. Why you might ask? Because the technology in the Honda Pilot is far inferior than that of the NPF. Why would you put a rear seat entertainment system in a vehicle if you can't …

3.5L V6 beating 1.8/2.0/2.5 L V4s

Akshaya Bhatt, 01/26/2017

2017 Nissan Pathfinder SV 4dr SUV (3.5L 6cyl CVT)

Way great mileage for 3.5L V6 (combined 25 mpg.WOW!), which is giving competition to V4 engines. Ride is really awesome, with better control. You may not even feel that you are moving at 65/70 MPH speed. It will feel very smooth, quite ride.

We have a limited number of reviews for the 2018 Nissan Pathfinder, so we've included reviews for other years of the Pathfinder since its last redesign.

See all 75 reviews of the Nissan Pathfinder

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2018 Pathfinder Highlights

Trim:

Base MSRP Excludes Destination Fee	$31,040
Engine Type	Gas
Combined MPG	23 MPG
Cost to Drive	$261/month
Seating	7 seats
Cargo Capacity All Seats In Place	16.0 cu.ft.
Drivetrain	front wheel drive
Warranty	3 years / 36,000 miles

See all features & specs

Safety

Our experts like the Pathfinder models:

Automatic Emergency Braking: Front radar monitors proximity to the vehicle ahead. In an imminent collision, the Pathfinder can apply brakes to avoid/mitigate impact.
Blind-Spot Monitoring: Helps compensate for reduced side and rear visibility caused by the Pathfinder's stylish exterior. Standard on SL and Platinum.
Around-View Monitor: Four cameras display a 360-degree image of the car. Selectable curbside view works great for parking. Standard on SL and Platinum.

NHTSA Overall Rating

The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration offers independent analysis.

Frontal Barrier Crash Rating
Overall4 / 5
Driver4 / 5
Passenger5 / 5
Side Crash Rating
Overall5 / 5
Side Barrier Rating
Overall5 / 5
Driver5 / 5
Passenger5 / 5
Combined Side Barrier & Pole Ratings
Front Seat5 / 5
Back Seat5 / 5
Rollover
Rollover4 / 5
Dynamic Test ResultNo Tip
Risk Of Rollover17.4%

IIHS Rating

The Insurance Institute of Highway Safety uses extensive crash tests to determine car safety.

Small Overlap Front Driver-Side Test
Good
Small Overlap Front Passenger-Side Test
Acceptable
Moderate Overlap Front Test – Original
Good
Moderate Overlap Front Test – Updated
Not Tested
Side Impact Test – Original
Good
Side Impact Test – Updated
Not Tested
Roof Strength Test
Good
Rear Crash Protection / Head Restraint
Good

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