The contact owns a 2001 Nissan Pathfinder. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, the contact was attempting to use her brakes to slow for traffic and was unable to stop. The contact had to depress the brake pedal to the floorboard to get the vehicle to stop. The contact stated that prior to the failure her ABS warning had been illuminated for a long period of time prior to the failure. The contact drove the vehicle to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that due to a significant amount of rust, the front suspension and struts and brake pads, and rotors had to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 11V244000 (Steering and Suspension). The work had been previously completed by a dealer. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 142,000.
2001 Nissan Pathfinder suspension problems
68 complaints (30% of all complaints for this car). Typical mileage when it fails: 134,000. 2 crashes reported.
- owner complaints
- 68
- of this car's complaints
- 30%
- typical mileage
- 134,000
- crashes
- 2
- recalls
- 1
Which part fails
- Front19
- Rear7
- Front: shock absorber1
- Front: macpherson strut1
At what mileage
Complaints by mileage at the time of the problem.
Nissan Pathfinder suspension problems in other years
Specific symptoms reported on the 2001 Nissan Pathfinder suspension
Phrases found in the owners' own descriptions, so one complaint can mention several symptoms.
Related recalls
Suspension: front
- What is wrong
- Nissan is recalling certain model year 1996-2004 pathfinder and model year 1997-2003 infiniti qx4 vehicles originally sold, or currently registered in, connecticut, delaware, iowa, illinois, indiana, massachusetts, maine, maryland, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, washington d.c., west virginia and wisconsin. In areas of the country in which heavy concentrations of road salt are used, a mixture of snow/water and salt may enter an assembly location hole in the upper strut housing, causing water to collect at the mating surface of the strut housing panel and the inner hood ledge assembly. Over time, this snow/water and salt intrusion may result in corrosion of the strut tower housing in some subject vehicles.
- Risk
- The strut housing may crack and pull away from the inner hood ledge assembly. This may lead to grinding noises, increased steering effort, and possibly the steering column to break, resulting in the loss of steering control, which could result in a crash.
- Remedy
- Nissan will inspect the strut housing and repair the vehicles as necessary, free of charge. An interim notification letter was sent out in may 2011. The second notice was mailed on july 25, 2011. Owners may contact nissan at 1‑800‑647‑7261.
Recall number 11V244000 · Recall details
What 2001 Nissan Pathfinder owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
Family car;2001 nissan pathfinder, we got in the truck and drove about 250 feet to the stop sign. I stop. As I started moving and suddenly I hear a pop loud sound from engine compartment and my steering got hard and difficult to steer and a grinding sound as you turn the steering. Drove back to the house slow and park. Open the hood and I see the strut tower under neath the brake master cylinder, then I look between left side (drivers) tire the strut tower just ripped from the factory weld. My family in the car when this occur. What if this occur while on the highway at higher speeds. My truck only has 106523 miles and was scheduled for a pa inspection.
Driver's side strut tower has rusted to the point were the truck will pass va state safety inspection. There was a recall performed by several years ago by nissan for the rust issue on both inner wheel wells and strut tower area.
The sub-frame/cradle 54400-0w00 on the passenger side is rotted out to the point that it will not pass a pa state inspection. This was found by my mechanic while he was replacing the front rotors and brakes. My mechanic has ordered a new sub frame + bolts to replace the rotted out sub-frame. I wonder how many other sub-frames are rotted out on pathfinders from 1996 to 2004 which is when nissan used this particular part. My concern is if this part fails completely what will happen??? I have restricted driving my pathfinder until the new part is installed. I think someone should look into this problem, because when it fails and it will someone will get hurt or even killed? The control arms mounted to this part which controls steering. This part plus labor will cost me about $1500.00.
There is an excessive amount of rust on the vehicle including the wheel well, door jams, floor board, and frame. I was almost unable to receive a replacement windshield because the frame is rusting out. I purchased the vehicle in the north then moved south and the problem has grown worse. The compartment that is holding the spare tire under the vehicle is rusting out as well. This could potentially become a safety problem if the spare tire separates from its supports while operating on a roadway. Rust has been an ongoing problem with this vehicle with no specific start date nor end date.
Driver side front strut tower made a loud "pop" sound when driving. Bottom portion of strut top cracked through. Strut tower bearing now moaning when turning, out of gimble.
Vehicle was stopped, waiting to make right hand turn; attempting to turn resulted in the steering wheel spinning freely; vehicle had to be towed; initial inspection revealed steering column shaft snapped in half; upon further inspection the drivers side front strut tower had ripped away from the body of the truck; **this vehicle had recalls issued in the past, it was taken to leckner nissan in stafford, va but they obviously did not mitigate the problem - they simply cleared the recall from the computer**
The 01 thru 04 pathfinder has some kind of rear suspension flaw. The online forums call it a death sway and I agree. It is beyond me why this has not been recalled as of yet. If you have sometime I would love to take you on a ride because I know that something would get done after riding with this problem. Thanks
This vehicle was sold to me by an individual and it has so many problems it's unbelievable. Haven't been able to get it to pass emissions. Had the death wobble when I first got it. I'm extremely upset about this lemon I was. Sold. I'm a breast cancer patient and limited on income and I was really screwed over. Lost over 3000 dollars over this vehicle
Tl* the contact's son owns a 2001 nissan pathfinder. While driving 30 MPH, the driver noticed a creaking sound on the front passenger side of the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the passenger side strut assembly failed. The vehicle was towed to a dealer and the contact was informed that the vehicle had previously been serviced per the federal safety agency campaign number: 11v244000 (steering, suspension). The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The VIN was unknown. The approximate failure mileage was 130,000.
Questions about the 2001 Nissan Pathfinder suspension
Does the 2001 Nissan Pathfinder have suspension problems?
Owners have filed 68 complaints about the suspension of the 2001 Nissan Pathfinder, 30% of all its complaints, more than any other problem.
At what mileage do 2001 Nissan Pathfinder suspension problems start?
The typical (median) mileage in owner complaints is 134,000 miles.
Was there a recall on the 2001 Nissan Pathfinder suspension?
Yes, 1 recall: 11V244000. Check your VIN to see if your car still needs the free repair.
What year does the Nissan Pathfinder have bad suspension?
The Nissan Pathfinder model years with the most suspension complaints are 1997 (105 complaints), 2001 (68 complaints) and 1996 (64 complaints).
Other 2001 Nissan Pathfinder problems
Steering 35Body 30Fuel system 28Engine 17Acceleration 11Brakes 11Airbags 9Seats 8Tires 8Electrical 7Transmission 3Visibility 3Wheels 3Lights 1Locks 1Seat belts 1
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