2011 Nissan Pathfinder Problems, Complaints & Recalls
- Compared with other Pathfinder years
- Far fewer complaints than other years 27th of 31 for complaints
- Safety recalls
- 2 recalls: check your VIN
- NHTSA crash rating
- Not rated
Owners have filed 45 complaints with NHTSA about the 2011 Nissan Pathfinder. That ranks 27th out of 31 Pathfinder model years for complaints. The most reported problem area is air bags (12 complaints, 27%), typically at around 91,200 miles. Complaints mention 1 fire. There are 2 safety recalls covering this model year.
- 45owner complaints
- 2safety recalls
- 0NHTSA investigations
- 0complaints mentioning a crash
Complaints are unverified owner reports and are not adjusted for sales volume.
Most common 2011 Nissan Pathfinder problems
Complaints grouped by the part of the car owners reported, with the median mileage when the problem happened.
| Problem area | Complaints | Share | Median miles | Owners mention most | Typical repair cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air Bags | 12 | 27% | 91,200 | — | — |
| Engine | 10 | 22% | 70,950 | — | — |
| Power Train | 7 | 16% | 62,000 | — | — |
| Suspension | 6 | 13% | 44,289 | — | — |
| Service Brakes | 5 | 11% | 86,000 | — | — |
| Electrical System | 4 | 9% | 40,000 | — | — |
| Seat Belts | 3 | 7% | 26,000 | — | — |
| Unknown or Other | 3 | 7% | 75,500 | — | — |
| Steering | 2 | 4% | 44,289 | — | — |
| Wheels | 2 | 4% | 18,139 | — | — |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 1 | 2% | 51,857 | — | — |
| Latches/locks/linkages | 1 | 2% | 600 | — | — |
| Seats | 1 | 2% | 15,108 | — | — |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 1 | 2% | 4,000 | — | — |
| Visibility | 1 | 2% | 750 | — | — |
One complaint can list several problem areas, so shares can add up to more than 100%.
Complaints by year received
2011 Nissan Pathfinder recalls (2)
Tap a recall to see the problem, the risk and the fix.
Air bags:frontal
Problem: Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2008-2011 Titan, Frontier, Xterra, Pathfinder, Armada, and 2008-2009 Quest vehicles. The resin emblem on the driver's air bag cover may develop cracks and detach during air bag deployment.
Risk: A detached emblem can become a projectile during air bag deployment, increasing the risk of injury to vehicle occupants.
Fix: Dealers will replace the driverÂs airbag cover. Owner letters were mailed December 8, 2023. Owners may contact Nissan's customer service at 1-800-867-7669. Nissan's number for this recall are PC944, PC945, and PC946.
Engine and engine cooling
Problem: Nissan is recalling certain model year 2011 infiniti fx, model year 2012 infiniti m, model year 2011-2012 nissan frontier, model year 2011-2012 nissan xterra, model year 2011-2012 nissan pathfinder, and model year 2012 nissan nv vehicles. Some of the bolts that connect the engine oil cooler and the engine oil filter to the engine in these vehicles may have been manufactured to below specification strength. As a result, the bolt may break at the oil filter attachment point and can cause an engine oil leak.
Risk: If there is an engine oil leak, the engine oil pressure would drop and the engine could seize, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the connector bolts free of charge. The safety recall began on january 30, 2012. Owners may contact nissan at 1-800-647-7261.
To see whether a specific car still has an open recall, enter its VIN on NHTSA's official recall lookup. You can also decode a VIN here.
Recent owner reports
Short excerpts of the latest complaints filed with NHTSA, with personal details removed. Full reports can be searched on NHTSA.gov.
Rear sub frame has significant rust, snapped while driving at slow speed, there was no injury but steering was affected, no harm done this time but it is a known issue, 2wd model has a recall for the same part with the same issue
My airbag light and seatbelt light are on and the horn has stopped working. Frame and front suspension is making a horrible creaking sound and has been for months. Frame seems to be rotted ⦠Iâve taken it to multiple places to have it looked atâ¦. Iâve also seen other complaints on here of…
Through a check engine light for camshaft position sensor bank 1 so I replaced both of them well that cleared the check engine light for a min and was running good the after five min of running it started rough idling cutting off and throwing a check engine light for p0340 again I sent it to the…
Frame is rotted from rust. Not drivable as drive train connection to wheels in rear end ready to fail at any moment. Rust is so bad it will require towing to be repaired. Repair estimate exceeds blue book value. $4800. 110,000 current mileage. Recall for this problem existed on this make/model for…
The contact owns a 2011 Nissan Pathfinder. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23E012000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The…
Other Nissan Pathfinder years
← 2010 Pathfinder · 2012 Pathfinder →
| Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 Pathfinder | 11 | 0 |
| 2025 Pathfinder | 54 | 1 |
| 2024 Pathfinder | 85 | 2 |
| 2023 Pathfinder | 104 | 1 |
| 2022 Pathfinder | 136 | 5 |
| 2020 Pathfinder | 48 | 0 |
| 2019 Pathfinder | 76 | 2 |
| 2018 Pathfinder | 77 | 3 |
| 2017 Pathfinder | 186 | 2 |
| 2016 Pathfinder | 105 | 2 |
| 2015 Pathfinder | 321 | 5 |
| 2014 Pathfinder | 574 | 11 |
| 2013 Pathfinder | 890 | 11 |
| 2012 Pathfinder | 23 | 2 |
| 2011 | 45 | 2 |
| 2010 Pathfinder | 40 | 4 |
| 2009 Pathfinder | 37 | 3 |
| 2008 Pathfinder | 328 | 4 |
| 2007 Pathfinder | 561 | 1 |
| 2006 Pathfinder | 837 | 3 |
| 2005 Pathfinder | 1,050 | 2 |
| 2004 Pathfinder | 67 | 3 |
| 2003 Pathfinder | 110 | 3 |
| 2002 Pathfinder | 156 | 5 |
| 2001 Pathfinder | 230 | 3 |
| 2000 Pathfinder | 112 | 2 |
| 1999 Pathfinder | 104 | 2 |
| 1998 Pathfinder | 149 | 2 |
| 1997 Pathfinder | 217 | 2 |
| 1996 Pathfinder | 159 | 3 |
| 1995 Pathfinder | 170 | 0 |
See all Nissan Pathfinder problems by year, every Nissan model, or the Nissan VIN decoder.
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Frequently asked questions
What are the most common problems with the 2011 Nissan Pathfinder?
Owners most often report air bags, engine, power train problems. The top one, air bags, accounts for 12 complaints.
Was there a recall on the 2011 Nissan Pathfinder?
Yes, 2 safety recalls. Enter your VIN at NHTSA.gov to check whether the repairs were done on your car.
Was the 2011 Nissan Pathfinder a good year?
Complaint data can't fully answer that, because counts aren't adjusted for sales. Compared with other Pathfinder model years, the 2011 has far fewer complaints than most years. Always get a pre-purchase inspection and check the VIN for open recalls.