2003 Nissan Pathfinder SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.
Complaint Timeline
Chronological view of owner reports
VEHICLE LUNGES FORWARD WHEN STEPPING ON BRAKES,SOMETIMES, LIKE STEPPING ON GAS PEDAL. VERY DANGEROUS. *TR
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL. WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS NEW MY WIFE AND I WERE BOTH HAVING PROBLEMS OF STEPPING ON THE BRAKE AND ACCELERATOR PEDALS AT THE SAME TIME. I ASKED THE NISSON DEALER IN MY AREA TO FIX THE BRAKE PEDAL ADJUSTMENT BECAUSE THE PEDAL DEPRESSED SO FAR THAT IT WOULD BE AT OR BELOW THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL'S LEVEL. AT FIRST THEY DECLINED. AFTER I TOLD THEM THAT THERE WAS AN ADJUSTMENT ON THE BRAKE PEDAL TRAVEL AND THAT IT WAS A "SAFETY ISSUE", THE NISSON DEALER FIXED IT. WE HAVE NOT HAD A PROBLEM SINCE. THIS PROBLEM HAS SHOWN UP IN SEVERAL OF THE 2003 PATHFINDER COMPLAINTS. I HOPE THIS REPORT WILL SAVE SOMEONE FROM AN ACCIDENT.
2003 PATHFINDER WITH ONLY 14,000 MILES. BOUGHT NEW. FRONT BRAKE JUDDER LEADING TO STEERING WHEEL VIBRATION. *NM
WE BOUGHT A 2003 NISSAN PATHFINDER IN APR 2003. THE PATHFINDER'S BRAKE SYSTEM HAS BEEN SOFT. WHEN I PRESSED THE BRAKE PEDAL, IT DIDN'T ENGAGE UNTIL IT WENT ABOUT HALF WAY TO THE FLOOR. WE HEARD THE NOISE & HAD BRAKE PROBLEM IN THE EARLY DEC 2003. WE TOOK IT TO A NISSAN DEALER TO CHECK IT OUT. THEY SAID THEY DIDN'T HEAR ANY NOISE & NO PROBLEM FOUND, BUT SAID THE NOISE MUST HAVE BEEN FROM THE TIRES, THEREFORE, WE NEEDED 2 NEW TIRES & AN ALIGNMENT. WHEN WE'RE PICKING UP THE VEHICLE(AFTER SPENDING MORE THAN $300 FOR 2 NEW TIRES & THE ALIGNMENT), ONE OF THE TECH'S CAME INTO THE OFFICE & TOLD THE SERVICE ADVISOR THAT HE'D JUST HEARD THE NOISE THAT WE TALKED ABOUT. THE ADVISOR TOLD US TO TAKE IT HOME & WATCH IT FOR A FEW DAYS. THAT SAME AFTERNOON, WE HEARD IT AGAIN, & TOOK IT BACK TO DEALER THE NEXT DAY. I ASKED THEM TO CHECK EVERYTHING AGAIN. WHEN WE PICK UP THE VEHICLE, ADVISOR STILL SAID NO PROBLEM & ASSURED US THAT IT'S SAFE TO DRIVE. TWO WEEKS LATER, WE TOOK IT IN FOR AN OIL CHANGE, & TOLD THEM WE STILL HAD PROBLEM, ADVISOR TOLD US NEEDED TO SET APPOINTMENT. BUT IT'S A LITTLE BIT TOO LATE. A WEEK LATER, I GOT AN ACCIDENT BECAUSE OF THE BRAKE FAILURE. ON JAN 25, 2004, I WAS GOING SLOWLY (THE TRAFFIC WAS MOVING SLOWLY), & HAD PLENTY OF DISTANCE BETWEEN MY CAR & THE TRUCK IN FRONT OF ME. WHEN THE TRUCK AHEAD OF ME BRAKED, I ALSO ATTEMPTED TO BRAKE BUT THE VEHICLE FAILED TO BRAKE, I HIT THE TRUCK & SUSTAINED DAMAGE TO THE FRONT END OF THE PATHFINDER ( LUCKILY, THE AIRBAG DIDN'T EXPLODE), & THE TRUCK WAS OK. WE CONTACTED NISSAN MOTOR COMPANY IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE ACCIDENT, THEY TOLD US WOULD INSPECT THE VEHICLE WHILE IT'S AT THE BODY SHOP BUT DIDN'T DO IT UNTIL 2 MONTHS LATER AFTER WE TOOK IT HOME. AS OF TODAY, WE'VE NOT HEARD ANYTHING FROM THEM YET. WE WANT THEM TO REPURCHASE THE PATHFINDER BECAUSE I HAVE NO FAITH IN IT & I'M AFRAID TO DRIVE IT. *JB
CONSUMER TOOK VEHICLE TO DEALER FIVE TIMES FOR BRAKE PROBLEMS. WHEN DEPRESSING THE BRAKE PEDAL VEHICLE PULSATED AND MADE A RUBBING NOISE. DEALER ROTATED AND REPLACED THE ROTORS, ABS ACTUATOR, AND THE WHOLE BRAKING SYSTEM. *AK
PROBLEMS WITH BRAKE SYSTEM. STEERING WHEEL SHAKES WHEN BRAKES ARE APPLIED. *MR. WHEN THE BRAKES ENGAGED, THE VEHICLE VIBRATED AND PULSATED AT SPEEDS ABOVE 20 MPH. THE ROTORS WERE TURNED TWICE, HOWEVER THE PROBLEM CONTINUED. PH *JB
Trend Over Time
Complaints by year
Other Issues
Common problems reported
Quick Summary
The 2003 Nissan Pathfinder has 6 SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC complaints on file. 1 crashes have been reported. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.