Reliable Auto DB

2015 Nissan Pathfinder reliability

Is it reliable?

Owners have filed 320 complaints with NHTSA about the 2015 Nissan Pathfinder over 12 years — 25 per year. That is more complaints per year than most Pathfinder years here — over the median of the other years, which is 17. NHTSA has 5 recalls on file, including Latch, Switch, and Occupant classification.

2012 Nissan Pathfinder
Photo by SsmIntrigue, resized from the original. Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0
Complaints

320

Per year

25

Recalls

5

Years on the road

12

What owners report

The complaints owners file most often name Powertrain (76 of 320), then Engine (74) and Air bags (55). Those filings include 11 that report a crash, 1 that reports a fire, and 6 that report an injury.

Next to 2014 and 2016

The 2014 Pathfinder has 573 complaints, 59 per year, and the 2016 has 107 complaints, 10 per year. The 2015 has fewer complaints per year than the 2014. The 2015 has more complaints per year than the 2016.

The complaint rate is complaints filed in this year’s first 3 years on the road, divided by however many of those years have passed. Recalls are a separate count. The numbers are for the US-market 2015 Nissan Pathfinder. How we count. Data as of .

Recalls (5)

Recall latches, locks, and linkages, hood, latch 2022-06-13 · NHTSA campaign 22V420000
Summary Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2013-2016 Pathfinder vehicles. On certain Pathfinder vehicles, the secondary hood latch may malfunction and remain in the unlatched, unsecured, position when the hood is closed.
Remedy Dealers will replace the bell crank assembly, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed March 26, 2025. Owners may contact Nissan's customer service at 1-800-867-7669. Nissan's number for this recall are R22A2 R22A3 and R24B7.
Recall exterior lighting, brake lights, switch 2021-01-20 · NHTSA campaign 21V020000
Summary Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2013-2015 Nissan Pathfinder vehicles. The location of the brake light switch may cause the brake light switch relay to repeatedly open and close. Overtime, this can cause the relay to stick in the "ON" position, with the brake lights remaining illuminated even when the brakes are not applied. Additionally, this may interfere with the brake-shift interlock, allowing the driver to shift the vehicle out of the "Park" position, without depressing the brake pedal.
Remedy Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, as necessary, either re-install the brake light switch or swap positions with the Automatic Speed Control Device (ASCD) switch; depending on the model year vehicle. In addition, the brake light relay will be replaced with a new one. All repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began March 1, 2021. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669. Nissan's number for this recall PC786. Note: this recall supersedes 16V-380.
Recall air bags, sensor, occupant classification 2016-04-26 · NHTSA campaign 16V244000
Summary Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Nissan Maxima, 2013-2016 Nissan Altima, NV200, LEAF, Sentra, and Pathfinder, 2014-2016 Nissan NV200 Taxi, Infiniti QX60, QX60 Hybrid, and Q50 Hybrid, 2014-2017 Nissan Rogue and Infiniti Q50, 2015-2016 Nissan Murano, Murano Hybrid, and Chevrolet City Express, 2014-2015 Nissan Pathfinder Hybrid, and 2013 Infiniti JX35 vehicles. In these vehicles, the front seat passenger Occupant Classification System (OCS) may incorrectly classify an adult passenger as a child or classify the seat as empty despite it being occupied. As a result, the passenger frontal air bag may be turned off and not deploy in the event of a crash.
Remedy Nissan will notify their owners. Chevrolet City Express owners will be notified by General Motors. Dealers will reprogram the Air Bag Control Unit (ACU) and OCS Electronic Control Unit (ECU) in Altima, Maxima, Murano, Rogue, and Sentra vehicles, and replace the OCS ECU in LEAF, NV200, NV200 Taxi, Pathfinder, Infiniti Q50, JX35, and QX60 and Chevrolet City Express vehicles, free of charge. Interim notices were sent to owners on May 31, 2016. Owners will receive a second notice when remedy parts become available. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669, Infiniti customer service at 1-888-833-3216 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020.
Recall air bags, frontal 2015-10-20 · NHTSA campaign 15V681000
Summary Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2013-2015 Altima and Pathfinder vehicles, 2013-2014 Nissan Sentra vehicles, 2013 Infiniti JX35 vehicles, 2014-2015 Infiniti QX60 vehicles and 2014 Infiniti QX60 Hybrid vehicles. The affected vehicles received an incorrect occupant classification system (OCS) control unit during a repair. These OCS control units may incorrectly classify the front passenger seat as empty, when it is occupied by an adult.
Remedy Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will update the OCS software, free of charge. The recall began on November 30, 2015. Owners may contact Nissan at 1-800-647-7261.
Recall Service brakes 2015-01-14 · NHTSA campaign 15V012000
Summary Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2014-2015 Nissan Pathfinder and Infiniti QX60 vehicles manufactured August 14, 2014, to November 5, 2014, and 2014-2015 Nissan Rogue vehicles manufactured August 12, 2014, to November 15, 2014. During the assembly process, the front wheel hub assembly fasteners may not have been properly torqued.
Remedy Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the vehicles and tighten any loose bolts to the proper specification, free of charge. The recall began February 2, 2015. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.

Complaints by component (320 total)

Powertrain
76
Engine
74
Air bags
55
Speed control
27
Electrical system
26
Service brakes
23
Structure
12
Fuel and propulsion system
11
Visibility and wipers
10
Exterior lighting
8
Electronic stability control (ESC)
7
Latches, locks, and linkages
6
Seats
4
Steering
3
Wheels
3
Suspension
2
Tires
2
Air brakes
1
Engine and engine cooling
1
Hydraulic brakes
1
Seat belts
1
Show 13 more Show less
Crash-flagged

11

Fire-flagged

1

Injury reports

6

Death reports

0

Complaints filed per year

15201541201620201753201873201933202015202119202214202315202415202572026
Excerpts from recent NHTSA complaint filings
  • "The contact owns a 2015 Nissan Pathfinder. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the hood unexpectedly opened and was damaged. The hood ledge and structure were damaged due to the failure. The…"
    Latches, locks, and linkages · filed 2026-08-17
  • "The contact owns a 2015 Nissan Pathfinder. The contact stated that while driving 65 MPH, the front driver’s side curtain air bag deployed without impact. No warning lights were illuminated. The contact slowed down and…"
    Air bags · filed 2026-07-16
  • "The control arm detached from the front subframe due to massive rust on a car that was well cared for and only 10 years old. This happened as we were driving: the front passenger-side wheel became loose and began…"
    Suspension, Structure · filed 2026-06-04
  • "CVT judder problems on acceleration"
    Powertrain · filed 2026-04-07
  • "The contact owns a 2015 Nissan Pathfinder. The contact stated that the rear brake lights failed to illuminate when the vehicle was parked. The contact depressed the brake pedal to disengage the brake lights. While…"
    Exterior lighting · filed 2026-04-02

NHTSA crash ratings

Version Overall Front Side Rollover
2015 Nissan Pathfinder SUV AWD 5 stars 4 stars 5 stars 4 stars
2015 Nissan Pathfinder SUV FWD 5 stars 4 stars 5 stars 4 stars

Stars are how this vehicle did in NHTSA crash tests. They are a safety result, separate from the complaint record. Not rated means that test was not run for this version.

Fuel economy

Trim Engine Transmission Drive City Hwy Combined Annual fuel cost
Pathfinder two-wheel drive 3.5L, 6-cyl Automatic (variable gear ratios) Front-wheel drive 20 27 23 MPG $2800
Pathfinder four-wheel drive 3.5L, 6-cyl Automatic (variable gear ratios) Four-wheel drive 19 26 22 MPG $2950
Pathfinder four-wheel drive Platinum 3.5L, 6-cyl Automatic (variable gear ratios) Four-wheel drive 19 26 21 MPG $3100
Pathfinder hybrid two-wheel drive 2.5L, 4-cyl Automatic (variable gear ratios) Front-wheel drive 25 28 26 MPG $2500
Pathfinder hybrid four-wheel drive 2.5L, 4-cyl Automatic (variable gear ratios) Four-wheel drive 25 27 26 MPG $2500

Specs and fitment

4th generation (R52), 2012–2020
Body styles SUV
Oil 0W-20 (3.5L V6) , 5.7 qt capacity
Tire size 235/65R18 to 235/55R20 (trim dependent)
Towing capacity 6,000 lbs

Known issues for this generation

NHTSA campaign 16V244000. Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Nissan Maxima, 2013-2016 Nissan Altima, NV200, LEAF, Sentra, and Pathfinder, 2014-2016 Nissan NV200 Taxi, Infiniti QX60, QX60 Hybrid, and Q50 Hybrid, 2014-2017 Nissan Rogue and Infiniti Q50, 2015-2016 Nissan Murano, Murano Hybrid, and Chevrolet City Express, 2014-2015 Nissan Pathfinder Hybrid, and 2013 Infiniti JX35 vehicles. In these vehicles, the front seat passenger Occupant Classification System (OCS) may incorrectly classify an adult passenger as a child or classify the seat as empty despite it being occupied. As a result, the passenger frontal air bag may be turned off and not deploy in the event of a crash. If the passenger frontal air bag does not deploy as intended in the event of a crash, the passenger is at an increased risk of injury. Nissan will notify their owners. Chevrolet City Express owners will be notified by General Motors. Dealers will reprogram the Air Bag Control Unit (ACU) and OCS Electronic Control Unit (ECU) in Altima, Maxima, Murano, Rogue, and Sentra vehicles, and replace the OCS ECU in LEAF, NV200, NV200 Taxi, Pathfinder, Infiniti Q50, JX35, and QX60 and Chevrolet City Express vehicles, free of charge. Interim notices were sent to owners on May 31, 2016. Owners will receive a second notice when remedy parts become available. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669, Infiniti customer service at 1-888-833-3216 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020.

Compare

Previous year 2014 Nissan Pathfinder Next year 2016 Nissan Pathfinder See every Nissan Pathfinder model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2015 Nissan Pathfinder reliable?

Owners have filed 320 complaints with NHTSA about the 2015 Nissan Pathfinder over 12 years — 25 per year. That is more complaints per year than most Pathfinder years here — over the median of the other years, which is 17. NHTSA has 5 recalls on file, including Latch, Switch, and Occupant classification.

What are common problems with a 2015 Nissan Pathfinder?

The complaints owners file most often name Powertrain (76 of 320), then Engine (74) and Air bags (55). Those filings include 11 that report a crash, 1 that reports a fire, and 6 that report an injury.

Is the 2015 Nissan Pathfinder more reliable than the years next to it?

The 2014 Pathfinder has 573 complaints, 59 per year, and the 2016 has 107 complaints, 10 per year. The 2015 has fewer complaints per year than the 2014. The 2015 has more complaints per year than the 2016.

Has the 2015 Nissan Pathfinder been recalled?

The 2015 Nissan Pathfinder has 5 recalls on file with NHTSA. See the recalls table on this page for dates, components, and remedies.

How many complaints have owners filed about the 2015 Nissan Pathfinder?

Owners have filed 320 complaints about the 2015 Nissan Pathfinder with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2015 Nissan Pathfinder get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2015 Nissan Pathfinder is 23.6 MPG. See the fuel economy table on this page for city and highway figures by engine and transmission.

What oil does a Pathfinder take?

0W-20 (3.5L V6)

What does NHTSA recall 16V-244 cover on the Nissan Pathfinder?

NHTSA campaign 16V244000.

What generation is the 2013 Nissan Pathfinder?

4th generation (R52) (2012-2020).