2007 Nissan Pathfinder Problems: Transmission / driveline (558 Complaints)

The most-reported problem on the 2007 Nissan Pathfinder is Transmission / driveline (41% of 558 owner reports). There are 2 safety recalls. Check the VIN and inspect Transmission / driveline — this is the NHTSA file, not a score.

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-09-07 558 complaints · 2 recalls

What problems show up on the 2007 Nissan Pathfinder?

231 of 558 filings named Transmission / driveline (41% of the file). That is what owners wrote, not a shop diagnosis of the vehicle in the driveway.

Second is Engine (124 reports).

There are 2 official safety recalls on this year. They were filed about Airbags and Suspension. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov — a campaign on this page can still be open on a specific truck.

The 2006 has 832 reports on file; this year has 558. A smaller lifetime total is not a clean bill of health. If you need a fairer comparison, use the equal-time view.

What to check before you buy a 2007 Nissan Pathfinder

A useful visit to this page takes five minutes. YearTell does not score years and cannot see the vehicle in front of you.

  1. Look up the VIN for open recalls at nhtsa.gov. This year has 2 campaigns on file below.
  2. Transmission / driveline. Have a shop drive it and check the transmission: hard or delayed shifts, burnt-smelling fluid, and 4WD engagement if equipped.
  3. Engine. Have a shop check for oil consumption, coolant leaks, rough idle and unusual engine noise.
  4. Fuel system. Check for fuel smell, leaks and whether it starts and idles cleanly.
  5. Skim a few owner reports below for Transmission / driveline. Look for the same symptom repeating.
  6. Take that list to a mechanic. Do not turn the complaint total into a score.

What owners reported

System named most often: Transmission / driveline 231 complaints · 41.4% of the file
Crashes, fires, injuries and deaths in those filings:
  • Crashes 11
  • Fires 2
  • Injuries 5
  • Deaths 0
All Nissan Pathfinder years →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-09-07 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Which systems owners named

Share of owner complaints filed against each vehicle system. These shares are not adjusted for how many vehicles were sold.

Which systems owners named Transmission / driveline (POWER TRAIN) appears in 231 of 558 owner complaints (41.4%) in this vehicle snapshot. Transmission / driveline (POWER TRAIN): 231 complaints, 41.4% of reports Transmission / driveline (POWER TRAIN) 2 crash reports 231 · 41.4% Engine (ENGINE): 124 complaints, 22.2% of reports Engine (ENGINE) 1 crash reports 1 fire reports 124 · 22.2% Fuel system (FUEL SYSTEM): 105 complaints, 18.8% of reports Fuel system (FUEL SYSTEM) 1 crash reports 105 · 18.8% Airbags (AIR BAGS): 16 complaints, 2.9% of reports Airbags (AIR BAGS) 3 crash reports 16 · 2.9% Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM): 14 complaints, 2.5% of reports Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM) 1 fire reports 14 · 2.5% Cruise / speed control (VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL): 12 complaints, 2.2% of reports Cruise / speed control (VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL) 3 crash reports 12 · 2.2% Steering (STEERING): 5 complaints, 0.9% of reports Steering (STEERING) 5 · 0.9% Glass / wipers / cameras (VISIBILITY): 5 complaints, 0.9% of reports Glass / wipers / cameras (VISIBILITY) 5 · 0.9% Seat belts (SEAT BELTS): 3 complaints, 0.5% of reports Seat belts (SEAT BELTS) 3 · 0.5% Unclassified NHTSA leftover: 141 complaints, 25.3% of reports Unclassified NHTSA leftover 2 crash reports 1 fire reports 141 · 25.3% 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

“Unclassified NHTSA leftover” is not a car part. It is a filing bucket and always sits last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
Transmission / driveline (POWER TRAIN) 231 41.4% 2 crashes · 0 fires
Engine (ENGINE) 124 22.2% 1 crashes · 1 fires
Fuel system (FUEL SYSTEM) 105 18.8% 1 crashes · 0 fires
Airbags (AIR BAGS) 16 2.9% 3 crashes · 0 fires
Electrical (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM) 14 2.5% 0 crashes · 1 fires
Cruise / speed control (VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL) 12 2.2% 3 crashes · 0 fires
Steering (STEERING) 5 0.9% 0 crashes · 0 fires
Glass / wipers / cameras (VISIBILITY) 5 0.9% 0 crashes · 0 fires
Seat belts (SEAT BELTS) 3 0.5% 0 crashes · 0 fires
Unclassified NHTSA leftover 141 25.3% 2 crashes · 1 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-09-07 Open source record

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

When reports and recalls showed up

When owners filed reports, and when recall campaigns showed up.

When reports and recalls showed up Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Jan 2007; the first recall shown was reported in Dec 2008. 2007-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2007-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2008-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2008-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2008-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2009-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 2009-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2009-Q3: 6 owner reports 6 2009-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2010-Q1: 10 owner reports 10 2010-Q2: 12 owner reports 12 2010-Q3: 25 owner reports 25 2010-Q4: 8 owner reports 8 2011-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2011-Q2: 5 owner reports 5 2011-Q3: 8 owner reports 8 2011-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2012-Q1: 9 owner reports 9 2012-Q2: 16 owner reports 16 2012-Q3: 25 owner reports 25 2012-Q4: 20 owner reports 20 2013-Q1: 23 owner reports 23 2013-Q2: 24 owner reports 24 2013-Q3: 23 owner reports 23 2013-Q4: 12 owner reports 12 2014-Q1: 30 owner reports 30 2014-Q2: 26 owner reports 26 2014-Q3: 16 owner reports 16 2014-Q4: 14 owner reports 14 2015-Q1: 12 owner reports 12 2015-Q2: 30 owner reports 30 2015-Q3: 22 owner reports 22 2015-Q4: 13 owner reports 13 2016-Q1: 17 owner reports 17 2016-Q2: 19 owner reports 19 2016-Q3: 20 owner reports 20 2016-Q4: 10 owner reports 10 2017-Q1: 7 owner reports 7 2017-Q2: 12 owner reports 12 2017-Q3: 8 owner reports 8 2017-Q4: 6 owner reports 6 2018-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 2018-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2018-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2018-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2019-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2019-Q2: 7 owner reports 7 2019-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 2019-Q4: 6 owner reports 6 2020-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2020-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2021-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2021-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2022-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2022-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2023-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2023-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2024-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2025-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 Owner reports Jan 2007 Apr 2025 Recall campaign 08V690000 ◆ Recall campaign 08V690000 Recall campaign 10E019000 ◆ Recall campaign 10E019000 Investigation DP12004 ● Investigation DP12004
  • Campaign 08V690000 was reported 398 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
2007-Q1 Owner reports 1
2007-Q4 Owner reports 1
2008-Q1 Owner reports 1
2008-Q3 Owner reports 1
2008-Q4 Owner reports 1
2009-Q1 Owner reports 4
2009-Q2 Owner reports 4
2009-Q3 Owner reports 6
2009-Q4 Owner reports 2
2010-Q1 Owner reports 10
2010-Q2 Owner reports 12
2010-Q3 Owner reports 25
2010-Q4 Owner reports 8
2011-Q1 Owner reports 2
2011-Q2 Owner reports 5
2011-Q3 Owner reports 8
2011-Q4 Owner reports 4
2012-Q1 Owner reports 9
2012-Q2 Owner reports 16
2012-Q3 Owner reports 25
2012-Q4 Owner reports 20
2013-Q1 Owner reports 23
2013-Q2 Owner reports 24
2013-Q3 Owner reports 23
2013-Q4 Owner reports 12
2014-Q1 Owner reports 30
2014-Q2 Owner reports 26
2014-Q3 Owner reports 16
2014-Q4 Owner reports 14
2015-Q1 Owner reports 12
2015-Q2 Owner reports 30
2015-Q3 Owner reports 22
2015-Q4 Owner reports 13
2016-Q1 Owner reports 17
2016-Q2 Owner reports 19
2016-Q3 Owner reports 20
2016-Q4 Owner reports 10
2017-Q1 Owner reports 7
2017-Q2 Owner reports 12
2017-Q3 Owner reports 8
2017-Q4 Owner reports 6
2018-Q1 Owner reports 5
2018-Q2 Owner reports 4
2018-Q3 Owner reports 2
2018-Q4 Owner reports 4
2019-Q1 Owner reports 2
2019-Q2 Owner reports 7
2019-Q3 Owner reports 4
2019-Q4 Owner reports 6
2020-Q3 Owner reports 3
2020-Q4 Owner reports 1
2021-Q1 Owner reports 3
2021-Q2 Owner reports 1
2022-Q1 Owner reports 1
2022-Q3 Owner reports 1
2023-Q1 Owner reports 1
2023-Q2 Owner reports 2
2024-Q3 Owner reports 1
2025-Q2 Owner reports 1
Recall campaign 1 08V690000
Recall campaign 1 10E019000
Defect investigation 1 DP12004
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-09-06 Open source record

Safety Recalls (2)

Official campaigns. Each one says what could go wrong and what the dealer was told to fix.

In short, these campaigns were filed about Airbags and Suspension.

  1. Recall campaign 08V690000

    Airbags

    Report date
    Component:
    Airbags (AIR BAGS)
    Consequence:
    THIS ISSUE COULD RESULT IN THE NON-DEPLOYMENT OF THE DRIVER AND PASSENGER FRONT AIR BAGS IN A CRASH, INCREASING THE RISK OF PERSONAL INJURY.
    Remedy:
    DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE FRONT CZS WITH A REDESIGNED SENSOR. THE RECALL BEGAN ON JANUARY 26, 2009. OWNERS IN THE OTHER STATES WILL RECEIVE EXTENDED WARRANTY COVERAGE FOR THE SENSOR TO 10 YEARS. THESE OWNERS WILL BE NOTIFIED OF THE WARRANTY EXTENSION BY MAIL AND WILL RECEIVE A STICKER TO PLACE IN THEIR WARRANTY BOOKLET EXPLAINING THE EXTENDED WARRANTY COVERAGE. OWNERS MAY CONTACT NISSAN AT 1-800-647-7261.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. Recall campaign 10E019000

    Suspension

    Report date
    Component:
    Suspension (SUSPENSION)
    Consequence:
    IF THE COLLAR WELD SEPARATES, THE VEHICLE HANDLING WILL DETERIORATE, POSSIBLY RESULTING IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    NISSAN WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND DEALERS WILL REPLACE ANY AFFECTED LOWER LINK FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 12, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT NISSAN AT 1-800-647-7261.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-09-07 Open source record

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

What owners actually wrote

Short excerpts from the public NHTSA file. Look for the same symptom repeating.

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-09-07
Safety incident filters
Showing 10 of 558 complaints · page 1 of 23
2025-06-24STRUCTUREUnclassified NHTSA leftover
NHTSA ODI 11669055
CrashFireInjuryDeath
Body frame right and left has holes in the frame rusting out. Hole about 4 inches long and the wide entire frame at rear over the tires
2024-07-17Engine (ENGINE)
NHTSA ODI 11603052
CrashFireInjuryDeath
Ref. No. 11452064 dated May 12. 2023 After contacting the servicing dealership, a reply was received acknowledging coolant and transmission fluid cross-contamination was discovered. Along with the other complaints already received, I hope this is enough to proof to finally substantiate just remedies to all who purchased a defective product.
2023-05-11SUSPENSION
NHTSA ODI 11521471
CrashFireInjuryDeath
There’s was a recall on the control arm… I took it in to Nissan and was told mine was not affected.. so it was not fixed. A year or two has passed and my whole suspension needs to be replaced.
2023-05-04Engine (ENGINE)Unclassified NHTSA leftover
NHTSA ODI 11520401
CrashFireInjuryDeath
The contact owns a 2007 Nissan Pathfinder. The contact noticed that there was unknown fluid leaking underneath the vehicle onto the ground. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact checked the radiator and noticed that the coolant was leaking from the radiator. An independent mechanic was contacted and stated that it sounded as if the transmission might have cracked; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed. The dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 125,000. 02/09/2023 - NHTSA #23E-012 Recall #PC948 PTH FTR XTR AB EMB NTB-23-08 Status: Remedy Not Yet Available
2023-03-28Airbags (AIR BAGS)
NHTSA ODI 11514157
CrashFireInjuryDeath
The contact owns a 2007 Nissan Pathfinder. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, the air bag warning light illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where a diagnostic test was performed; however, the cause of the failure could not be determined. The dealer nor the manufacturer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 150,000.
2022-08-04Steering (STEERING)
NHTSA ODI 11477576
CrashFireInjuryDeath
I get regular Maintenance on my car and have owned it for numerous years. I was driving on a major highway & with no warning the car shut off and locked up. The power steering was completely gone. If it hadn't been for going down hill I probably would of gotten hit as I tried to get off the road. My seat belt locked in place and I had to climb out of the seat belt to get out of the vehicle. The doors were also locked and had an issue opening them at first in 91degree heat it was a very scary experience.
2022-02-15Engine (ENGINE)
NHTSA ODI 11452064
CrashFireInjuryDeath
Defective radiator cross contaminated coolant and transmission fluid lines causing transmission failure and engine damage.
2021-06-13Unclassified NHTSA leftover
NHTSA ODI 11420785
CrashFireInjuryDeath
The vehicle jolted without warning And would not move. The transmission cooling lines ruptured in the radiator causing a complete Destruction,pink fluid oozed out of the Radiator. This was due to a Nissan defect that Was NEVER informed us of this problem that could have caused our deaths and the safety of others on the roads.
2021-03-01Airbags (AIR BAGS)
NHTSA ODI 11398610
CrashFireInjuryDeath
IT'S TURN ON EMERGENCY LIGHT
2021-02-28Transmission / driveline (POWER TRAIN)
NHTSA ODI 11398275
CrashFireInjuryDeath
TRANSMISSION HAS BEEN REPLACE TWICE.

Frequently asked questions

What are the most common problems on the 2007 Nissan Pathfinder?

Owners named Transmission / driveline most often — 231 of 558 reports (41%). That is the NHTSA file, not a diagnosis of every vehicle.

Are there recalls for the 2007 Nissan Pathfinder?

NHTSA lists 2 safety recall campaigns. They were filed about Airbags and Suspension. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov; a campaign on this page can still be open on a specific vehicle.

What should I inspect before buying a 2007 Nissan Pathfinder?

Look up the VIN for open recalls. Have a shop drive it and check the transmission: hard or delayed shifts, burnt-smelling fluid, and 4WD engagement if equipped. Then skim owner filings for the same symptom and take that list to a mechanic.

Does a high complaint count mean I should skip this year?

No. Counts are reports people chose to file and they are not adjusted for sales volume. YearTell does not publish scores or a list of years to skip. Inspect the vehicle.

EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record

Estimated Ownership Cost

EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates

Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot 2026-08-21
Supported range: 1,000–60,000 miles per year
Supported range: $1.50–$10.00 per gallon
55% city45% highway
Estimate unavailable

EPA fuel-economy data is unavailable for this vehicle.

No estimate is shown when required EPA values are unavailable.

 Open Ownership Cost Calculator →

Adjacent Model Years

Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-09-07 Open source record

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Methodology & Data Integrity

Source: NHTSA ODI / recalls, snapshot 2026-09-07. YearTell is not a government agency.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources