2020 Nissan Pathfinder

Nissan’s varied lineup of SUVs, pickup trucks, and EVs usually perform well in our road tests, but their Overall Scores suffer because of up-and-down reliability and average to below-average owner satisfaction. Inconsistent quality across the brand means some Nissans are a better choice than others. Many of its gasoline vehicles use small turbocharged engines and continuously variable transmissions to give owners both competitive fuel economy and sporty performance. Most new Nissans come standard with a full suite of active safety and driver assist systems. It’s also one of the few remaining brands that sells a sub-compact sedan, the Versa. The compact Sentra, a mainstay within Nissan’s lineup, earned a high score in our road test and is recommended. Nissan was an early EV trailblazer with the Leaf hatchback, and now sells larger five-passenger EV SUVs. Used Nissans have average reliability according to our surveys.

Pathfinder went the crossover route for 2013, with a new car-based chassis. Off-road capability was sacrificed for better ride quality and a more comfortable interior. Power comes from Nissan's 3.5-liter V6 driving through a CVT. This SUV can tow 5,000 pounds and has a slick second row that can move forward even with a child seat installed, easing access to the third row. Standard safety features include stability control, traction control, a back-up sensor and antilock brakes. Most Pathfinders will also have a rear camera, as it was standard on all but the base model, where it was unavailable. Platinum models add an "around-view" monitor using multiple cameras to show the area surrounding the Pathfinder while parking.  For 2018, forward collision warning and automatic emergency braking were made standard.