CD Article: 1996-2000 Nissan Pathfinder

[CD_Editor]

Used Vehicle Review:

The 1996 to 2000 Nissan Pathfinder has a strong reliability history, but there are a couple of things to look out for, says Chris Chase.  "The bushings..in the rear suspension are prone to wearing." "There's also an issue with cracking exhaust manifolds on the 3.3-litre engine," he says.    More...

[a4_tom]

This iteration is the best of all Pathfinders, especially with VQ35DE. Not as cruel or unrefined as original one nor as huge as current one.

[initial_D]

My brother had a 97 Pathy, and I drove many miles on it. It ran flawless and trouble free for 180,000Km. Regular maintenance was all it needed. Fuel consumption went up very significantly after it pass the 120K mark for some reason.  Which was the reason to trade it for an Element. If it had the All-mode 4WD system, that would almost make it an even better SUV! 

Looks best in Black! 

[Bullet Blue]

Good stuff!

The Pathy is one of my favourite SUV's out there if I was actually forced to choose one 

A friend also has a 97 with close to the 200K mark now I believe and it's still going strong. She loves it for winter driving.

[Marc_]

My 2001, has 100K Km's on it, runs great.  Best Truck I have ever owned.

And - the 250HP engine, although it dirnks gas, does perform quite well for a tuck of this weight/size.  We bought this truck used in 03 based on a consumer report reccomending it and it has lived up to all expectations. 

My ONLY complaint, is that we have two young kids, which means two car seats.  The anchor bolts for the car seats are in the MIDDLE of the back.  So the anchor straps seriously interfere with cargo space when packing for trips / strollers etc.  Engineers as Nissan who designed this must not have had kids!.

[Trainman]

Add to the list of online resources:

http://npora.ipbhost.com/  Nissan Pathfinder Off Road Association

http://www.nissantruckclub.com  Nissan Truck Club

[Trainman]

This iteration is the best of all Pathfinders, especially with VQ35DE. Not as cruel or unrefined as original one nor as huge as current one.

The review is specific to the 3.3 motor, check here for the 2001-2003 with the 3.5:  http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/jc/01-03pathfinder.htm

[Trainman]

My 2001, has 100K Km's on it, runs great.  Best Truck I have ever owned.

And - the 250HP engine, although it dirnks gas, does perform quite well for a tuck of this weight/size.  We bought this truck used in 03 based on a consumer report reccomending it and it has lived up to all expectations. 

My ONLY complaint, is that we have two young kids, which means two car seats.  The anchor bolts for the car seats are in the MIDDLE of the back.  So the anchor straps seriously interfere with cargo space when packing for trips / strollers etc.  Engineers as Nissan who designed this must not have had kids!.

Our kids are a bit older, so the tether straps are not in use anymore, just booster seats now   

I can get 25 mpg very consistently driving on the BC interior highways.  I use a light foot and cruise as much as possible.  I seem to be an anomaly on this though.   

Just love my truck