2006 Nissan Pathfinder Problems, Recalls & Reliability
1,224 owner complaints sit in the federal file for the 2006 Nissan Pathfinder, alongside 5 recall campaigns and 1 defect investigation. It scores 78/100 on the trouble index — one of the years to avoid for this model. Transmission & drivetrain leads the reports, typically around 102,000 miles.
Avoid this year if you can. The 2006 Nissan Pathfinder sits at the top of this model's complaint rankings. Quieter picks in the same family: 1990–1995, 1999–2000, 2002–2004, 2009–2012, 2016–2020, 2022.
Avoid
Where 2006 sits among all Pathfinder years
What owners report
“Total transmission & radiator failure due to coolant leaking into the transmission.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2006 Pathfinder
“Transmission went on the car. Coolant from the radiator leaked into the transmission.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2006 Pathfinder
“Fuel read empty at the gauge even if fuel tank is full. Engine check light is also lit”— owner report to NHTSA, 2006 Pathfinder
“The transmission of my pathfinder went bad because of defective radiator. It mixed transmission oil and antifreeze in the transmission. It will cost me 6k+ to repair. I read a lot of people had this problem and i want nissan to fix it.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2006 Pathfinder
“Had to have steering column replaced due to it breaking and causing hard steering and no control of wheels. Barely made it home. Also the transmission had to be flushed and by passed due to cooler getting water in transmission. Both of these are safety items and nissan dealer says not enough…”— owner report to NHTSA, 2006 Pathfinder
“The moment i purchased this vehicle it had check engine light and transmission problems and catalytic converters were bad. Would not pass inspection.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2006 Pathfinder
Mileage when trouble shows up
Among the 1,084 reports that include an odometer reading, problems most often appear around 96,000 miles. Half of those reports fall between 79,000 and 120,222 miles — a useful range to weigh against the mileage of the exact car you're looking at.
Recalls (5)
NISSAN IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2004-2006 ARMADA, TITAN, INFINITI QX56 AND MODEL YEAR 2005-2006 FRONTIER, PATHFINDER AND XTERRA VEHICLES. THE INTELLIGENT POWER DISTRIBUTION MODULE (IPDM) ASSEMBLY CONTAINS AN ENGINE CONTROL MODULE (ECM) RELAY THAT HAS…
Fix: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE ECM RELAY INSIDE THE IPDM ASSEMBLY. THIS SERVICE WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON DECEMBER 6, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT NISSAN AT 1-800-647-7261.
NISSAN IS RECALLING CERTAIN FRONT AND REAR LOWER LINKS, P/NOS. 54501ZQ00A, 54500ZQ00A, 551A1ZQ00A, 551A0ZQ00A , 54501EA00A, 54500EA00A, 551A1EA500, 551A0EA500, 54501ZR00A, AND 54500ZR00A, SOLD BETWEEN NOVEMBER 25, 2009 AND MAY 14, 2010 AS REPLACEMENT PARTS…
Fix: 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.
NISSAN IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2006 AND MODEL YEAR 2008 FRONTIER, XTERRA AND PATHFINDER VEHICLES. THE MOLDED FUEL TANK SHELLS CAN DEFORM, CAUSING THE FUEL SENDER FLOAT ARM TO CONTACT AN EMBOSSMENT MOLDED INTO THE TANK SHELL CAUSING THE INSTRUMENT…
Fix: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE FUEL LEVEL SENDING UNIT INSIDE THE FUEL TANK WITH A NEW ONE THAT HAS A MODIFIED FLOAT ARM. THIS SERVICE WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL IS EXPECTED TO…
NISSAN IS RECALLING 242,720 MY 2005-2009 PATHFINDER, FRONTIER AND XTERRA VEHICLES ORIGINALLY SOLD IN OR CURRENTLY REGISTERED IN THE STATES OF CONNECTICUT, DELAWARE, ILLINOIS, INDIANA, IOWA, MAINE, MARYLAND, MASSACHUSETTS, MICHIGAN, MINNESOTA, MISSOURI, NEW…
Fix: 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.…
CERTAIN HOPKINS AFTERMARKET TRAILER BRAKE CONTROL CONNECTION HARNESSES SOLD FOR USE ON CERTAIN MODELS OF NISSAN VEHICLES WHICH ARE LISTED ABOVE. THE INTERNAL PART NUMBERS WITHIN HOPKINS ARE: 1010476025, 1040376025, 1110476025, 1170376025, 1290376025,…
Fix: HOPKINS WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND REPLACE THE ORIGINAL HARNESS WITH A REVISED HARNESS FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN AUGUST 17, 2007. OWNERS CAN CONTACT HOPKINS AT 800-835-0129.
Federal defect investigations
Technical service bulletins
77 manufacturer communications — service bulletins, the biggest share on electrical and suspension — are on file for the 2006 Nissan Pathfinder. A TSB is factory repair guidance, not a recall — the repair is not automatically free.
See the 2006 Pathfinder TSB list →
Complaint history for this model year
When owners filed their reports — a long tail means problems kept surfacing for years.
Questions buyers ask
Is the 2006 Nissan Pathfinder reliable?
The 2006 Nissan Pathfinder drew 1,224 complaints in federal safety records — one of the years to avoid for this model. Its trouble index is 78/100, scored against the model's worst year (2005).
What are the most common 2006 Nissan Pathfinder problems?
The top reported problems for the 2006 Nissan Pathfinder are transmission & drivetrain (451 complaints), engine (333), and fuel system (209).
At what mileage do 2006 Nissan Pathfinder problems show up?
Owners most often report 2006 Nissan Pathfinder problems around 96,000 miles. Half of all reports that include an odometer reading fall between 79,000 and 120,222 miles.
Does the 2006 Nissan Pathfinder have recalls?
5 recall campaigns apply to the 2006 Nissan Pathfinder. Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer.
Every number on this page is a count of records in the federal complaint, recall, and investigation files published by NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation. Check any specific vehicle's open recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.