I’m pretty sure I will never write another review about the current generation Nissan Pathfinder. If the Pathfinder was an Orange, Nissan would be in the beverage business. They’ve squeezed that much out of the Pathfinder I’m prepared to say like John Farnham once said, this is the last time, oh wait…
What is it?
An SUV and a bloody big one at that. The origins of the current crop of Pathfinders were planted way back in 2014. Think about that, that’s a long time ago. In 2017 it copped a facelift but here we are in 2019 with the same car essentially.
When I look at a Pathfinder you know what immediately comes to mind? My wife giving birth… stay with me. So back in 2017 my little champion Henry was born, at the time we were in the middle of a six-month long loan of a blue Pathy, so honestly just seeing one makes me feel a tad misty eyed. It was the car that saw me break land speed records from my joint to Hawkesbury Hospital.
For this review I’ve had one last dance with a gleaming “Redstone” Ti AWD model. Which is as far up the Pathfinder tree you can go outside of the hybrid model.
Behind the Wheel
Size matters in this category and there’s little doubt the Pathfinder has plenty of that. The black leather accented seats kind of make me want to curl up on a bean bag and eat popcorn, it’s super comfy from the driver’s seat or any of the other six seats actually. Nissan launched a N-Sport or ‘Black Pack’ package for the Pathfinder recently, now that was rad.
There’s the familiar analogue instrument cluster that’s been staring back at us for years now, much like the 8-inch colour touchscreen and in fact the whole dashboard. But I’m cool with that.
The Pathfinder has a decent turn of pace when required with 202kW under the bonnet, but you’ll need to be a lover of Continuously Variable Transmissions (CVT). Nissan love this kind of box, sadly I don’t but each to their own.
Once the Pathfinder changed from being basically a small truck back in 2014 it was expected to drive with a tad more refinement. That was achieved, it went from driving like a rugged work horse to driving like a boat.
But more of an even keel was added over time and today we’re left with a comfortable and reasonably well-sorted drive that in this instance benefits from the surety of on-demand AWD. Plus it could carry heaps of crap.
Vital Stats
The 3.5-litre petrol V6 gives you 202kW at 6,400rpm and 340Nm at 4,800rpm. Power is sent to all four wheels if required courtesy of Nissan’s Xtronic CVT. The Ti model gains 20-inch rims, door mirrors with a reverse tilt-down feature, six-way power-adjustable driver’s seat or four-way for the passenger.
The front seats can be warmed and cooled, the 2ndrow can also be heated. I’m most fond of the Bose 13 speaker sound system and the fact there are rear dual video screens. The system includes wireless headphones, a remote control, rear HDMI and USB ports for video playback, flash hey.
Technology
There isn’t a whole lot to mention here to be honest. But it’s comforting that Nissan have applied Autonomous Emergency Breaking across the range, along with rear cross traffic alert and blind spot monitors.
Price
The Nissan Pathfinder Ti AWD model is priced from $66,190. Now this where I think I just need to advise you of one thing. That’s too much, by a lot. There are more modern and sophisticated options around. But if you’re absolutely hell bent on a Pathfinder then at least take a mid-spec ST-L model for a drive and save quite a few thousand in the process. The Ti AWD will drink north of the claimed 10.1L/100km and is backed by a five-year unlimited kilometre warranty.
Why Would You Buy One?
The Pathfinder does a very good job of soaking up a large family while masking its many downfalls. So perhaps you just didn’t try the others.
EFTM Scoreboard
I’ve always been happy to jump in a Nissan Pathfinder, it’s neither great nor poor. It’s a B minus student and they always seem to do well in life. It’s a 6.9 out of 10 from me.
