2017 Nissan Pathfinder Problems, Recalls & Reliability

255 owner complaints sit in the federal file for the 2017 Nissan Pathfinder, alongside 2 recall campaigns and 0 defect investigations. It scores 19/100 on the trouble index — one of this model's quieter years. Engine leads the reports, typically around 45,000 miles.

One of the quieter years. Relative to its siblings, the 2017 Nissan Pathfinder has drawn well-below-average complaint volume with at least four years on the road.

255Complaints
19/100Trouble index
2Recalls
44,000Typical trouble mileage

Better year

Where 2017 sits among all Pathfinder years

Darker = quieter yearsBrighter amber = more trouble

What owners report

Engine 85 complaints (33%) · typically ~45,000 miles
“The car started making a weird fan noise. My car is a 2017 nissan pathfinder and i am at 70,000. I took it to the dealership and they stated it would be 1k to fix. I think it is unfair that the cooling fan assembly would fail at 70,000 miles.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2017 Pathfinder
Other 44 complaints (17%) · typically ~30,000 miles
“My nissan pathfinder 2017 s has 38k miles and started noise on engine/ac cooling fan. It sounds like fan bearing is making noise. I think this is a manufacturing defect.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2017 Pathfinder
Transmission & drivetrain 34 complaints (13%) · typically ~45,000 miles
“The transmission is failing. The car has about 117,000 miles on it. The transmission issue is a known problem with this vehicle and is causing safety concerns while driving it due to acceleration problems.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2017 Pathfinder
Electrical 33 complaints (13%) · typically ~44,000 miles
“While driving and going down the highway my vehicles HUD and all electronics inside the vehicle will just randomly kick out momentarily for not no more the 30seconds, but the head lights stay one and the car still runs. It kicks the cruise control off and this just started happening.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2017 Pathfinder
Brakes & stability 11 complaints (4%)
Fuel system 8 complaints (3%)

Mileage when trouble shows up

Among the 160 reports that include an odometer reading, problems most often appear around 44,000 miles. Half of those reports fall between 27,662 and 55,000 miles — a useful range to weigh against the mileage of the exact car you're looking at.

Recalls (2)

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC 19V807000 2019 Park outside

Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2015-2018 Nissan Murano, 2016-2018 Nissan Maxima, and 2017-2019 Nissan Pathfinder and Infiniti QX60 vehicles. These vehicles were previously recalled and unrepaired, or inspected and determined to not…

Fix: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the ABS actuator, free of charge. Owners will receive a second notice when remedy parts become available, currently expected to be during summer…

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC 18V601000 2018 Park outside

Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2015-2017 Nissan Murano, 2016-2017 Nissan Maxima, 2017-2018 Nissan Pathfinder, and 2017 Infiniti QX60 vehicles. The Anti-Lock Brake (ABS) actuator pumps may allow brake fluid to leak onto an internal…

Fix: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the serial number on the ABS actuator, replacing it as necessary, free of charge. The recall began October 29, 2018. Owners may contact Nissan…

Technical service bulletins

226 manufacturer communications — service bulletins, the biggest share on electrical and transmission & drivetrain — are on file for the 2017 Nissan Pathfinder. A TSB is factory repair guidance, not a recall — the repair is not automatically free.

See the 2017 Pathfinder TSB list →

Complaint history for this model year

When owners filed their reports — a long tail means problems kept surfacing for years.

2017peak 58 in 20202026

Questions buyers ask

Is the 2017 Nissan Pathfinder reliable?

The 2017 Nissan Pathfinder drew 255 complaints in federal safety records — one of this model's quieter years. Its trouble index is 19/100, scored against the model's worst year (2005).

What are the most common 2017 Nissan Pathfinder problems?

The top reported problems for the 2017 Nissan Pathfinder are engine (85 complaints), other (44), and transmission & drivetrain (34).

At what mileage do 2017 Nissan Pathfinder problems show up?

Owners most often report 2017 Nissan Pathfinder problems around 44,000 miles. Half of all reports that include an odometer reading fall between 27,662 and 55,000 miles.

Does the 2017 Nissan Pathfinder have recalls?

2 recall campaigns apply to the 2017 Nissan Pathfinder. At least one carries a do-not-drive or park-outside warning — check your VIN before driving.

← 2016 Pathfinder All Pathfinder years 2018 Pathfinder →
Data updated 2026-08-20 from NHTSA's public records

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.