2013 Nissan Pathfinder Features & Specs

 

What's New for 2013

The 2013 Nissan Pathfinder is fully redesigned.

Introduction

The 2013 Nissan Pathfinder breaks with its truck heritage and abandons its body-on-frame architecture for a unibody platform shared with the Murano crossover. The current Pathfinder is a tough truck, adept at serious utility work like towing and off-roading, but Nissan feels this tough truck persona has been keeping it from a larger audience. Abysmal fuel economy hasn't helped, because the 4.0-liter V6 and five-speed automatic return just 15 mpg around town and 22 on the highway.
So the fourth-generation 2013 Pathfinder will share its basic platform with the Murano, and will also likely adopt its 3.5-liter V6 and continuously variable transmission (CVT). That combination is good for 18 mpg city/24 mpg highway in the Murano. Front-wheel drive will be standard, and Nissan says an "intuitive" all-wheel-drive system will be available.
With three rows, accommodations for seven passengers and what Nissan promises to be towing ability comparable to leaders in the segment of three-row crossovers, we wonder if the smaller V6 is up to the Pathfinder's daily duties. Then again, if those duties don't stray far from pulling a pair of water toys to the lake or carting the soccer team's starting midfield to practice and back, it should be plenty.
The 2013 Nissan Pathfinder will be available in September and goes up against an increasingly tough class that includes the Chevrolet Traverse, Dodge Durango and the redesigned Ford Explorer. The Hyundai Veracruz, Mazda CX-9 and Toyota Highlander are also formidable considerations for crossover buyers. Check back for more information, including buying advice, complete specs and driving impressions, as it becomes available.

Mechanical

Engine & Performance

• Base engine size: 3.5 L
• Cam type: Double overhead cam (DOHC)
• Cylinders: V6
• Valve timing: Variable

• Base engine type: gas

DriveTrain

• Drive type: rear wheel drive
• Transmission: continuously variable-speed automatic

Fuel

• Fuel type: gas
• Fuel type: regular unleaded