The Pathfinder has standard driver and passenger side airbags combined with three-point seat belts, a combination which is 29% more effective in preventing injury and death than seatbelts alone.
To maximize occupant safety, the front and second-row seat shoulder belts of the Nissan Pathfinder have pretensioners to eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers.
For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Nissan Pathfinder are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up.
The Pathfinder has shoulder harnesses for all passengers. Shoulder harnesses are 10% more effective than lap belts in preventing injuries from collisions. Recent studies indicate that lap belts alone may cause as many or more injuries than they prevent.
The Pathfinder has standard child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors.
In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Pathfinder are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out.
The Nissan Pathfinder has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision.
The Pathfinder has standard front and rear seat side-impact airbags and head airbags for all three seat rows, which act as a forgiving barrier between the passengers and the door. Combined with high-strength steel door beams this system increases protection from broadside collisions.
The Pathfinder Platinum has a standard front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts.
Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the Pathfinder deploy with different levels of force or don't deploy at all to help better protect passengers of all sizes in different collisions. Airbags without smart features will always deploy full force.
The Pathfinder has standard four-wheel antilock disc brakes for quicker stops and controlled steering ability, especially under poor traction conditions.
The Pathfinder has standard Automatic Emergency Braking, which use forward mounted sensors to warn the driver of a possible collision ahead. If the driver doesn't react and the system determines a collision is imminent, it automatically applies the brakes at full-force in order to reduce the force of the crash or avoid it altogether.
With its standard Automatic Emergency Braking with Pedestrian Detection, the Nissan Pathfinder is excellent at preventing collisions with pedestrians, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety:
|
|
Pathfinder |
| Overall Evaluation |
GOOD |
| Crossing Child - DAY |
|
| 12 MPH |
-11 MPH |
| 25 MPH |
AVOIDED |
| Crossing Adult - NIGHT |
|
| 12 MPH Brights |
AVOIDED |
| 12 MPH Low beams |
AVOIDED |
| 25 MPH Brights |
AVOIDED |
| 25 MPH Low beams |
AVOIDED |
| Parallel Adult - NIGHT |
|
| 25 MPH Brights |
AVOIDED |
| 25 MPH Low beams |
AVOIDED |
| 37 MPH Brights |
AVOIDED |
| Warning Issued-Brights |
1.7 sec |
| 37 MPH Low beams |
AVOIDED |
| Warning Issued-Low beams |
1.5 sec |
Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Pathfinder has standard Rear Automatic Braking that use rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a collision.
For much better traction, the Pathfinder has front-wheel drive. While accelerating the rear wheels of a rear-wheel drive vehicle can break loose, causing it to fishtail or even spin and lose control completely. ‘Oversteering' or spinning in a rear wheel drive car requires counter-steering, and backing off the gas may not help.
To prevent wheel-spin and loss of control under poor traction conditions, full range traction control is standard on the Nissan Pathfinder.
The Pathfinder has standard Vehicle Dynamic Control (VDC), which uses the antilock brake hardware along with powerful software and additional sensors to detect the beginning of a skid. VDC then intervenes by automatically applying the brake at one appropriate wheel, preventing a skid. A National Highway Traffic Safety Administration study showed that skid control systems reduced single-vehicle SUV crashes by 67%.
When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Pathfinder 4WD's standard Hill Descent Control allows you to creep down safely.
The Nissan Pathfinder has Daytime Running Lights to help keep it more visible under all conditions. Canadian government studies show that driving with lights during the day reduces accidents by 11% by making vehicles more conspicuous.
The Pathfinder's lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane.
The Pathfinder has standard Rear Sonar System to help warn drivers about vehicles, pedestrians or other obstacles behind or in front of their vehicle. The Pathfinder also has a standard backup monitor to help drivers see any and all obstacles behind their vehicle, and a standard (Rock Creek/SL/Platinum) Around View® Monitor to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle.
The Pathfinder's blind spot warning system uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle's blind spots where the side view mirrors don't reveal them.
To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Pathfinder's standard Rear Cross Traffic Alert uses sensors in the rear to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions.
The Pathfinder's driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year.
For better protection of the passenger compartment, the Pathfinder uses safety cell construction with a three-dimensional high-strength frame that surrounds the passenger compartment. It provides extra impact protection and a sturdy mounting location for door hardware and side impact beams. A body-on-frame design has no frame members above the floor of the vehicle.
Compared to metal, the Pathfinder's plastic fuel tank can withstand harder, more intrusive impacts without leaking; this decreases the possibility of fire.
The Pathfinder's gas tank is mounted inside the frame rails in front of the rear axle to optimally protect the fuel tank in a collision. A gas tank mounted behind the rear axle is more susceptible to rear collisions.
The Pathfinder SV/Rock Creek/SL/Platinum has standard NissanConnect Services, which uses a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver and a cellular system to get turn-by-turn driving directions, help track down your vehicle if it's stolen or send emergency personnel to the scene if any airbags deploy. Without a GPS response system, if you're involved in an accident and you're incapacitated help may not come as quickly.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Nissan Pathfinder is safe:
|
|
Pathfinder |
|
|
Driver |
| STARS |
4 Stars |
| HIC |
150 |
| Neck Injury Risk |
31% |
| Neck Stress |
348 lbs. |
| Neck Compression |
53 lbs. |
| Leg Forces (l/r) |
156/136 lbs. |
|
|
Passenger |
| STARS |
4 Stars |
| HIC |
312 |
| Chest Compression |
.6 inches |
| Neck Injury Risk |
45.1% |
| Neck Stress |
216 lbs. |
| Neck Compression |
93 lbs. |
| Leg Forces (l/r) |
236/309 lbs. |
New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety does 40 MPH moderate front offset crash tests on new cars. In this updated test, results indicate that the Pathfinder is safe:
|
|
Pathfinder |
| Overall Evaluation |
GOOD |
| Structure |
GOOD |
| Driver Injury Measures |
|
| Head/Neck Rating |
GOOD |
| Head Injury Criterion |
123 |
| Peak Head Forces |
0 G's |
| Neck Injury Chance |
29% |
| Chest Rating |
GOOD |
| Max Chest Compression |
1 inches |
| Thigh/hip Rating |
GOOD |
| Thigh Forces L/R |
112/225 pounds |
| Leg/foot Rating |
GOOD |
| Restraints |
GOOD |
| Rear Passenger Injury Measures |
|
| Head/Neck Rating |
GOOD |
| Head Injury Criterion |
no contact |
| Neck Injury Chance |
0% |
| Chest Rating |
GOOD |
| Thigh Rating |
GOOD |
| Thigh Compression L/R |
22/22 pounds |
| Restraints |
ACCEPTABLE |
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety does 40 MPH moderate front offset crash tests on new cars. In this original test, results indicate that the Nissan Pathfinder is safe:
|
|
Pathfinder |
| Overall Evaluation |
GOOD |
| Structure |
GOOD |
| Restraints |
GOOD |
| Head injury index |
174 |
| Peak Head G-forces |
no hit |
| Neck Tension |
1.4 kN |
| Chest Compression |
29 mm |
| Femur Force |
.7 kN/.8 kN |
| Tibia index |
.29/.3 |
(This test is not comparable to the NHTSA NCAP 35 MPH front crash test.)
A significantly tougher test than their original offset frontal crash test, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety does 40 MPH small overlap frontal offset crash tests. In this test, where only 25% of the total width of the vehicle is struck, results indicate that the Nissan Pathfinder is safe:
|
|
Pathfinder |
| Overall Evaluation |
GOOD |
| Restraints |
GOOD |
| Head Neck Evaluation |
GOOD |
| Head injury index |
109 |
| Peak Head Forces |
0 G's |
| Steering Column Movement Rearward |
0 cm |
| Chest Evaluation |
GOOD |
| Max Chest Compression |
25 cm |
| Hip & Thigh Evaluation |
GOOD |
| Femur Force R/L |
.7/.3 kN |
| Hip & Thigh Injury Risk R/L |
0%/0% |
| Lower Leg Evaluation |
GOOD |
| Tibia index R/L |
.54/.36 |
| Tibia forces R/L |
1.8/.8 kN |
(This test is not comparable to the NHTSA NCAP 35 MPH front crash test.)
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Nissan Pathfinder is safe:
|
|
Pathfinder |
| OVERALL STARS |
5 Stars |
|
|
Front Seat |
| STARS |
5 Stars |
| HIC |
84 |
| Chest Movement |
.9 inches |
| Abdominal Force |
138 lbs. |
| Hip Force |
244 lbs. |
|
|
Rear Seat |
| STARS |
5 Stars |
| HIC |
88 |
| Spine Acceleration |
33 G's |
| Hip Force |
461 lbs. |
|
|
Into Pole |
| STARS |
5 Stars |
| Max Damage Depth |
14 inches |
| HIC |
234 |
| Spine Acceleration |
37 G's |
| Hip Force |
466 lbs. |
New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.
In a 31 MPH side-impact test, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety crashes a 3300 pound sled into the side of new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Nissan Pathfinder is safe:
|
|
Pathfinder |
| Overall Evaluation |
GOOD |
| Structure |
GOOD |
|
|
Driver |
| Head Protection Rating |
GOOD |
| Head Injury Rating |
GOOD |
| Torso Injury Rating |
GOOD |
| Pelvis/Leg Injury Rating |
GOOD |
| Head Injury Criterion |
100 |
| Shoulder Movement |
25 mm |
|
|
Rear Passenger |
| Head Protection Rating |
GOOD |
| Head Injury Rating |
GOOD |
| Torso Injury Rating |
GOOD |
| Pelvis/Leg Injury Rating |
GOOD |
Side impacts caused 23% of all road fatalities in 2018, down from 29% in 2003, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced its side barrier test. In order to continue improving vehicle safety, the IIHS has started using a more severe side impact test: 37 MPH (up from 31 MPH), with a 4180-pound barrier (up from 3300 pounds). The results of this newly developed test demonstrates that the Nissan Pathfinder is extremely safe:
|
|
Pathfinder |
| Overall Evaluation |
GOOD |
| Structure |
ACCEPTABLE |
| Driver Injury Measures |
|
| Head/Neck |
GOOD |
| Head Injury Criterion |
125 |
| Head Peak Forces |
no contact |
| Neck Tension |
268 lbs. |
| Neck Compression |
22 lbs. |
| Torso |
GOOD |
| Shoulder Deflection |
.63 in |
| Shoulder Force |
156 lbs. |
| Torso Max Deflection |
.94 in |
| Torso Deflection Rate |
5 MPH |
| Head Protection |
GOOD |
| Passenger Injury Measures |
|
| Head/Neck |
GOOD |
| Head Injury Criterion |
65 |
| Head Peak Forces |
no contact |
| Neck Tension |
89 lbs. |
| Neck Compression |
67 lbs. |
| Torso |
GOOD |
| Shoulder Deflection |
.55 in |
| Shoulder Force |
178 lbs. |
| Torso Max Deflection |
.75 in |
| Torso Deflection Rate |
4 MPH |
| Pelvis |
GOOD |
| Head Protection |
GOOD |
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) performs roof strength tests. In that test the Pathfinder earned the top rating of “Good” because its roof supported over four times the Pathfinder's weight before being crushed five inches.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety rates the general design of front seat head restraints for their ability to protect front seat occupants from whiplash injuries. The IIHS also performs a dynamic test on those seats with “good” or “acceptable” geometry. In these ratings, the Pathfinder with leather seats is safe:
|
|
Pathfinder |
| Overall Evaluation |
GOOD |
| Head Restraint Design |
GOOD |
| Dynamic Test Rating |
GOOD |
| Seat Design |
Pass |
| Torso Acceleration |
12.8 g's |
| Neck Force Rating |
Low |
| Max Neck Shearing Force |
0 |
(Lower numerical results are better in all tests.)
Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the Pathfinder, with its four-star roll-over rating, is less likely to roll over.
The Nissan Pathfinder has achieved the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's (IIHS) highest rating of “Top Safety Pick Plus” for the 2025 model year. This distinction is based on its exceptional performance in IIHS' rigorous battery of safety tests. Specifically, it earned a “Good” rating in the latest, more stringent moderate overlap front crash test, a “Good” result in the updated side impact test, and a “Good” score in the revised pedestrian crash prevention test.
